Already a member?
Sign in
Welcome! Wikis are websites that everyone can build together. It's easy!
Tudor Historical Locations
 WHERE DID IT HAPPEN? Castles, Churches, Prisons, Burial Locations Involved in Events during the Reign of King Henry VIII | Want to add to this page? Click EasyEdit to update this page! |
(large pics on left and small pics & text on the right.)
| TOWER OF LONDON  15th Century - Then  Now 500 years later     Queens house in the background with Raven enclosure in the foreground.  Beauchamps Tower where there are some interesting inscriptions carved on the walls by past prisoners |  Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard, Sir Thomas More, John Fisher, and Sir Thomas Cromwell, Earl of Essex among others were imprisoned and executed within the precincts of the medieval fortress known as the Tower of London. The White tower was originally built by William the Conqueror in 1078 but more building had been added over the centuries. The tower's primary function was a fortress, a royal palace, and a prison (particularly for high status and royal prisoners). It has also served as a place of execution & torture an armoury, a treasury, the Royal Mint, a public records office, & since 1303, the home of the Crown Jewels. There is a legend that if the Ravens ever leave the Tower of London, the White Tower, the Monarchy, and the entire Kingdom will fall so the Ravens wings are clipped to make sure that never happens. There are currently 9 ravens and they are cared for by the Ravenmaster, a duty given to one of the Yeomen WardersThis could be due to the fact that Ravens notoriously gathered at gallows and were used by the Yeomans of the Guard to dramatise their tales of torture and executions.   Although the Tower of London is often identified with the White Tower, the tower as a whole is a complex of several buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat. The White Tower is situated in the Inner Ward, defended by a massive curtain wall, which has13 towers: Bloody Tower (or the Garden Tower), so named after a legend that the Princes in the Tower were murdered there. Bell Tower Beauchamp Tower(pronounced 'Beecham') Deveraux Tower Flint Tower Bowyer Tower Brick Tower Martin Tower Constable Tower Broad Arrow Tower Salt Tower Lanthorn Tower Wakefield Tower The entrance to the Inner Ward is on the south side under the Bloody Tower. Outside of this is the Outer Ward, defended by a second massive curtain wall, flanked by 6 towers facing the river: Byward Tower St Thomas's Tower, built between 1275-1279 by Edward I to provide additional royal accommodation for the King. Cradle Tower Develin Tower Middle Tower Well Tower |
| Tower Green -Site of Executions  | Tower Green where Anne Boleyn was beheaded on May 19th, 1536 and Katherine Howard and Jane Boleyn on February 13th, 1542. Margaret Plantagenet Pole, Lady Salisbury, governess to Princess Mary as Lady Jane Grey and Robert Devereaux, earl of Essex and favorite of Elizabeth I were also executed here.  Traitor's gate (aka the Water gate) |
| Chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula within the Tower of London  | Anne Boleyn, Katherine Howard, Jane and George Boleyn, John Fisher, Thomas More, and many others are buried in this chapel. The ghost of Queen Anne Boleyn has allegedly been seen haunting the chapel of St Peter-ad-Vincula, where she is buried, and walking around the White Tower carrying her head under her arm. |
 | The Queen's House in the Tower where distinguished prisoners were held, including Anne Boleyn. The last prisoner to stay in the Queen's House was Rudolf Hess, the Deputy Fuhrer of Nazi Germany. |
| Anne Boleyn's Grave Stone  | In 1876 during restoration of St. Peter ad Vincula Chapel, the bones of Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard were identified and reburied under the pavement before the altar. Memorial stones engraved with their titles of Queen and their coats of arms were laid above the graves. |
| Kimbolton Castle  | Kimbolton Castle, last home of Queen Katherine of Aragon; she died here on January 7, 1536. It is now Kimbolton Boys' School. One of Katherine's dower chests remains here. |
| Peterborough Cathedral  | Burial place of Queen Katherine of Aragon, the former Peterborough Abbey is now Peterborough Cathedral. |
| Hever Castle     |   Interior courtyard   Entrance to Hever with portcullis & bridge over the moat |
| Hampton Court Palace  Then  Now  Gardens at Hampton Court  Kitchens at Hampton Court  | Originally owned by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey who gave it to King Henry VIII Anne Boleyn's gateway  design under the gateway  Close-up: you can see "H" and "A" for Henry and Anne  Henry's coat of arms  Henry's Motto "God & My Right" outside the chapel |
| Richmond Palace  Richmond at the time of Henry VII  Richmond at the time of Mary I (c. 1555)  Old Palace Gateway, other side bears the arms of Henry VII  Some 650 deer still roam free in Richmond Park | After a fire in 1497 destroyed the wooden original buildings, Henry VII rebuild and renamed the Palace after his family title - the Earl of Richmond. Richmond was once the largest and grandest palace in England and it was the venue for various occasions in the early 16th century. The wedding festivties of Prince Arthur and Katherine of Aragon were held there in 1501 and the formal betrothal of Princess Margaret Tudor to James IV of Scotland was held there as well. The birth and death of Henry VIII's and Katherine of Aragon's infant son occured at Richmond in 1510. The original Tudor Palace is gone, but the old palace gatehouse remains and Richmond Park which was once the royal hunting grounds.   Henry VII's coat of arms at Richmond with a spray of Tudor roses beneath |
