Editing Newmarket, Suffolk (section)

==History==

Newmarket's name was first recorded in Latin as ''Novo Mercato'' in 1219 (according to [[The National Archives (United Kingdom)|The National Archives]], [[Feet of Fines]] CP25/1/23/9). The ''Novum Forum'' c.1200 recorded in many placename dictionaries such as that by Mills,<ref>Oxford Dictionary of British Place Names, A. D. Mills</ref> is an error; this was actually the surname ''de novo foro'' of a man from Yorkshire who had no connection to Newmarket.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Briggs |first1=Keith |title=The earliest records of Newmarket |journal=Journal of the English Place-Name Society |date=2020 |volume=52 |pages=68–75 |url=http://keithbriggs.info/Newmarket.html}}</ref> In 1223, Richard de Argentein was granted licence to hold an annual fair in Newmarket (from The National Archives, Henry III Fine Roll C60/18).

[[James VI and I|James I]] first visited Newmarket in February 1605, describing it as a "poor little village". From 1606 to 1610, he built the Newmarket Palace, an estate covering {{convert|1|acre|m2|sigfig=1|abbr=off}} of land from the High Street to All Saints' churchyard, and thus established the town as a royal resort. This also made Newmarket a horseracing town. The first palace building suffered from subsidence and sank on one side when King James was in residence in March 1613.<ref>Elizabeth McClure Thomson, ''The Chamberlain Letters'' (London, 1966), p. 126.</ref> [[Simon Basil]], and later, [[Inigo Jones]], were commissioned to build new lodgings for the King and the [[Charles I of Great Britain|Prince of Wales]]. Jones's design had three storeys and was [[Italianate]] in style.<ref>{{cite book | first=Simon | last=Thurley | author-link=Simon Thurley | title=Palaces of the Revolution, Life, Death & Art at the Stuart Court | publisher=Collins | year=2021 | pages=42–46}}</ref>

In 1642, [[Charles I of Great Britain|Charles I]] met a parliamentary deputation in Newmarket that demanded his surrender of the armed forces. "By God not for an hour", Charles replied, "You have asked such of me that was never asked of a King!" This effectively started the [[English Civil War]]. Newmarket remained [[Royalist (cavalier)|Royalist]] throughout the war. In early June 1647, Charles was captured at [[Holdenby House]] in [[Northamptonshire]] and brought to Newmarket as a prisoner. He was placed under house arrest in the palace while the whole of [[Oliver Cromwell|Cromwell]]'s [[New Model Army]] kept guard over the town. A survey in 1649 showed that the palace was in disrepair. The following year, the palace was sold to [[John Okey]] (one of [[:Category:Executed regicides of Charles I|the regicides]]), who demolished most of the buildings.<ref name=cromwell>{{Cite web|url=http://www.olivercromwell.org/newmarket.htm|title=Oliver Cromwell – Cromwell Britain – Newmarket|website=www.olivercromwell.org}}</ref>

Between 1666 and 1685, [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] often visited Newmarket. In 1668, he commissioned [[William Samwell (architect)|William Samwell]] to build a new palace on the High Street (on the site of the present United Reformed Church). However, in 1670, [[John Evelyn]] said that the palace was "meane enough, and hardly capable for a hunting house, let alone a royal palace!" In October 1677 and October 1695, [[William III of England|William of Orange]] visited Newmarket.

[[File:How to Escape Winning (BM J,4.66).jpg|thumb|''How to Escape Winning'' by [[Thomas Rowlandson]]. Escape's legs are bound by the motto of the [[Order of the Garter]], and his jockey is shown holding him back.]] In 1791 the [[George IV|Prince of Wales]]' horse [[Escape (horse)|Escape]], ridden by [[Samuel Chifney]], lost a race and then won one the next day, raising suspicions he'd lost the first race on purpose to raise the betting odds.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Mortimer |first1=Roger |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wuEYPQAACAAJ |title=Biographical Encyclopedia of British Flat Racing |last2=Onslow |first2=Richard |last3=Willett |first3=Peter |date=1978 |publisher=Macdonald and Jane's |isbn=978-0-354-08536-6 |language=en}}</ref> Jockey Club stewards [[Sir Charles Bunbury, 6th Baronet|Charles Bunbury]], Ralph Dutton and [[Thomas Panton]] told the prince that if he continued to employ Chifney, "no gentleman would start against him".<ref name=":12">{{Cite book |last=George |first=Mary Dorothy |author-link=M. Dorothy George |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DMD9twAACAAJ&q=Catalogue+of+Political+and+Personal+Satires+in+the+British+Museum |title=Catalogue of Political and Personal Satires Preserved in the Department of Prints and Drawings in the British Museum |date=1935 |publisher=[[British Museum]] |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=History of Flat Racing – QIPCO British Champions Series Hall of Fame |url=https://horseracinghof.com/history-of-racing/ |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=Hall of Fame |language=en-GB}}</ref> The prince instead announced he would no longer race at all.<ref name=":02">{{Cite web |title=Escape |url=https://www.bloodlines.net/TB/Bios/Escape.htm |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=[[Bloodlines.net]]}}</ref> He sold his stable and, despite pleas from the Jockey Club, never returned to Newmarket.<ref name=":12" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Setterfield |first=Ray |title=Prince of Wales Gallops Out of Horseracing After Scandal |url=https://www.onthisday.com/articles/prince-of-wales-gallops-out-of-horseracing-after-scandal |access-date=2024-10-06 |website=[[On This Day]] |language=en}}</ref>

At the start of the 19th century, the palace was largely demolished, but a section survives and is now named [[Palace House]].<ref name=cromwell/> During the 1800s, Newmarket south of the High Street spread into the parishes of [[Woodditton]] and [[Cheveley]] in Cambridgeshire. In 1894, the county border was moved to accommodate this, and has been further altered since.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=18797 |title=A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely |volume=10 |page=78 |publisher=Victoria County History}}</ref>

On 15 December 1977, an [[F111-F]] jet fighter crashed at [[Exning]] near Newmarket, owing to hydraulic failure.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=152987 |title=Accident General Dynamics F-111F 70-2380, 15 Dec 1977 |first=Harro |last=Ranter |website=aviation-safety.net |access-date=28 March 2018}}</ref>

Aired on 12 February 2012, the British television series ''[[Time Team]]'' [[Time Team (series 19)|excavated on the site]] of Charles II's palace at Newmarket and found foundations of racehorse stables.