A ticket to the royal enclosure at Ascot costs only £10 (£7 for women), but for two centuries British horse-lovers have had more trouble getting in than a fishmonger's daughter trying to marry the Prince of Wales. A man needed more than the cash and the proper clothes; his social background had to shine pure and proud under the fierce scrutiny of the Duke of Norfolk and his committee of twelve inquisitors. Ever since Ascot was founded by Queen Anne in 1711, court rules have governed admission to the royal enclosure. And since Britain's Sovereign heads the Church of England (which...
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