| Greenwich Palace  Tudor Greenwich  sketch depicting Christmas entertainment at Greenwich 1524  The last surviving part of the original Greenwich Palace  Greenwich Today Massive oak tree in Greenwich Park called "Queen Elizabeth's Oak" it is believed that Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn used to meet under this tree and later Princess Elizabeth would play under its shade | Principal residence of the Henry VII, it was known as "Palace Placentia" or "Palace of Pleasurance" since the time of Queen Margaret of Anjou. Three Tudor monarchs were born at Greenwich: Henry VIII, Mary I and Elizabeth I. Prince Arthur and Edmund were also born at Greenwich. First built in 1427, Henry VII added his own structure which no longer stands that is now occupied by the Royal Naval College. Since late 2005 exciting archaeological excavation has taken place and experts have discovered the foundations of the original Tudor Chapel and Vestry. "On this site stood the Tudor Palace of Greenwich built by Henry VII. Birthplace of Henry VIII in 1491 and his daughters Mary I in 1516 and Elizabeth I in 1533"   Nearby St. Alfege Church where Henry VIII was baptised  |
| Westminster Abbey  Exterior of Henry VII's Chapel   Henry VII's Chapel & Vauled Ceiling of Henry VII's Chapel  Grave stone of Anne of Cleves | Site of the coronation of English kings since the Normans, Henry VII added his own addition to the Abbey named the Henry VII Chapel or the Lady's Chapel. It was here that all Tudor monarchs, except Henry VIII, are buried. Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots and Margaret Douglas both Tudor cousins, Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII, and Anne of Cleves are also buried in the Abbey. Besides royalty, other notable Tudor personalities that are buried in the Abbey include: William Shakespeare, Frances Brandon, Henry Carey and Katherine Carey Knollys (children of Mary Boleyn), Lord Henry Norris (son of the Henry Norris executed in 1536), and Edmund Spenser. Map of tombs located in Henry VII Chapel |
| Saint Paul's Cathedral  Modern St. Paul's (5th construction by Christopher Wren)  St. Paul's before the Great Fire  Painting depticing St. Paul's Cross, c. 1614   Plaque and paver stone marking the site of Paul's Cross | At the time of the Tudors the cathedral was in its fourth incarnation. (The first St. Paul's had been built in the 7th century A.D.) The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of London, a title once held by Cardinal Wolsey. St. Paul's Cathedral was the center of much of the religious turmoil of 16th century London. A pulpit was constructed outside the south wall of the cathedral called "Paul's Cross" were sermons against Martin Luther were given, heretics were forced to publicly recant, and book burnings of Protestant books were held. The cross was destroyed by the Puritans in 1643 during the English Civil War. After the Reformation the Cathedral fell into disrepair and the once elaborate Catholic art and decorations of the church were whitewashed over to comply with Protestant doctrine. In 1549 a radical Protestant mob destroyed many of the remaining interior decoration and in 1561 the spire was struck by lightning and never replaced. The St. Paul's as it was known to the Tudors was destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. Despite the Reformation, St. Paul's remained a London landmark and was the locale of historic moments during the Tudors. In 1537 a Te Deum was sung on the occasion of Jane Seymour having become pregnant. In 1588 Queen Elizabeth prayed in thanksgiving for victory over the Spanish Armada. |
| Saint James Palace  | With it's red brick, clock tower, and Tudor style masonry, St. James is often confused with Hampton Court (see above). Located on Pall Mall where a former leper hospital was located, St. James was commissioned by Henry VIII in 1532 and was completed in 1540. It became the king's secondary residence to Whitehall. Henry Fitzroy lived briefly at St. James and died there in 1536. Anne Boleyn stayed there the night after her coronation, and the "H&A" motiff and still be found in various appartments in the palace. It was in St. James that Mary I signed the treaty surrendering Calais to the French. In 1558, Mary I died at St. James and her body lied in state within it's chapel royal. It is said that in preperation for her funeral, Mary's internal organs removed during embalming and were buried in the chapel. Thomas Tallis served as an organist during Elizabeth in chapel royal. |
Latest page update: made by MsSquirrly
, Aug 4 2008, 12:53 PM EDT
(about this update
About This Update
Edited by MsSquirrly
1 word added
69 words deleted
4 images added
4 images deleted
view changes
- complete history)
Edited by MsSquirrly
1 word added
69 words deleted
4 images added
4 images deleted
view changes
- complete history)
Keyword tags:
burial locations
castles
churches
prisons
More Info: links to this page