A horse fair is a (typically annual)

fair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

where people buy and sell

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...

s. 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 Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

there are many fairs which are traditionally attended by

Romani people The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sig ...

and travellers who converge at the fairs to buy and sell horses, meet with friends and relations and to celebrate their music, history and folklore. Many horse fairs are centuries old, dating back to the 16th century, such as the Appleby Horse Fair and The Great October Fair at Ballinasloe.

List of important horse fairs in the United Kingdom

* Appleby Horse Fair,

Appleby-in-Westmorland Appleby-in-Westmorland is a market town and civil parish in the Eden District of Cumbria, England, with a population of 3,048 at the 2011 Census. Crossed by the River Eden, Appleby was the county town of the historic county of Westmorland. I ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

Ballyclare May Fair The Ballyclare May Fair is a horse fair which is held annually in May at Ballyclare, in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The annual event attracts up to 20,000 visitors and over 100 stalls annually. Festivities The fair lasts seven days and be ...

Ballyclare Ballyclare () is a small town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 9,953 according to the 2011 census, and is located within the Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council area. It sits on the river Six Mile Water. The town ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

Barnet Fair Barnet Fair is an annual horse and pleasure fair held near Mays Lane, Barnet, England, on the first Monday in September. The Fair takes place over three days starting on 4 September. It still operates under its royal Charter which is issued ...

Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) * Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Brigg Fair Brigg Fair is a traditional English folk song sung by the Lincolnshire singer Joseph Taylor. The song, which is named after a historical fair in Brigg, Lincolnshire, was collected and recorded on wax cylinder by the composer and folk song colle ...

Brigg Brigg ( /'brɪg/) is a market town in North Lincolnshire, England, with a population of 5,076 in the 2001 UK census, the population increased to 5,626 at the 2011 census. The town lies at the junction of the River Ancholme and east–west tra ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

*Dartmoor Drift,

Dartmoor Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite which forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

*Horncastle Horse Fair, Lincolnshire *Lee Gap,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

*Stow Fair,

Stow-on-the-Wold Stow-on-the-Wold is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, on top of an 800-foot (244 m) hill at the junction of main roads through the Cotswolds, including the Fosse Way (A429), which is of Roman origin. The town was found ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

*Wickham Horse Fair, Wickham,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

Widecombe Fair Widecombe Fair is an annual fair in England, held in the Dartmoor village of Widecombe-in-the-Moor on the second Tuesday of September. It is well known as the subject of the folk song of the same name, featuring Uncle Tom Cobley and his fri ...

Widecombe-in-the-Moor Widecombe in the Moor () is a village and large civil parish in Dartmoor National Park in Devon, England. Its church is known as the Cathedral of the Moors on account of its tall tower and its size, relative to the small population it serves. It ...

Gallery

File:Adriaen Pietersz. van de Venne 002.jpg, Valkenburg horse fair, 1618 File:Paul Sandby - Horse Fair on Bruntsfield Links, Edinburgh - Google Art Project.jpg, 'Horse Fair on Bruntsfield Links, Edinburgh' by

Paul Sandby Paul Sandby (1731 – 7 November 1809) was an English map-maker turned landscape painter in watercolours, who, along with his older brother Thomas, became one of the founding members of the Royal Academy in 1768. Life and work Sandby was ...

, 1750 File:Stow Horse Fair - geograph.org.uk - 1576364.jpg, Stow Horse Fair, 1978 File:Appleby Horse Fair 2007 Gypsy Caravans and Horses - geograph.org.uk - 713928.jpg, Appleby Horse Fair, 2007 File:Ballinasloe Horse and Handler Sculpture by James McCarthy 2010 09 15.jpg, Bronze sculpture in reference to the

Ballinasloe Horse Fair The Ballinasloe Horse Fair (Irish: ''Aonach na gCapall'') is a horse fair which is held annually at Ballinasloe, the second largest town in County Galway, in the western part of Ireland. It is Europe's oldest and largest horse fair, dating ba ...

, 2003

References

{{horse-stub

List of important horse fairs in the United Kingdom

Gallery

See also

References