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This article is about the piece of equipment. For the bone, see stapes. For other uses, see Stirrup (disambiguation).
A modern working stirrup on an endurance riding saddle

A stirrup is a light frame or ring that holds the foot of a rider, attached to the saddle by a strap, often called a stirrup leather. Stirrups are usually paired and are used to aid in mounting and as a support while using a riding animal (usually a horse or other equine, such as a mule).[1] They greatly increase the rider's ability to stay in the saddle and control the mount, increasing the animal's usefulness to humans in areas such as communication, transportation and warfare.

In antiquity, the earliest foot supports consisted of riders placing their feet under a girth or using a simple toe loop. Later, a single stirrup was used as a mounting aid, and paired stirrups appeared after the invention of the treed saddle. The stirrup was apparently invented in China in the first few centuries A.D. and spread westward through the nomadic peoples of Central Eurasia.[2] The use of paired stirrups is credited to the Chinese Jin Dynasty and came to Europe during the Middle Ages. Some argue that the stirrup was one of the basic tools used to create and spread modern civilization, possibly as important as the wheel or printing press.

Modern stirrups come in a wide variety of styles, sizes and materials and are attached to most saddles by means of adjustable stirrup leathers, which can be altered in length to fit both the size of the rider and the need to remain over the horse's optimal center of balance for a given equestrianism discipline. There are safety concerns associated with the use of stirrups, including a risk that a fallen rider may get their foot caught in the stirrup and be dragged by the horse, or that long hours of use without rest may cause problems in the human foot's Peroneus Tertius tendon. Stirrups are safer to use when riding boots are worn, and proper sizing and placement of the foot on the stirrup increases both safety and usability.

Lady's Stirrup, late 18th-19th century.


The English word "stirrup" stems from Old English stirap, stigrap, Middle English stirop, styrope,[3] i.e. a mounting or climbing-rope. From Old English stīgan "to ascend".


The stirrup, which gives greater stability to a rider, has been described as one of the most significant inventions in the history of warfare, prior to gunpowder. As a tool allowing expanded use of horses in warfare, the stirrup is often called the third revolutionary step in equipment, after the chariot and the saddle. The basic tactics of mounted warfare were significantly altered by the stirrup. A rider supported by stirrups was less likely to fall off while fighting, and could deliver a blow with a weapon that more fully employed the weight and momentum of horse and rider. Among other advantages, stirrups provided greater balance and support to the rider, which allowed the knight to use a sword more efficiently without falling, especially against infantry adversaries. Contrary to common modern belief, however, it has been asserted that stirrups actually did not enable the horseman to use a lance more effectively (cataphracts had used lances since antiquity), though the cantled saddle did.[4][unreliable source?]

Early development[edit]

Indus Valley seals showing an unidentified animal with some form of foot support, British Museum.

The invention of the stirrup occurred relatively late in history, considering that horses were domesticated in approximately 4500 BC, and the earliest known saddle-like equipment were fringed cloths or pads with breast pads and cruppers used by Assyrian cavalry around 700 BC.[5]

The earliest manifestation of the stirrup was a toe loop that held the big toe and was used in India late in the second century BC,[6][7] though may have appeared as early as 500 BC.[8] This ancient foot support consisted of a looped rope for the big toe which was at the bottom of a saddle made of fibre or leather. Such a configuration was suitable for the warm climate of south and central India where people used to ride horses barefoot.[9] A pair of megalithic double bent iron bars with curvature at each end, excavated in Junapani in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh have been regarded as stirrups although they could as well be something else.[10] Buddhist carvings in the temples of Sanchi, Mathura and the Bhaja caves dating back between the 1st and 2nd century BC figure horsemen riding with elaborate saddles with feet slipped under girths.[11][12] In this regard Sir John Marshall described the Sanchi relief as "the earliest example by some five centuries of the use of stirrups in any part of the world".[12] Later, a single stirrup was used as a mounting aid by a nomadic group known as the Sarmatians.[13]

Depiction of a Kushan divinity using an early platform-style stirrup, circa AD 150. British Museum.

