8-2HamptonCourt

What is Hampton Court? What is its history and its legacy? //Answer Prepared By: Elka D.//  In 1514, the Archbishop of York, Thomas Wolsey, built an enormous palace in the parish of Hampton on the north bank of the Thames. Not much of the original palace remains due to extensive remodeling from later kings, however the astronomical clock built in 1540 by Nicholas Oursian, which included a pre-Copernican model of the universe, still remains intact to this day. Henry VIII took possession of the palace after Wolsey refused to give the king a divorce. The king made many renovations including kitchens, tennis courts, and gardens, which are still around today. One of the amazing renovations that are still in tact today are the kitchens that Henry VIII built. These kitchens were not for him, but for the over 600 members of the king’s court that were entitled to two meals at the palace per day. Maintaining these kitchens and feeding all of these people was no small task. According to Historic Palaces Online, “the kitchens had a number of Master Cook’s, each with a team of Yeomen and Sergeants working for them.” Cooked in these kitchens were a massive 1,240 oxen, 8,200 sheep, 2,330 deer, 760 calves, 1,870 pigs and 53 wild boar per year, washed down with 600,000 gallons of beer. Clearly, this was quite the operation, especially for the 1500’s.

Another astounding aspect of Hampton Court Palace is the Chapel Royal. It is here, in this marvelous room, containing layer upon layer of ancient history, that Henry VIII received a letter pertaining to his new wife, Catherine. In this letter, it said that Catherine had not behaved appropriately before her marriage to the king; perhaps that she had been unfaithful to him. Because of this, he was even more vicious to her and soon had her executed at the Tower of London. Also, the Maze at the palace is considered one of the most famous hedge mazes in the world. As Ernest Law once said, “It is the most famous Maze in the history of the world, and immeasurably the one most visited.”  Underneath the gilded ceilings and the grandeur of the place, lays a dark habit of Henry VIII’-the ghosts of his executed wives. Guests of the palace have said they heard screaming, presumably Catherine Howard’s, coming from the gallery. Catherine was dragged, screaming, back to her room after escaping her house arrest guards to beg the king for her life. Another woman to have supposedly haunted the palace is Sybil Penn-a.k.a. the Grey Lady. Historic Royal Palaces Online suggests that Sybil haunts numerous parts of the palace, including Court Clock and the state apartments. She had worked at Hampton Court, nursing King Edward and Queen Elizabeth I through small pox, only to die of the disease shortly there after. Once Sybil’s tomb was disturbed during renovations, strange noises were heard of someone working a spinning wheel. An unknown tomb was recently discovered containing none other than an antique spinning wheel. Even though its halls may be haunted, Hampton Court Palace is still considered to be one of the great achievements of the Elizabethans and continues to be a tourist and archaeologist attraction today. Works Cited: Pressley, J.M.. "Elizabethan England." //www.bardweb.net. February 18, 2009. Shakespeare Resource Center. 11 Apr 2009 . // Worsley, Lucy, and David Souden. //Hampton Court Palace: The Official Illustrated History. Merrell Publishers, 2005. Print. // "Hampton Court Palace." //Historic Royal Palaces O //nline. 2009. Historic Royal Palaces. 16 Apr 2009 .