The King's Plate (known as the Queen's Plate during the reigns of Queen Victoria and

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

) is an annual Grade I horse race at

Kenilworth Racecourse Kenilworth ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Warwick District in Warwickshire, England, south-west of Coventry, north of Warwick and north-west of London. It lies on Finham Brook, a tributary of the River Sowe, which joins the R ...

in Cape Town, South Africa that has been run since 1861, and is one of South Africa's premier

horse race 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 ...

s. Currently sponsored by the South African vintner L'Ormarins, it was branded the L'Ormarins Queen's Plate from 2005 to 2022, and the L'Ormarins King's Plate since 2022. Traditionally named in honour of the

British monarch The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...

, it reverted to the "King's Plate" name as a result of the accession of King Charles III in September 2022. The race was first run, as the Queen's Plate, in April 1861 in honour of Queen Victoria after she donated a silver plate and 500 sovereigns to the South African Turf Club.https://lormarinskingsplate.co.za/ The winner of the race earns a berth in the Breeders' Cup Mile. It is customary for the

British high commissioner to South Africa The British High Commissioner to South Africa is the head of the United Kingdom's diplomatic mission in the Republic of South Africa. As fellow members of the Commonwealth of Nations, the United Kingdom and South Africa exchange High Commissione ...

to attend the race and read out a message of good wishes from the British monarch.

References

{{reflist Horse races in South Africa Flat horse races for three-year-olds Recurring sporting events established in 1861 1861 establishments in the Cape Colony

See also

References