Chester Racecourse, also known as the Roodee, is a

racecourse A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also us ...

located in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. The

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 is officially recognised by

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...

as the "oldest racecourse still in operation". Horse racing in Chester dates back to the early sixteenth century, with 1539 cited as the year racing began, although some sources give a date of 1512 for the first races in Chester. It is also thought to be the smallest racecourse of significance in England at 1 mile and 1 furlong (1.8 km) long.

History

The racecourse lies on the banks of the River Dee. The site was once a harbour during the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

settlement of the city during the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...

, sometimes referred to as the Dark Ages, but was closed as the river

silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension (chemistry), suspension with water. Silt usually ...

ed up thus making navigation impossible. Towards the centre of the in field is a raised mound which is decorated by a small cross known as a "

rood A rood or rood cross, sometimes known as a triumphal cross, is a cross or crucifix, especially the large crucifix set above the entrance to the chancel of a medieval church. Alternatively, it is a large sculpture or painting of the crucifixio ...

". It is from this that the race course derives the name "Roodee"; Roodee is a corruption of "Rood Eye", meaning "The Island of the Cross", and is sometimes seen as "roody" in early sources. According to legend the cross marks the burial site of a statue of the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

sentenced to hang after causing the death of Lady Trawst, the wife of the Governor of Hawarden. The legend states that she had gone to church to pray for rain but when her prayers were answered by a tremendous thunderstorm the statue was loosened and fell, killing her. As a holy object, hanging or burning the statue would be sacrilege so the statue was left by the banks of the river and the tide carried it down to Chester. The statue was found guilty by a jury of 12 men. If the legend is true, then this is the first recorded case of a jury being used in a court. In an alternate version of the legend, the statue was instead carried to St John's Church. An ancient statue of the Virgin was recorded at the time of the reformation but may not be the same one. The statue was thrown down as a relic of popery, used as a whipping post for scholars and burned. Less fanciful is a report from 1840 that the stone obelisk is the base of a cross that marked the boundary of the Benedictine Nunnery, the nunnery having been created in the mid 12th century, and dissolved in January 1540. The cross was known as the Rood Dee (the Dee cross), to distinguish it from the

cross A cross is a religious symbol consisting of two Intersection (set theory), intersecting Line (geometry), lines, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of t ...

at St. Peter's Church. The site was formerly the home of the original Chester Midsummer Watch Parade, temporarily banned by

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

but finally abolished in 1677. The east of the race course abuts directly onto Chester's ancient

city walls A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with to ...

which were once used to moor

trading vessels, before the course of the river changed. Spectators can watch races for free from the walls which offer a clear view of the whole circuit. The

Grosvenor Bridge Grosvenor Bridge, originally known as, and alternatively called Victoria Railway Bridge, is a railway bridge over the River Thames in London, between Vauxhall Bridge and Chelsea Bridge. Originally constructed in 1860, and widened in 1865 and ...

, at one time the longest single arch bridge in the world, passes over the south-eastern corner. The north of the course is bordered by a long railway bridge carrying the

North Wales Coast Line The North Wales Main Line ( or ; ), also known as the North Wales Coast Line (), is a major railway line in the north of Wales and Cheshire, England, running from Crewe on the West Coast Main Line to Holyhead on the Isle of Anglesey. The lin ...

(shared with the

Shrewsbury–Chester line The Shrewsbury–Chester line is a railway line between Chester and Shrewsbury in England, with the line passing through Wrexham in Wales. Passenger train services are operated by Transport for Wales Rail between , in the north, and , in the so ...

) over the River Dee. The course is overlooked from the opposite bank of the river by the

mansions A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ... from the Latin w ...

of Curzon Park, which can be seen dominating the skyline from any of the three grandstands. The Welsh border is roughly a mile west of the racecourse.

Horse Racing

The Chester Racecourse site was home to the famous and bloody Goteddsday

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

match. The game was very violent and, in 1533, banned by the city, to be replaced in 1539 by horse racing. The first recorded race was held on 9 February 1539 (although other sources list this as 10 January 1511 and some as 1512) with the consent of the Mayor Henry Gee, whose name led to the use of the term "gee-gee" for horses. Races originally took place on Goteddsday (

Shrove Tuesday Shrove Tuesday (also known as Pancake Tuesday or Pancake Day) is the final day of Shrovetide, which marks the end of the pre-Lenten season. Lent begins the following day with Ash Wednesday. Shrove Tuesday is observed in many Christian state, Ch ...

) until 1609, and thereafter on

St George's Day Saint George's Day is the Calendar of saints, feast day of Saint George, celebrated by Christian churches, countries, regions, and cities of which he is the Patronages of Saint George, patron saint, including Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bu ...

