Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of British horseracing and is home to the largest cluster of training yards in the country[1] and many key horse racing organisations, including Tattersalls, the National Horseracing Museum and the National Stud.

[2] Around 1665, Charles II inaugurated the Newmarket Town Plate and in 1671 became the first and only reigning monarch to ride a winner.

[2] King Charles was known to attend races on Newmarket Heath with his brother, the future James II.

The first recorded race was a match for £100 between horses owned by Lord Salisbury and the Marquess of Buckingham in 1622.

In 1999 the entire Newmarket programme was moved to the July Course whilst the new Millennium Grandstand at the Rowley Mile was being constructed.

The airstrips on the Rowley Mile were used during the Second World War by the Royal Air Force (RAF) as RAF Newmarket- the most important races were moved to the July Course during this period, which was the only racecourse in the UK that remained operational throughout the war.

About half of the racecourse complex, including the July and Cesarewitch/Beacon courses, is actually in the neighbouring county of Cambridgeshire.