The day racing changed forever: how the 1780 Derby sparked a 250-year turf revolution

From the whims and passions of royalty to the baser pleasures of the heaving masses, from the days of deep and unswerving devotion to onrushing modernity and existential doubts, horseracing has charted a turbulent course through history.

In the modern era, Pattern races and the Classics stand tall in a changing topography, where big business dominates the world of bloodstock and the big money comes from the ruling classes of other lands.

What remains constant is the sport, the horses pitted against each other, whether for the improvement of the breed, bragging rights among owners or the entertainment of the betting public. Even this, however, has undergone many changes, in form and context, in the 400-plus years of racing in its organised form in Britain and Ireland.