Dressage saddles desend directly from the saddles of the classical schools of the renaissance. Most modern Dressage saddles are made on spring trees and allow for a longer leg position which is near vertical. The stirrup bar is extended so that the stirrup leather is somewhat further to the rear.

The quality of the tree has a lot to do with the quality of the saddle. The best trees are made of laminated wood and moulded to the shape desired for a particular saddle style. these are then fitted with two strips of tempered steel laid from the head to the cantle. This produces the "spring effect.". The stirrup bars are recessed by fastening them to the reverse side of the tree. This lessens the bulk under the riders thigh. The advantage of the spring tree is that it has resilience thus gives greater comfort to the rider and it has the ability to "give" to the movement of the horese back.