The Rous Memorial Stakes was a flat horse race in Great Britain open to Thoroughbreds aged three years and over.
The Rous Memorial Stakes at Ascot was first run in 1878 as a one-mile race with a subscription of £10 each with £1000 added.
[1] The race commemorated Henry John Rous, who had died the previous year.
Rous was the official handicapper and developed the Weight for Age system.
[2] In the latter part of the nineteenth century there were several races run under the title of Rous Memorial Stakes, most notably a two-year-old race at Goodwood.