Royal Ascot: Prince of Wales's Stakes
The Prince of Wales's Stakes, currently staged on the second day of the Royal meeting, was established in 1862, and named after the Prince of Wales at that time, the future King Edward VII. The original version was restricted to three-year-olds, and it was contested over 1 mile and 5 furlongs. The race was discontinued after World War II, when there was no Prince of Wales. It returned in 1968, a year before the investiture of Prince Charles. The distance of the new version was 1 mile and 2 furlongs, and it was now open to horses aged three or older. The present system of race grading was introduced in 1971, and for a period the Prince of Wales's Stakes was classed at Group 2 level. It was promoted to Group 1 status in 2000, and at this point the minimum age of participating horses was raised to four. |
| Prince of Wales's Stakes 1864 | Group 1 | 1 mile 5 furlongs | ||
| Pos. | Horse | Jockey | Age'weight | Owner |
| 1 | ELY | Custance | 3-9st 1lbs | Mr W S Cartwright 5/1 |
| 2 | FILLE DE L'AIR | A Edwards | 3-9st 0lbs | Count F De Lagrange 4/1 |
| 3 | KNIGHT OF SNOWDON | F Adams | 3-8st 3lbs | Captain Cooper 3/1 fav |
| 4 | IDLER | George Fordham | 3-8st 3lbs | Mr R Ten Broeck 25/1 |
| 5 | LORD ZETLAND | Judd | 3-8st 3lbs | Duke of Beaufort 25/1 |
| 6 | GAZZA LADRA | Challoner | 3-7st 12lbs | Mr R C Naylor 25/1 |
| 7 | FAZZOLETTO colt | J Daley | 3-8st 10lbs | Baron Rothschild 6/1 |
| 8 | MAJOR | H Grimshaw | 3-8st 3lbs | Mr W Stewart 25/1 |
| 9 | FIGARO | Morgan | 3-8st 3lbs | Mr H Savile 25/1 |
| 10 | HOLLYFOX | T French | 3-8st 3lbs | Lord Falmouth 8/1 |
| 11 | GLENDUSK | Heslop | 3-8st 10lbs | Mr T Parr 8/1 |
| 12 | HYMETTUS | Aldcroft | 3-8st 10lbs | Mr H Wilkinson 8/1 |
| 13 | ELMSDALE | Norman | 3-8st 3lbs | Mr G Fleming 25/1 |
| This race took place on Tuesday 7th June 1864 and was won by a bay colt by Kingston out of The Bloomer, who won a first prize of 3300 sovereigns from 140 subscribers (equivalent to £418,000 in 2020). | Over round 132% | |||
| Prince of Wales's Stakes | Group 1 | 1 mile 2 furlongs | 1862 | ||||||
| 1862 | 1863 | 1864 | |||||||