the next three centuries there are numerous records of Kings of England keeping 'running horses'. Edward III bought horses at £13 6s 8d each, and was also gifted two by the King of Navarre. The royal stud continued to grow throughout the reign of Henry VII. 16th Century Records become more substantial during the time of Henry VIII. He passed a number of laws relating to the breeding of horses and also imported a large number of stallions and mares for breeding from Spain, Italy and the East. He kept a training establishment at Greenwich and the stud at Eltham. and founded the Royal Paddock at Hampton Court, where he kept mares and a "Barb worth his weight in silver", which has been given to him by the Marquis of Mantua. Formal race meetings began to be instigated too. It is believed that the first occurrence of a trophy being presented to the winner of a race was in 1512 by organisers of a fair in Chester and was a small wooden ball decorated with flowers. Meanwhile, the oldest horse race still in existence, the Kiplingcotes Derby was first run in 1519. The Carlisle Bells, reputedly the oldest sporting trophy in the world, were first competed for in the 16th century, in a race that still bears their name. One of the bells is inscribed "The sweftes horse thes bel tak" ("The swiftest horse takes this bell"). Racing was firmly established at Chester, the oldest surviving racecourse in England, by 1540. By the time of Elizabeth, the sport was a "common amusement". and the Queen herself is recorded as attending races on Salisbury Plain in the 1580s. as well as keeping up the paddocks at Hampton and founding her own at Blackheath. Racing in the Forest of Galtres dates to 1590., Leith Races were established by 1591, and at Doncaster by 1595. 17th century During Elizabeth's reign, interest in horse racing appears to have waned, for reasons unrecorded, but this changed when in 1605, James I discovered the little village of Newmarket whilst out hawking or riding. He began to spend time there racing horses, and from then on it has been known as the home of horse racing in England. In fact, James spent so much time there that the House of Commons petitioned him to concentrate more of his time on running the country. The region has had