Top 10 Interesting Facts about Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace Courtyard by Hnakk – Wikimedia Commons

Top 10 Interesting Facts about Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace is a royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, 12 miles (19.3 kilometers) southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief minister of King Henry VIII.

In 1529, as Wolsey fell from favor, the cardinal gave the palace to the king to check his disgrace. The palace went on to become one of Henry’s most favored residences; soon after acquiring the property, he arranged for it to be enlarged so that it might more easily accommodate his sizeable retinue of courtiers. Along with St James’ Palace, it is one of only two surviving palaces out of the many the king owned. The palace is currently in possession of Queen Elizabeth II and the Crown.

Here are the top 10 interesting facts about Hampton Court Palace.

1. Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace

A listed building, or listed structure, is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England. The term has also been used in the Republic of Ireland, where buildings are protected under the Planning and Development Act 2000. 

A listed building may not be demolished, extended, or altered without special permission from the local planning authority, which typically consults the relevant central government agency, particularly for significant alterations to the more notable listed buildings. In England and Wales, a national amenity society must be notified of any work to a listed building that involves any element of demolition.

2. King George II was the last monarch to reside in the Hampton Court palace

George II of Great Britain – Wikimedia Commons

George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Hanover), and a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 (O.S.) until his death in 1760. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief minister of King Henry VIII. In 1529, as Wolsey fell from favor, the cardinal gave the palace to the king to check his disgrace. The palace went on to become one of Henry’s most favored residences.

The last person to ever live at Hampton Court Palace was King George II. When his son, George III, ascended the throne, he never set foot in the palace and it went unused until Queen Victoria opened it to the public in 1838.

3. Hampton Court Palace was the birthplace of the Church of England

The Chapel Royal at the palace was where Archbishop Cranmer handed Henry the list of accusations against his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. Unlike accusations against other of Henry’s wives, Catherine’s indiscretions had some actual weight to them, with her already having to pay people for their silence. Henry broke with the Roman Catholic church after Pope Clement VII failed to grant him an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so that he could marry Anne Boleyn.

Despite being opposed to Protestantism, Henry appointed himself Supreme Head of the Church of England to ensure the annulment of his marriage. Pope Paul III excommunicated him in 1538.

4. The Hampton Court Palace is open to the public and is a major tourist attraction

Hampton Court Great Gatehouse by Steve Cadman – Wikimedia Commons

After the palace’s final royal resident King George II died in 1760, and passed it on to his son George III, the palace was unoccupied for almost a century.

That is until Queen Victoria ascended to the throne, and opened it up to the public for the first time in 1838. One early visitor was artist Vincent Van Gogh, who came to see the spectacular tapestries. The structure and grounds are cared for by an independent charity, Historic Royal Palaces, which receives no funding from the Government or the Crown.

5. Hampton Court Palace has many priceless works of art

The palace displays many works of art from the Royal Collection. The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Commissioned by Henry VIII and hanging on the walls of the palace’s Tudor apartments are enormous paintings that tell a story of Henry’s battlefield conquests. 

To celebrate the birth of his only son and heir, Edward, Henry commissioned a series of spectacular tapestries. Considered one of the finest pieces of decorative artwork from the Tudor period, the “Abraham Tapestries” depict stories from the life of the biblical prophet Abraham. Made with cloth of gold, each tapestry cost Henry the price of a warship.

6. During the Tudor period, the Hampton Court Palace was the scene of many historic events

Hampton Court Palace by Colin Smith – Wikimedia Commons

In 1537, the King’s much desired male heir, the future Edward VI, was born at the palace and the child’s mother, Jane Seymour, died there two weeks later. Four years afterward, whilst attending Mass in the palace’s chapel, the King was informed of the adultery of his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. 

She was then confined to her room for a few days before being sent to Syon House and then on to the Tower of London. Legend claims she briefly escaped her guards and ran through The Haunted Gallery to beg Henry for her life but she was recaptured.

7. Hampton Court Palace has the largest surviving 16th-century kitchens in the world

While building the palace,  Wolsey spared no expense, using glittering painted red brick with a black diamond pattern, white mortar joints, and dozens of decorative chimneys, the largest collection in England.

200 cooks worked slavishly from sunup to sundown to feed 800 guests when Henry’s entourage was staying at the palace. Burning a ton of wood in each of six huge fireplaces, the cooks sweated buckets and were rewarded with as much beer as they could drink.

8. In 1986, the Hampton Court Palace was damaged by a major fire

The hammerbeam ceiling of the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace by JRennocks – Wikimedia Commons

The fire spread to the King’s Apartments. The fire claimed the life of an elderly recipient of a grace and favor apartment, Lady Daphne Gale, widow of General Sir Richard Gale. The fire led to a new program of restoration work which was completed in 1990.

The Royal School of Needlework moved to premises within the Palace from Princes Gate in Kensington in 1987, and the Palace also houses the headquarters of Historic Royal Palaces, a charitable foundation.

9. Hampton Court Palace was the ultimate Tudor sports and leisure complex

Its 16th-century tennis court is one of the oldest sporting venues in the world. But jousting was Henry’s favorite sport. Set amongst the 60 acres of formal landscaped gardens there was a jousting complex. He saw himself as a chivalrous knight in armor and risked serious injury every time he took part.

In 1536, Henry was knocked from his horse and crushed, as the horse wearing armor and weighing probably half a ton rolled over him, rendering him unconscious for two hours.

10. William Shakespeare stayed at Hampton Court Palace for Christmas

The Great Hall became the stage for some festive drama during the Christmas season of 1603 when Shakespeare’s theatre company stayed for three weeks and performed their plays for King James I.