Usually on my WP sites when I change the URL, WP automatically creates a 301 redirect.

Lets say I have this URL:

www.site/ugly-long-url

If I change it to

www.site/nice-url

Then when I visit the old URL (ugly-long-url) it automatically 301 redirects to the nice-url. However I bought a website recently and whenever I change the URL, the old url gives me a 404 error.

It only works if I add the link manually to the htaccess file.

How can I get the automatic 301 redirection of WP back?