Royal Ascot and its history
Royal Ascot is one of the most important Royal events of the year. The racecourse
was found by Queen Anne.
More about the history of this Royal Ascot Racecourse.
History
Windsor Castle, she came upon an area of open heath that looked, in her
words, 'ideal for horses to gallop at full stretch'.
London Gazette of 12 July 1711.
Her Majesty's Plate of 100 guineas will be run for round the new heat
on Ascott Common, near Windsor, on Tuesday, August 7th next, by any
horse, mare or gelding, being no more than six years old the grass before,
as must be certified under the hand of the breeder, carrying 12 St.,
three heats, to be entered the last day of July, at Mr. Hancock's, at
Fern Hill, near the Starting Post.
— Announcement of the first race meeting at Ascot,
London Gazette (12 July 1711)
That first meeting was held on 11 August 1711, the original date (and a
race scheduled for 6 August) having been postponed for reasons unspecified,
although it has been speculated that the course simply wasn't ready.
The Queen and a "brilliant suite" drove from Windsor Castle to witness it,
with the first race being a seven horse £50 plate, won by a horse called
Doctor owned by the Duke of St Albans.
Queen Anne's gift to racing, founding the Royal Racecourse, is
marked by the tradition of opening Royal Ascot with The Queen Anne
Stakes run over the straight mile.
Evolution of the race course
Royal Ascot evolved from the first four-day race meeting held at
Ascot in 1768, although the meeting as it is known today only really s
tarted to take shape with the introduction of The Gold Cup in 1807.
The first permanent building was not erected until 1793, and was built
by a local Windsor builder, George Slingsby. Holding 1,650 people,
it was used for almost fifty years. In 1813 an Act of Parliament
ensured that the Ascot Heath would be kept and used as a
racecourse for the public in the future, securing racing at Ascot
for future generations. A new grandstand was opened in 1839
at a cost of £10000.
In 1840 Queen Victoria (1819 - 1901) attended the Royal Ascot
race meeting at Ascot Racecourse, Berkshire.
Until 1939, Royal Ascot was the only race meeting held at the
racecourse. The Gold Cup remains the feature race of the third day
of Royal Ascot, traditionally the busiest day of the week, when
high fashion and exquisite millinery take centre stage alongside
flat racing's most elite stayers. During the racecourse's redevelopment
in 2005, the Royal Meeting was held at York Racecourse.
Each of the five days of Royal Ascot begins with the Royal Procession
at 2pm, when the Queen and other members of the royal family
arrive down the straight mile in the Royal Landaus, accompanied by
the playing of the National Anthem and the raising of the Royal Standard.
This tradition was started in 1825 by King George IV.
Up until 1901, the racecourse was managed by the Master of the Royal
Buckhounds. Lord Churchill was appointed His Majesty's Representative
in 1901, responsible for running the course and determining entrance to
the Royal Enclosure. The Ascot Authority was established in 1913 by a
further Act of Parliament, with His Majesty's Representative becoming
Senior Trustee.
Today, as Ascot Authority (Holdings) Limited, Ascot has a formal board
chaired by Sir Francis Brooke Bt. who also serves as Her Majesty's
Representative (Senior Trustee) at Ascot.
👉 It was here that then Prince Edward announced in 1894 the birth of
his granson the later King Edward VII.
World War II
Between 1940 and 1943 racing was not run at Ascot. The racecourse
was commandeered by the army with the Grandstand providing
accommodation for gunners of the Royal Artillery.
Racing resumed on 15 May 1943 with an eight-race card. The first
post-war fixture was held on 21 May 1945, when the then 19-year-old
Princess Elizabeth attended Ascot for the first time. The first National Hunt
meeting was held at Ascot in 1965, the course having been established
using turf from Hurst Park Racecourse, which closed in 1962.
After the war
In 2004, Ascot Racecourse was closed for a £220 million redevelopment,
the single biggest investment in British Racing. The Racecourse was
reopened by the Queen on 20 June 2006.
The redevelopment was designed by HOK (firm), engineered by
Buro Happold and built by Laing O'Rourke. The main part of
the redevelopment programme was the construction of the
30m x 300m lightweight parasol roof structure of the grandstand,
this was designed and built by Austrian specialist contractor Waagner-Biro.
At the end of 2006 a £10 million programme of further alterations
was announced to improve the viewing from lower levels of the
grandstand using an innovative steel composite product ("SPS" sandwich
plate system) to reprofile the existing concrete terraces.
As an owner and breeder of racehorses, the Queen takes a keen
interest in racing. The jockeys riding the Queen's horses can be
identified by her racing colours: purple body with gold braid, scarlet
sleeves, and a black velvet cap with gold fringe. The Queen has not
missed the annual Royal Meeting since her Coronation in 1953, and
traditionally presents The Gold Cup and The Diamond Jubilee Stakes
each year.
In 2013, The Queen's filly, Estimate, triumphed in Ascot's showpiece race,
The Gold Cup – the first time that The Gold Cup has been won by a
reigning monarch.
source picture: book cover
Fashion & dresscode at Royal Ascot
navy or black morning dress and top hat, and women wearing formal daywear
and a hat with a solid base of 4 inches or more in diameter. The origins of
the Royal Ascot Dress Code can be traced back to the early 19th century
when Beau Brummel, a close friend of the Prince Regent, decreed that men
of elegance should wear waisted black coats and white cravats with
pantaloons to the Royal Meeting.
granting guests access to the Parade Ring, Grandstand and Trackside Lawns.
Guests in the Queen Anne Enclosure are also invited to participate in the daily
tradition of singing around the Bandstand after racing. The Dress Code in
the Queen Anne Enclosure is still formal, but more relaxed than that
of the Royal Enclosure. Women must dress in a manner that befits a
formal occasion and must wear a hat or fascinator at all times. Gentlemen
are required to wear a full-length suit with a collared shirt, tie and socks
covering the ankle.
with no formal Dress Code. Guests in the Windsor Enclosure are the
first to view the Royal Procession as the enclosure is positioned to the
east of the Grandstand along the Straight Mile. The Village Enclosure
has been a successful addition since 2017 and is located on the Heath,
in the middle of the racecourse. This enclosure, open from the Thursday
to Saturday of the Royal Meeting, offers a combination of exciting street
food, al fresco dining, live music and unique views of the track and
famous Ascot Grandstand.
formal to that of the Queen Anne Enclosure, with women wearing formal
daywear and a hat and men wearing jackets, full-length trousers, a tie and
socks covering the ankle.
Ascot Racecourse in popular culture
Gavotte scene in My Fair Lady (1964), as, following the death of
King Edward VII, Royal Ascot became "Black Ascot" with all
occupants of the Royal Enclosure 'dressing in black, save for
white flowers or strings of pearls'.
three times in James Bond productions, the first being in A View to a Kill
(1985), where Bond (played by Roger Moore) was beginning his mission
to defeat Max Zorin (Christopher Walken), whose horse was racing there.
stood in for St. Petersburg Airport, and finally in Skyfall (2012) where it
stood in for Shanghai Pudong International Airport.
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