Newmarket Walk: Town Centre【4K】

Located in the county of Suffolk, at the western end around 12 miles east of Cambridge, is the town of Newmarket.

The town is very strongly associated with Newmarket Racecourse on Newmarket Heath, just west of the town centre. It is believed that the Newmarket Heath area was inhabited as early as the Stone Age. During the Iron Age this area was owned by the Iceni Tribe, whose last ruler, Boudica/Boadicea led a rebellion against the Romans in 60/61 AD.

In 1200 AD royal permission was granted for a market in the town to the new Lord of the Manor, Sir Richard de Argentein, making it one of the oldest medieval markets in Suffolk. Brewing and baking industries developed to cater for pilgrims, merchants and travellers.

Newmarket's association with horse racing began in the early 17th century when King James I made hunting trips in the area. The oldest record of a horse race in Newmarket dates back to the 19th March 1619, where James I is said to have "tarried too long" in the town on account of wanting to see a race. A few decades later, in 1647, King Charles I was held prisoner in Newmarket Palace en route to his trial and execution in London. After the post-civil war Restoration of the Crown, Charles II visited Newmarket in 1666, ushering a prosperous era of racing in the town.

Newmarket Racecourse hosts two of the five "Classics" of UK flat racing, namely the 2000 Guineas Stakes and the 1000 Guineas Stakes. The 2000 Guineas was first run in 1809, and the 1000 Guineas was first run in 1814. The two respective names come from the original prize money. A guinea amounted to 21 shillings or £1.05. If you're confused by shillings, just ask your boomer relatives. The first railway line arrived in Newmarket in 1848, where it allegedly received priority status for construction as the nobility and MPs wanted to be able to visit Newmarket races and get there and back to London within a day.

In 2011 Frankel won the 2000 Guineas on his way to becoming the world's best thoroughbred racehorse, with a strong connection to the town. As of today the 2000 Guineas and 1000 Guineas have both been run for over 200 years, making them two of the oldest sporting competitions still running in the UK.

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Filmed: 12th April 2021

Link to the walk on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/yN5F3ki3z8YgqrgD9

Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 High Street
8:25 Palace Street
10:32 Sun Lane
11:27 High Street
12:02 Wellington Street
13:27 The Guineas Shopping Centre
14:10 Market Street
14:52 High Street