Richmond upon Thames

Richmond is a suburb in southwest London, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.

Richmond Palace

In 1502 Henry VII's new palace, now called Richmond, witnessed a betrothal. Princess Margaret, Henry's eldest daughter, became engaged to King James IV of Scotland. From this line eventually came the house of Stuart. In 1509 Henry VII died at Richmond. Later the same year, Henry VIII celebrated Christmas at Richmond with the first of his six wives, Catherine of Aragon. Over the next hundred years the Christmas celebrations gradually increased with music, dancing, theatricals and revels. The twelve days of Christmas were barely celebrated before the sixteenth century. By the time Elizabeth I died at Richmond in 1603, it was well established in court circles. Almost nothing survives of earlier manors. The lodge of Henry VII's building still stands, and the foundations of the other royal buildings can be detected. In the 1520s Cardinal Wolsey adopted new renaissance architectural styles at Hampton Court. This was only a few miles from Richmond and Henry was boiling with jealousy. He took it from Wolsey and forced him to accept Richmond Palace in exchange; and Hall, in his Chronicles, says, that "when the common people, and especially such as had been servants of Henry VII., saw the cardinal keep house in the manor royal at Richmond, which that monarch so highly esteemed, it was a marvel to hear how they grudged, saying, 'so a butcher's dogge doth lie in the manor of Richmond!'".

Related Topics:
1502 - Henry VII - James IV of Scotland - House of Stuart - 1509 - Henry VIII - Catherine of Aragon - Elizabeth I - 1603 - 1520s - Cardinal Wolsey

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Henry's 3rd wife, Jane Seymour, died at Richmond. In 1540 Henry gave the palace to his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves. In 1554 Queen Mary I married Philip II of Spain. They spent their honeymoon at Hampton Court and Richmond. Later that same year, the future Elizabeth I was held prisoner at Richmond. Once she became queen she spent much of her time at Richmond, and died there on 24 March 1603.

Related Topics:
Jane Seymour - 1540 - Anne of Cleves - 1554 - Queen Mary I - Philip II of Spain - Hampton Court - 24 March - 1603

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When Walter Raleigh brought tobacco and potatoes from the new world, it was to Richmond that he brought his discoveries.

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King James I preferred Westminster to Richmond, but even before he became king, Charles I owned Richmond palace and started to build his art collection while living there. Like Elizabeth he enjoyed hunting stags in the area now known as Richmond Park. The stags are now protected. If you enter the park at dawn you can see them outside the fenced area, as they are relatively tame. Within months of the execution of Charles I in 1649, Richmond palace was sold for 13,000 pounds. Over the next ten years it was mostly demolished, and the stones re-used for building.

Related Topics:
James I - Charles I - Richmond Park - 1649

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The survey taken by order of parliament in 1649, affords a minute description of the palace. The great hall was one hundred feet in length, and forty in breadth, having a screen at the lower end, over which was "fayr foot space in the higher end thereof, the pavement of square tile, well lighted and seated; at the north end having a turret, or clock-case, covered with lead, which is a special ornament to this building." The prince's lodgings are described as a "freestone building, three stories high, with fourteen turrets covered with lead," being "a very graceful ornament to the whole house, and perspicuous to the county round about." A round tower is mentioned, called the "Canted Tower," with a staircase of one hundred and twenty-four steps. The chapel was ninety-six feet long and forty broad, with cathedral-seats and pews. Adjoining the prince's garden was an open gallery, two hundred feet long, over which was a close gallery of similar length. Here was also a royal library. Three pipes supplied the palace with water, one from the white conduit in the new park, another from the conduit in the town fields, and the third from a conduit near the alms-houses in Richmond.

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All the accounts which have come down to us describe the furniture and decorations of the ancient palace as very superb, exhibiting in gorgeous tapestry the deeds of kings and of heroes who had signalized themselves by their conquests throughout France in behalf of their country.

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The site of Richmond Palace is now occupied by noble mansions; but an old archway, seen from the Green, still remains as a melancholy memorial of its regal splendour.

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