Lanark Racecourse (closed October 1977) was a Scottish

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, 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 basic p ...

venue, situated in the small town of

Lanark Lanark (; gd, Lannraig ; sco, Lanrik) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, located 20 kilometres to the south-east of Hamilton. The town lies on the River Clyde, at its confluence with Mouse Water. In 2016, the town had a population of 9 ...

in Scotland's

Central Belt The Central Belt of Scotland is the area of highest population density within Scotland. Depending on the definition used, it has a population of between 2.4 and 4.2 million (the country's total was around 5.4 million in 2019), including Great ...

, from

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

. It was reputedly founded by King

William the Lion William the Lion, sometimes styled William I and also known by the nickname Garbh, "the Rough"''Uilleam Garbh''; e.g. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 1214.6; Annals of Loch Cé, s.a. 1213.10. ( 1142 – 4 December 1214), reigned as King of Scots from 11 ...

of Scotland (1165-1214).

Overview

The course was a right-handed oval, round, with a run-in of around . It was home to Britain's oldest horse race, the Lanark Silver Bell, which after a gap of three decades following Lanark's closure, is now contested again at nearby

Hamilton Park Racecourse Hamilton Park racecourse is a thoroughbred horse racing venue in Hamilton, Scotland to the south of Glasgow. It is a flat racing venue, with a season which runs from May to September. The very first race to take place in Hamilton was in 1782 ...

. The original Silver Bell is commonly reported to have been a gift of

in the 12th century. While the original bell no longer exists, the present one dates from the 17th century. The course also staged the longest handicap in the Scottish racing calendar, the William the Lion Handicap, which closed the Scottish

flat racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, 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 basic p ...

season. The first aviation meeting to be held in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

was held at Lanark Racecourse between 6 and 13 August 1910. This location was chosen because the land was relatively flat, the racecourse already had facilities for a paying public, there were stables to act as hangars for the aeroplanes and the racecourse was accessible by both road and by rail, especially as The Caledonian Railway Company were prepared to construct a new station near the main entrance. The aeroplanes were transported to the meeting by rail, as aviation technology at the time was not advanced enough to safely fly there. The Lanark meeting took place shortly after a similar event in

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

at which

Charles Rolls Charles Stewart Rolls (27 August 1877 – 12 July 1910) was a British motoring and aviation pioneer. With Henry Royce, he co-founded the Rolls-Royce car manufacturing firm. He was the first Briton to be killed in an aeronautical accident with ...

died. Influenced by this, it was decided that no aircraft would fly closer than away from the spectators. For the first time, aeroplanes were accurately timed over a straight measured distance, allowing the first world records to be set, covering flights over . The meeting was described by ''The Aero'' magazine as 'the most successful yet held in Britain'.Arthur W.J.G. Ord-Hume. ''Scotland's Aviation History'', Stenlake Publishing, 2014. Racing at Lanark was of a modest quality, and race meetings were only attended by the faithful Scottish race-goer. It closed in October 1977 due to financial problems. The remains of the course are still visible today.

References

Bibliography

* * * Defunct horse racing venues in Scotland Lanark 1977 disestablishments in Scotland Sports venues in South Lanarkshire {{horseracing-venue-stub