eventually fell into ruin. The minster fell into further ruin during the English Civil War, when the Parliamentarians used it as a stable during their stay on the way to lay siege to Wressle Castle. The troops damaged the interior extensively, destroying the organ, much of the wooden structures, and damaging some of the masonry. It is said that when leaving the town they were playing the pipes of the organ like penny whistles. On the night of 29 September 1696, after nearly 150 years of neglect, the roof of the choir fell down. The remains were left where they fell until 1748 when the site was cleared, and the townsfolk took stones for their own use. Many used the masonry as building stones. However, the nave of Howden Minster remains in use as the parish church. 19th century In the early 19th century Howden became famous throughout Europe for its horse fair, held every September. In Georgian times, the fair was quoted in The Sporting Magazine in 1807 as being the "largest fair for horses in the Kingdom". The fair, at its height, attracted all the principal horse dealers from every part of the United Kingdom. It is estimated that up to 4,000 horses were displayed for sale every day of the fair, and that the total worth of this kind of sale was £200,000. Representatives of the British Army attended the fair, and it is thought that Wellington's cavalry used horses bought at Howden in the Napoleonic Wars. Howden Floral and Horticultural Society was formed in 1854 and held its first exhibition on Thursday 16 August 1855. This took place in the field adjoining the Bishop's Manor House, which was kindly lent by Mr G. Clark. Due to the outbreak of the First and Second World Wars, the shows were halted from 1914 to 1920 and again between 1940 and 1946, but have been held every year since. The hundredth Howden Show was held in 1979 and it was then that it became a two-day event. In 2007 the show returned to its traditional home in the Ashes and also reverted to its original one-day format. The annual Howden Horticultural and Agricultural show is now held on the first Sunday in July. Howden's architecture is chiefly from the Georgian and Victorian eras, most of the town centre exclusively being built in this period. Most of Howden's pubs were