Welcome to my Appleby Horse Fair Fun Facts where I share some awesome stuff that you may not know about the biggest gypsy horse fair in the UK.
Here are some interesting fun facts about my favourite place in the world, Appleby Horse Fair.
Perfect for kids too to learn about our amazing horse fair
Our Appleby Horse Fair calls itself “an annual gathering of Gypsies and Travellers in the town of Appleby-in-Westmorland in Cumbria, England.”
Every year in early June, Appleby New Fair, commonly known as the Appleby horse fair, takes place. It draws over 30,000 tourists, about 1000 caravans, several hundred horse-drawn cars, and about 10,000 Gypsies and Travellers. Attendees of the Gypsy and Traveller event include Welsh Romanies, British Romanichals, Irish Travellers, Scottish Gipsy and Traveller groups, and more. Its one of the best times of the year for us.
History And Location Of Appleby Fair
The Fair is being marketed as Europe’s largest traditional Gypsy Fair, akin to a large family get-together. On most major days, the horses are bathed and led in a trot up and down the flashing path. On Jimmy Winter’s Field, there is a market where a range of merchandise related to horses and some traditional goods for the Gypsy travelling community are sold.
The fair is held outside the town of Appleby where the Roman Road crosses Long Marton Road, not far from Gallows Hill, named after the public hangings that were once carried out there. In the mid 20th century the story developed that the fair originated with a royal charter to the borough of Appleby from King James II of England in 1685. However, recent research has shown that the 1685 charter, which was cancelled before it was enrolled, is of no relevance. Appleby’s medieval borough fair, held at Whitsuntide, ceased in 1885. The ‘New Fair’, held in early June on Gallows Hill, which was then unenclosed land outside the borough boundary, began in 1775 for sheep and cattle drovers and horse dealers to sell their animals.
The New Fair was and is a true people’s fair; no one gave it, no one ever owned it, and no one was ever charged to attend.
Appleby Fun Fact:
Due to foot-and mouth disease in 2001 and the coronavirus in 2020, the fair has only ever been cancelled twice.
Organisation
The Gypsies and Travellers have a Shera Rom (Head Romani) who handles toilets, trash skips, water supplies, horse grazing, etc. and serves as a liaison with the local authority co-ordinating committee MASCG, which oversees the public authorities’ response to the fair.
However, the fair is an annual, impromptu gathering that is not organised by any one person or group.
The future is uncertain for the fair and who knows if it will be privatised and turned into a ticketed event for the organisers to prosper but this is very probable given that they have already had talks about making this a reality.
The primary fields for activities include Fair Hill, which is also the main camping ground that has some catering and trade, and, more recently, the Market Field, which was developed
around ten years ago by a local farmer, is the main location for stall trading and catering.
There are six authorised campsites and parking lots in the vicinity.
The majority of horse dealing occurs at the intersection, which the local government refers to as “Salt Tip Corner,” and on Long Marton Road, which the Gypsies and Travellers refer to as the “flashing lane.” Here, horses are flashed, or trotted, quickly up and down.
Best Days Of Appleby Horse Fair
Numerous horses are brought to “the Sands,” which is close to Appleby’s town centre and the River Eden. Here, the horses are rode into the river to be cleaned, and it is common to see large numbers of horses chained up in front of The Grapes public house. The best days of the fair, which are now Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, are when vehicle traffic is prohibited on the highway at that site.
Traditionally, the fair begins on the Thursday before and ends on the second Wednesday in June. Although the last Tuesday used to be the primary day for horse deals, the market field’s expansion and the volume of customers have made Saturday the primary day, with everything concluded by Monday morning.
Besides the horses, there are fortune tellers, palm readers, buskers and music stalls, clothing stalls, tools and hardware, china, stainless steel, and horse-related merchandise including harness and carriages.
Final Thoughts
There are so many fun facts about Appleby Horse Fair, and you have to experience Appleby in order to see some of these age-old traditions being revealed to you.
For me, the most fun fact of them all is the fact that over 30k visitors come to Appleby horse fair every single year and this number is steadily climbing.
