Building began early in Henry's reign in 1514 when Wolsey, then Archbishop of York commissioned the construction of a new country residence on the banks of the River Thames to reflect the grandeur to which he felt his position aspired.

The Tudor portion of the palace that you see today reflects the wealth of that era. Used by Wolsey for lavish entertainment of ambassadors and diplomats, the new house was almost completed by 1525 when Wolsey presented it to the King in return for Richmond Palace.

To visit the palace cross the bridge over the moat and through Wolsey's Great Gate House.
Through the inner gatehouse - Anne Boleyn's Gateway. Anne Boleyn was Henry's second wife and had her head chopped off at the Tower of London for "misconduct" - actually the truth was Henry wanted another divorce. Anne came to live here after leaving her family home of Hever castle

The famous Astronomical Clock which shows the sun revolving around the earth. The clock was installed in 1540 - before Galileo discovered the way the sun revolved. The clock shows the hour,month, day, number of days since the beginning of the year and phases of the moon as well as time of high tide at London Bridge

Fountain Court was designed by Sir Christopher Wren- architect of St. Paul's Cathedral

Fish Court was the main route for servants traking food to and from the kitchens to the Great Hall. This narrow passageway between smaller courts is surrounded by the various specialist kitchens and would have been very busy during one of Henry's frequent banquets.

Entrance to the private and state apartments was not granted until the visitor passed through the King's Guard Chamber. Here ambassadors, emissaries and other distinguished visitors would be searched for weapons. There is a display of over 3000 swords laid out in a decorative pattern.

Hampton Court has lovely gardens and grounds. Whether you look at them through the windows as you wander around the inside or whether you take the time to actually walk around the paths like the Kings and Queens used to
There is a fun hedge maze here which were very popular in their day, with other mazes at Leeds Castle and Hever Castle and are once again beginning to appear in landscaping on stately homes like Longleat

. This Royal Palace still belongs to our current Queen, Elizabeth II, and is still inhabited by "grace and favour" residents of the Royal Estate.

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