About the Hampton Court Palace: 200 years of history, architecture, and design Walk in London
Hampton Court Palace is probably most well known as the home of the infamous Henry VIII. Here you can see the impressive Tudor frontage, the Great Hall he built with its remarkable hammer-beam roof and the huge kitchens that were used to cook meals for his court of over 1000 people. Also, you will see vestiges of some of 6 queens: Catherine of Aragon’s symbol the pomegranate can be seen above a door frame while Jane Seymour’s arms can be seen on a ceiling, and it is in the Great Watching Chamber that the announcement was made of Catherine Howard’s adultery which would lead to her execution.
On this tour we will discuss Henry VIII and the Tudor Palace, but we will also discover much, much more. We will start our tour at the station, and cross the river Thames where we will discuss the importance of the river to monarchs over the centuries. On entering the Palace we will discuss how, in 1236 the Knights Hospitallers of St John Jerusalem acquired the Manor of Hampton and used it as a gr
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Hampton Court Palace is probably most well known as the home of the infamous Henry VIII. Here you can see the impressive Tudor frontage, the Great Hall he built with its remarkable hammer-beam roof and the huge kitchens that were used to cook meals for his court of over 1000 people. Also, you will see vestiges of some of 6 queens: Catherine of Aragon’s symbol the pomegranate can be seen above a door frame while Jane Seymour’s arms can be seen on a ceiling, and it is in the Great Watching Chamber that the announcement was made of Catherine Howard’s adultery which would lead to her execution.
On this tour we will discuss Henry VIII and the Tudor Palace, but we will also discover much, much more. We will start our tour at the station, and cross the river Thames where we will discuss the importance of the river to monarchs over the centuries. On entering the Palace we will discuss how, in 1236 the Knights Hospitallers of St John Jerusalem acquired the Manor of Hampton and used it as a grange, or centre for their agricultural estates, before it was leased in 1508 to Cardinal Wolsey, Henry VIII’s Chief Minister. He carried out vast building works and turned the manor into a magnificent palace, and we will discuss his architectural innovations as well as his life.
In the late 1600s however, Hampton Court was adopted by the joint monarchs, William III and Mary II. They hired the great Baroque architect Sir Christopher Wren to rebuild the King’s and Queen’s Apartments. We will see the rooms that they used for public ceremonies as well as for private moments. We will discuss the functions of these rooms, and the daily lives of the monarchs who used them.
The Prince and Princess of Wales, the future George II and Queen Caroline, also lived at Hampton Court and redecorated the apartments using the fashionable architect and interior deigned William Kent. On our travels through the apartments we will also see great works of art from the Royal Collection, including paintings, precious 16th century tapestries and the Renaissance masterpiece by Mantegna, The Triumphs of Caesar.
And then onwards to the gardens where we will discuss the garden history from the Tudors to today and wander through the many different areas, from formal gardens, to the orchard, from the 200 year old vine to the rose garden as well as the site of Henry VIII’s tiltyard where tournaments were held. At the end of all that, if you still have the energy, you might like to get lost in Hampton Court’s famous maze.
