The event was established in 1946, and it was originally called the Diadem Stakes. It was named after
Diadem (foaled 1914), a winner of several of Ascot's leading races. For a period it was staged in October, and it later moved to September. The current system of race grading was introduced in 1971, and the Diadem Stakes initially held Group 3 status. It was promoted to Group 2 level in 1996. It had a prize fund of £100,000 in 2010. The race was given its present name and switched to October in 2011. It became part of the newly created British Champions Day, and its purse was increased to £250,000. It now serves as the sprint-category final of the
British Champions Series. The race was upgraded to Group 1 status from its 2015 running. ==Records==