Down Royal Racecourse is a

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

venue near

Lisburn Lisburn ( ; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with t ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. The most valuable race run there is the Ladbrokes Champion Chase, run at the Northern Ireland Festival of racing in November. The most valuable

flat race National Hunt flat races, informally known as bumper races, are a type of flat racing but run under National Hunt racing rules in Britain and Ireland. National Hunt flat races were created on 15 July 1891 when a conference between the stewards of ...

to be run there annually is the Ulster Derby. Racing has been taking place on the current course, at Maze near Lisburn, since the early 18th Century on land donated by Arthur Hill, 1st Marquess of Downshire, but the history of Down Royal goes further back to 1685 when King James II issued a Royal Charter and formed the Down Royal Corporation of Horse Breeders. In 1750 King George II donated £100 to run King's Plate and to the present day a race named His Majesty's Plate is run in July over 1 mile 5 furlongs with the prize money contributed to by the Privy Purse. Although actually in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, racing at Down Royal comes under the authority of

Horse Racing Ireland Horse Racing Ireland (HRI; ) is the governing body of horse racing on the island of Ireland. It is based in the Curragh, County Kildare, next to the racecourse of that name. HRI was founded in 2001, succeeding the Irish Horseracing Authority, ...

as horse-racing in the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

is divided on a

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

All-Ireland All-Ireland (sometimes All-Island) is a term used to describe organisations and events whose interests extend over the entire island of Ireland, as opposed to the separate jurisdictions of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. "All-Irelan ...

basis.

Notable races

References

External links

Website
Sports venues in County Antrim Sports venues in County Down Sport in Lisburn Buildings and structures in Lisburn {{UK-horseracing-venue-stub