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Bronze age barrows dot the heath and just across the Cambridgeshire border the massive Anglo-Saxon earthwork - called the Devil's Dyke" - testifies that the virtual enclave of the county was occupied from ancient times. The town was not established until the 13th cent. When an old market was moved from Exning after a break-out of plague. It appears on John Speed's 1610 map as "Newmerket". The sport of kings, or rather one particular king - Charles II - earned the town its worldwide reputation and prosperity. Charles II is still the only British Monarch to have ridden a winner on the flat and actually won two races here. His ancestor James I also visited to hunt, course and race and to order the building of the King's House. Alas the house is no more, having been demolished to make way for a Congregational chapel, a use which would probably have mystified the monarch.

Secret passages were said to have enabled Charles II to indulge in some of his more scandalous enterprises undetected and supposedly still criss-cross the town. Christopher Wren was also commissioned to build Nell Gwyn a house at Newmarket for her annual visits with the royal party. Much of the town today is Victorian in origin with a handful of Georgian buildings. Also see www.newmarket.org.uk

A modern racecourse, paddocks and stud farms now cover much of the old heath. Tattersall's sales ring on the edge of the town is one of the most famous horse markets in Europe. Not surprisingly the National Horse Racing Museum is also based here, located in the High street (open Tue to Sun from April to Dec + bank holidays). See www.nhrm.co.uk

RAF Newmarket Heath was first used by the Royal Flying Corps in 1918-19 when the 190th and 192nd squadrons were based here. In Sep. 1939 Wellington bombers of 99th Squadron arrived here and dispersed around the edges of the racecourse. The grandstand was subsequently used for accommodation and mess halls. The squadron flew many missions until they moved to Waterbeach in March 1941. Coming under control of Stradishall it was then used for many SOE operations including the dropping of supplies and agents into occupied countries and picking-up of agents, politicians, resistance leaders and escaping airmen. Aircraft then included Westland Lysanders and Armstrong Whitworth Whitleys. Towards the end of 1942 the 75th (New Zealand) squadron arrived whilst converting from Wellingtons to Shorts Stirlings and subsequently stayed until June 1943 when they had flown 580 sorties for the loss of 24 aircraft. From July onwards initially Hurricanes and later Spitfires of the Air Fighting Development Unit flew from here until Feb 1945.

(Some details from “Suffolk Airfields in WW2” by Graham Smith)