Hilltop News
April 20, 1999 – January 20, 2015
“Good-night, sweet prince; And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.” ~ William Shakespeare
It is with a broken heart that we share the news of Royal Prince’s passing this week. Late in the afternoon of January 20th Royal Prince presented an acute colic and was immediately taken to New Bolton Center. Unfortunately due to complications discovered during surgery, the only humane choice was to euthanize him.
Royal Prince had a significant impact at Hilltop Farm. In 2004 with Susanne Hassler, he placed fourth at the FEI World Championships for Young Horses – the highest American finish at the Championships to this day. Royal Prince later helped Michael Bragdell earn his USDF Bronze and Silver Medals and he showed at Prix St. Georges with Chris Hickey. Royal Prince developed into one of our most prominent stallions including winning the USEF Dressage Breeding Sire of the Year Award for five consecutive years. His offspring have been consistent winners at breed shows and inspections. To date he has eight Elite Mare/Elite Mare Candidate daughters with the American Hanoverian Society and seven Premium Mares with ISR/Oldenburg. His offspring have earned USDF Horse of the Year titles, Regional Championships, and USDF All-Breeds Awards.
Most importantly, Prince was part of our family. The barn feels a bit empty without him here and while we are grateful for the years we had with him, we can’t help but feel his time here was cut far too short. For those of you with a Royal Prince offspring – go out and give them a hug. We hope they bring as much joy to your lives as Prince has brought to ours and we’ll look to them to carry on Royal Prince’s legacy for years to come.
Stallion News
Hilltop Archives
Once again we made the long drive out to the beautiful Lamplight Equestrian Center in Wayne, IL for the Markel/USEF Young Horse Championships. Michael qualified two horses for the Championships this year.
With each step in their careers, the Riverman offspring continue to impress us with the versatile athleticism that has allowed them to succeed at the highest levels of most every discipline. Over the years we’ve seen Riverman ranked near the top the USEF Leading Sire rankings in multiple disciplines.
Hilltop Articles & Interviews
Whether you are learning about showing your horse in hand or just looking for some tips, this excerpt from the 2015 USDF Sport Horse Breeders/Handlers Seminar is for you – Showing Sport Horses In Hand with Michael Bragdell.
The dramatic view at Hilltop Farm is as beautiful as its magnificent horses, but the facility's scenic side in a relatively rural section of Maryland is just one of the many things that make it unique, the word most often used by people describing this one-of-a-kind property.