The invention of the solid saddle tree allowed development of the true stirrup as it is known today.[14] Without a solid tree, the rider's weight in the stirrups creates abnormal pressure points and make the horse's back sore.[15] Modern thermography studies on "treeless" and flexible-tree saddle designs have found that there is considerable friction across the center line of a horse's back.[16] A coin of Quintus Labienus, who was in service of Parthia, minted circa 39 B.C. depicts on its reverse a saddled horse with hanging objects. Smith suggests they are pendant cloths, while Thayer suggests that, considering the fact that the Parthians were famous for their mounted archery, the objects are stirrups, but adds that it is difficult to imagine why the Romans would never have adopted the technology.[17]

In Asia, early solid-treed saddles were made of felt that covered a wooden frame.[18] These designs date to approximately 200 BC.[19] One of the earliest solid-treed saddles in the west was first used by the Romans as early as the 1st century BC,[20] but this design also did not have stirrups.[19] The first dependable representation of a rider with paired stirrups was found in China in a Jin Dynasty tomb of about AD 322.[21][22][23] The stirrup appeared to be in widespread use across China by AD 477.[24]

Stirrups in Europe[edit]

By the late 6th or early 7th century, primarily due to invaders from Central Asia, such as the Avars, stirrups began spreading across Asia to Europe from China.[2] In terms of archaeological finds, the iron pear-shaped form of stirrups, the ancestor of medieval European types, has been found in Europe in 7th century Avar graves in Hungary.[25] A total of 111 specimens of early Avar-age, apple shaped, cast-iron stirrups with elongated suspension loop and flat, slightly inward bent tread had been excavated from 55 burial sites in Hungary and surrounding regions by 2005.[26] The first European literary reference to the stirrup may be in the Strategikon, traditionally ascribed to the Byzantine Emperor Maurice, and therefore written sometime between 575 and 628 AD, but this is widely disputed, and the work is placed in the eighth or ninth century by others.[27] Maurice's manual notes the appropriate equipping of Imperial cavalry: "the saddles should have large and thick clothes; the bridles should be of good quality; attached to the saddles should be two iron steps [skala], a lasso with a thong...." [28] Dennis notes that the lack of specific Greek word for stirrup evidences their novelty to the Byzantines, who are supposed to have adopted these from their bitter enemy the Avars, and subsequently passed them on to their future enemies, the Arabs.[29] An early 7th-century date is secured for most Hungarian finds of stirrups with elongated suspension loops, though some of these must even be dated to before 600.[30] Literary and archaeological evidence taken together may indicate that the stirrup was in common military use in South-Central Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean by the latter half of the 6th century, with the Byzantine Empire having them in use by the year 600.[31]

By the 8th century stirrups began to be adopted more widely by Europeans.[32] The earliest stirrups of western Europe, those of Budenheim and Regensburg, were either brought from the Avar Khaganate as booty or gifts, or were local imitations of stirrups in use at that time among Avar warriors.[33] However, the Avar-style stirrups were not as widely adopted in western Europe. Stirrups do not appear in the Merovingian and Italo-Lombard milieu in large numbers, nor as frequently as within the Carpathian Basin.[33] Most other stirrups found in Germany that date to the 7th century do not resemble the iron Avar style commonly found in burial assemblages from Hungary and neighboring regions. Instead, hanging mounts occasionally found in burial assemblages in southern Germany suggest the use of wooden stirrups.[34] The scarcity of early-medieval stirrup finds in western Europe was noted by Bernard Bachrach: "Out of 704 eighth century male burials excavated in Germany untill [sic] 1967, only 13 had stirrups."[35]