, both major festivals during the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

period. Victors were awarded the "Chester Bells", a set of three decorative bells for decorating the horse's

bridle A bridle is a piece of equipment used to direct a horse. As defined in the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', the "bridle" includes both the that holds a bit that goes in the mouth of a horse, and the reins that are attached to the bit. It prov ...

, for winning a race five times round the "roody" and from 1744 the " Grosvenor Gold Cup", a small tumbler made from solid gold (later silver). In 1745, the meeting became a four-day one, with one race on each day. In 1766 a May Festival was introduced. In 1824 the Tradesmen's Cup Race (the predecessor to the Chester Cup) was also introduced. The racecourse was at that point still just an open field, with the first

grandstand A grandstand is a normally permanent structure for seating spectators, typically at sports stadiums and including both auto racing and horse racing. The grandstand is in essence like a single section of a stadium, but differs from a stadium i ...

finished in 1817 and the first admittance fee not being taken until 1897. The stand was rebuilt in 1899–1900, and was replaced after being destroyed by

arson Arson is the act of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, watercr ...

in 1985.

Today

The racecourse's position in the city makes race meetings at Chester very popular as it is only a very short stroll to all the hotels, bars, shopping and restaurants. The racecourse itself is just over long, flat and raced anti-clockwise or left-handed. The main characteristic of the course is the very short straight (). As such, long-strided horses, which perform better on straights, are at a distinct disadvantage. On 19 August 2006, Irish vocal pop band

Westlife Westlife are an Irish pop group formed in Dublin in 1998. The group consists of members Nicky Byrne, Shane Filan, Kian Egan and Mark Feehily. Brian McFadden was a member before leaving in March 2004. The group disbanded in 2012 and later reun ...

held a concert for their Face to Face Tour supporting their album '' Face to Face''. In 2008, a restaurant opened at the racecourse, named "1539", after the first year that horse racing took place in Chester. In May 2012, all former Tote betting positions were replaced by the racecourse's own in-house chesterBET betting system. In 2013 a new pub and restaurant called The White Horse was opened in the centre of the Course. The main race meetings at Chester were often broadcast on

Channel 4 Racing ''Channel 4 Racing'' is the name given to the horse racing coverage on the British television stations Channel 4 and More4. History The first transmission of racing on the channel was on 22 March 1984 from Doncaster, as it took over midweek cov ...

until 2016 and have been broadcast on ITV Racing since 2017. The Clerk of the Course is Andrew Morris, who is also Clerk of the Course for sister course

Bangor-on-Dee Bangor-on-Dee ( or Welsh Language Commissioner, standardised ) is a village and Community (Wales), community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, on the banks of the River Dee, Wales, River Dee. Until 1974 it was in the exclave of Flintshire (histo ...

, which is a

National Hunt National Hunt Racing, also known as Jump Racing, is a form of horse racing particular to many European countries, including, but not limited to: France, Great Britain and Ireland. Jump Racing requires horses to jump over fences and ditches. In ...

jumps course. Chester Racecourse has continually evolved to meet the needs and desires of modern racing fans, blending its rich history with a forward-thinking approach. In 2023, the racecourse introduced a state-of-the-art digital betting platform, which has enhanced the overall visitor experience In 2023, Chester Racecourse continues to uphold its legacy as one of the oldest and most vibrant racecourses in the United Kingdom. This year, the venue hosts a diverse range of events, including the prestigious May Festival, the Chester Cup, and Ladies Day, offering a blend of thrilling races, fashion, and entertainment. In addition to horse racing, the racecourse grounds serve as a venue for various other events throughout the year, including concerts, food festivals, and outdoor cinema screenings. Chester Racecourse has also broadened its culinary offerings, catering to a wide range of tastes from casual street food to fine dining experiences. 2023 also saw the introduction of a dynamic pricing system for Chester Races, designed to reward early bookings. The new system ensures the lowest ticket price at the point of checkout when tickets are added to the customer's basket, encouraging visitors to secure their spots at the events well in advance. There is no evidence to support dynamic ticketing pricing or that it provides additional early sales.

Notable races

;Other races * Earl Grosvenor Stakes * City Plate * Queensferry Stakes * Henry Gee Stakes * Stand Cup * Lily Agnes Conditions Stakes

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Official websiteAt The Races course guideChester Racecourse Pictures
{{Horse racing in Great Britain Horse racing venues in England Sports venues in Cheshire Sport in Chester Buildings and structures in the United Kingdom destroyed by arson Sports venues completed in the 16th century