Royal Palaces

The Palace of Placentia, more commonly known as Greenwich Palace, was one of the most important palaces in Tudor England. It was built by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, in 1443 on the banks of the River Thames. King Henry VIII was born here in 1491 and it was in this palace that Queen Elizabeth I was born in the September of 1533. In 1536 Elizabeth's mother, Anne Boleyn, was arrested at this palace on trumped up charges of adultery and taken by boat to The Tower of London. Perhaps because of this the palace was not one of Elizabeth's favourite residences, although she stayed here often. The palace rivalled Hampton Court Palace in magnificence, had a five-storey tower for viewing jousting tournaments in the large tiltyard below, and the gardens were said to be especially delighful in summer. William Shakespeare is said to have performed in a play for the Queen at this palace.

Greenwich Palace fell into disrepair during the Civil War and was demolished by King Charles II. The Old Royal Naval College now stands on the site. It is open to the public and has artefacts on display from the Tudor palace in the Visitor Centre.

In the summer of 2017 archaeologists, working on a develoment underneath the Old Royal Naval College, discovered the remains of two rooms that belonged to the Tudor palace. The underfloor rooms are thought to have been service areas, possibly a kitchen, bakehouse or brewhouse, and contain wall cavities that may have been used to store beehives during winter and to keep food and drink cool over summer. One of the rooms has a tiled lead-glazed floor. Very little of the Tudor palace exists today, nothing above ground, so this is a very exciting and important discovery.