Woolsey, one of Henry VIII’s advisors, built the first few rooms of the palace, but once he fell out of favour (UK spelling of the word seems appropriate for today's post) with the king (and didn’t everyone eventually?), Henry decided he’s just chop off his head and take the palace for himself. Henry enlarged the palace and used it as a principal residence and hunting grounds until his death.
By the way, 3 out of 6 of Henry’s wives bit the dust through the guillotine. 50% odds…not great, I’d say.
William and Mary as well as a few of the Hanoverian Kings (i.e. George II and George III) also expanded the palace and grounds, living here for bits of time as well. Each expansion took on the architecture and styling of the day, so unless you realize that, you will see a variety of building styles that seems a bit disjointed.
Hampton Court Palace as viewed from the Thames River, upon arrival at Hampton Court Palace train station.
The exterior of Hampton Court Palace.
There were essentially four really cool audio tours within the palace: the Apartments of Henry VIII, the Tudor Kitchen, the State Apartments of William and Mary, and the State Apartments of the Georgian Kings. Only photos of the Tudor Kitchen tour were allowed; hence, no photos from any of the state apartments. Still an interesting little tour. Quite a logistical operation to feed 500-800 people a day in Henry VIII’s court.
Interesting factoid: 75% of the diet eaten by people at Henry's court was meat.
The Georgian wing of Hampton Court Palace. The Hanoverian kings were the last ones to reside at Hampton Court Palace.
Hampton Court Palace garden and grounds.
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