10th century stirrup found in England

The earliest stirrups in the Baltic region are replicas of those in existence in Germany during the 7th century.[36] In northern Europe and Britain the metamorphosis of earlier wood, rope and leather forms of stirrups to metal forms can be seen in the archeological record, “suggesting that one or more of the early forms have parallel development with those in Hungary, rather than being derived solely from the latter region.”[37] "In Scandinavia two major types of stirrups are discerned, and from these, by the development and fusion of different elements, some almost certainly of central European origin, most other types were evolved."[38] The first main type, Scandinavian type I, appears to owe little to Hungarian forms. The earliest variety of this type can be dated to the 8th century in Vendel grave III in Sweden.[38] The second principal type in North Europe has, as its most characteristic feature, a pronounced rectangular suspension loop set in the same plane as the bow, as found amongst the Hungarian examples, and is predominantly centered in Denmark and England during the later 10th and 11th centuries.[39] A variant of this type, called the North European stirrup, has been dated to the second half of the 10th century in Sweden, found at the boat-burial cemetery at Valsgärde.[39]

In Denmark from the 920s to the 980s, during the reign of the Jelling kings, many leading Danes were buried with military honors and equipped with stirrups, bits and spurs, in what are called cavalry-graves, found mostly in north Jutland.[40] Into England, it is argued, stirrups were not introduced by the Scandinavian settlers of the 9th century but are more likely related to later Viking raids led by Cnut the Great and others during the reign of king Aethelred (978-1013).[41]

In what today is France, Charles Martel distributed seized lands to his retainers on condition that they serve him by fighting in the new manner, which some attribute to his recognizing the military potentialities of the stirrup.[42] Later, Charlemagne ordered his poorer vassals to pool their resources and provide a mounted and armed knight, though the system proved unworkable, and instead the system of distributing land to vassals based on a knight's service was developed.[21]

Great Stirrup Controversy[edit]


Japanese stirrups[edit]


Stirrups (abumi) were used in Japan as early as the 5th century. They were flat bottomed rings of metal-covered wood, similar to European stirrups. The earliest known examples were excavated from tombs. Cup-shaped stirrups (tsuba abumi) that enclosed the front half of the rider's foot eventually replaced the earlier design.

During the Nara period, the base of the stirrup which supported the rider's sole was elongated past the toe cup. This half-tongued style of stirrup (hanshita abumi) remained in use until the late Heian period when a new stirrup was developed. The fukuro abumi or musashi abumi had a base that extended the full length of the rider's foot and the right and left sides of the toe cup were removed. The open sides were designed to prevent the rider from catching a foot in the stirrup and being dragged.

Antique Edo period Japanese (samurai) abumi (stirrup).

The military version of this open-sided stirrup (shitanaga abumi) was in use by the middle Heian period. It was thinner, had a deeper toe pocket and an even longer and flatter foot shelf. This stirrup stayed in use until European style-stirrup rings were reintroduced in the late 19th century. It is not known why the Japanese developed this unique style of stirrup.[45] The abumi had a distinctive swanlike shape, curved up and backward at the front so as to bring the loop for the leather strap over the instep and achieve a correct balance. Most of the surviving specimens from this period are made entirely of iron, inlaid with designs of silver or other materials, and covered with lacquer. In some examples there is an iron rod from the loop to the footplate near the heel to prevent the foot from slipping out. The footplates are occasionally perforated to let out water when crossing rivers, and these types are called suiba abumi. There are also abumi with holes in the front forming sockets for a lance or banner.[46]

Stirrup leathers[edit]

The stirrup bar on an English saddle, for the attachment of a stirrup leather



Stirrup leathers are usually manufactured so that the smooth side of the leather faces the wearing surface, as the smooth side wears less quickly than the rough side. There are also modern alternatives to leather, including nylon, plastic covered nylon (biothane being one example) or leather over a nylon reinforced core. These new "leathers" may last longer and also resist stretching. On the other hand, they may chafe and rub the leg, and poorly made products may break more easily than leather.


