Founded by Queen Anne in 1711, Royal Ascot is organised by enclosure rather than by race, and the Royal Enclosure is the one that cannot be bought.
Royal Ascot, the centre of the British summer social calendar, runs five days of racing at Ascot Racecourse in Ascot, Berkshire, from Tuesday 15 to Saturday 19 June 2027.
Ascot dates from 1711, when Queen Anne rode out from Windsor Castle, six miles away, and decided the common was fit for racing. The first meeting was run on 11 August that year.
The first public grandstand went up in 1839 and has since been rebuilt five times. The course holds 80,000 and takes some 600,000 people across its racing year. It races over jumps as well as on the flat, which few of the great flat courses do.
The meeting is organised by enclosure rather than by day. The Windsor Enclosure sets no formal dress code, and the Queen Anne Enclosure asks for morning dress or a day dress and a hat. The Royal Enclosure admits Members and their guests alone, so a place there cannot be bought.
The Gold Cup on the Thursday is the race Ascot was built around. It is run over two and a half miles, the longest championship distance on the flat.