Adjustment and uses of stirrups[edit]

The long stirrups of the dressage rider allow for a long leg, thus giving the greatest amount of communication
The short stirrups of a jockey allow the rider to stay over the galloping horse's center of balance and allow the horse to reach the maximum possible speed









Weaknesses in design[edit]


One reason riders can become hung up is due to improper stirrup sizing. If the stirrup is too large, the foot can go through the stirrup opening and be caught. If the stirrup is too small, the foot can become trapped more easily as the foot cannot free itself. The main reason for a rider to become hung up in the irons is due to the 'closing door effect' of a lost stirrup trying to return to lie flat against the side of the horse. When the rider falls and the stirrup is free, it tends to return to its home position flat against the horse's side. As the stirrup returns to the horse, the opening for the foot gets smaller and smaller and can catch a falling rider's boot in that smaller opening.(see Fitting the stirrup, below). Proper stirrup placement, on the ball of the foot, instead of jammed "home" clear up to the arch, also lowers the risk of a rider being dragged.



The second design flaw of the stirrup affects the health of the human foot. The rider's whole weight is at times supported entirely by the stirrups. During these periods, excessive pressure can be exerted on the peroneus tertius tendon, which runs along the lateral side of the foot. In extreme cases, stirrups have been found to cause damage to the tuberosity of the fifth metatarsal bone. Over long periods of extreme use, this can cause various medical conditions ranging from simple impaired walking to severe pronation or supination of the foot. Normal riders, however, generally have no related problems, even over a lifetime of riding. Disciplines that require long hours in the saddle, such as endurance riding and some types of western riding on a working ranch, often use a wider stirrup to provide more support to the foot.


Riding boots[edit]

Main article: Riding boot



Modern stirrups[edit]



English-style stirrups[edit]

Modern fillis stirrups


Some variations include:

  • Standard iron: The most common stirrup iron, consisting of a tread, with two branches, and an eye at the top for the leather to run through. The main styles seen today include:
    • Fillis: A design with a heavy tread, and branches that rise to the eye in a rounded triangular shape.
    • Prussian: A rounder and lighter design.
  • Safety stirrups. There are a number of designs intended to release the foot more easily in the event of a fall. One style has an outside branch that is curved, rather than straight. Other designs feature a breakaway outer branch which will detach with sufficient pressure, freeing the foot.
  • Other designs: have joints or hinges in the branches of the stirrups to allow for them to flex. However, one model was recalled in 2007 due to a tendency for the hinges to break.[48] A variation on the hinged stirrup is the Icelandic Stirrup, which has the eye fixed at a 90 degree rotation to allow for less stress on the tendons, and easier retrieval should a stirrup be lost. There are a number of other patented designs with various features that are usually intended to either increase comfort or to assist proper foot position.

Western-style stirrups[edit]

A Western saddle has wide stirrups and heavy stirrup leathers

The stirrup of a western saddle is more difficult to remove or replace than the English stirrup and therefore, unless damaged or a different style is desired, the same stirrups usually are kept on for the life of the saddle itself. The tread is mostly flat, but may be curved at the sides to some degree. The branches are wide at the bottom and narrow at the top, where they are joined by a heavy dowel of wood, or rod of metal. The stirrup leather loops under the rod and a "keeper," a strap with a buckle that wraps around the front and back of the stirrup leather, keeps the stirrup in place. Western stirrups are generally made of leather-covered wood, others of steel, aluminum, or even very strong fiber-reinforced plastic.


Fitting the stirrup[edit]



Placement of the stirrup on the foot[edit]

The stirrup "home" on a polo player, providing security, but little flexibility in the ankle.




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  5. ^ Saddles, Author Russel H. Beatie, Publisher University of Oklahoma Press, 1981, ISBN 080611584X, 9780806115849 P.18
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  24. ^ Hobson, John M. The Eastern Origins of Western Civilisation. Cambridge University Press,2004, p. 103 ISBN 978-0-521-54724-6, ISBN 0-521-54724-5
  25. ^ Fields, Nic (2006). The Hun: Scourge of God AD 375-565. Osprey. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-84603-025-3. 
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  27. ^ See George T. Dennis (ed.), Maurice's Strategikon, p. XVI; for contrary views, Lynn White, Jr., Medieval Technology and Social Change, Oxford University Press, 1964, notes, p. 144.
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  38. ^ a b Seaby, p 91
  39. ^ a b Seaby p.92
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Additional sources[edit]

External links[edit]