The Palace of Whitehall, in the Westminster neighborhood of London, was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures were destroyed by fire.
Westminster Palace had been the main English royal residence for hundreds of years but in 1512 it was gutted by fire.
York Place was created by Cardinal Wolsey as his central London residence. He expanded it so much that it was rivalled by only Lambeth Palace as the greatest house in London,
Whitehall became an official royal palace in 1530 when Henry VIII of England seized York Place (later renamed Whitehall Palace) after the Cardinal fell out of favour. He transformed it into a magnificent royal residence to replace Westminster as his main London residence.
King Henry VIII hired the Flemish artist Anton van den Wyngaerde to redesign York Place, and he carried on extending it during his lifetime.
The name Whitehall was first recorded in 1532; it had its origins in the white stone used for the buildings.
Henry included in his Whitehall residence a recreation centre with tennis courts, a pit for cock fighting and a tiltyard for jousting. He also had a fine bowling alley laid out.
Henry VIII created The Privy Garden of the Palace of Whitehall, a large enclosed space in the mid-1540s. It continued to be used as a pleasure garden by the Tudor and Stuart monarchs of England for many years.
It is estimated that more than £30,000 (several million at present-day valued, or several billion when compared to share of GDP) was spent during the 1540s on the Whitehall residence.
By the time of Henry's death, Whitehall was the largest palace in Europe.
The Tempest, Shakespeare's romantic comedy, was first presented at Whitehall Palace in 1611.
On January 5, 1617, the Native American princess Pocahontas was brought before King James I at the old Banqueting House in the Palace of Whitehall at a performance of Ben Jonson's masque The Vision of Delight.
James I made significant changes to the Whitehall buildings, notably the construction in 1622 of a new Banqueting House built to a design by Inigo Jones. His new Banqueting House introduced the Palladian style to Britain.
Nearly 20 years after the Banqueting House was built, King Charles I instructed Jones to prepare designs for rebuilding the whole of Whitehall Palace. These designs by Jones still exist and are among his most interesting creations.
Charles II was fascinated by mechanical things such as mechanical clocks and he had a laboratory at Whitehall where he spent a lot of time on experiments.
Foe around a century Whitehall Palace was the largest and most complex palace in Europe, with more than 1,500 rooms, overtaking the Vatican, before itself being overtaken by the expanding Palace of Versailles.
William III of England and his wife Mary disliked Whitehall Palace, their home in London. The fumes of the sea coal, which burned in most of the fireplaces of London, were too much for a man used to the cool, brown cows and cheeses of the Netherlands. As a result the royal couple lived mostly in Hampton Court.
On the afternoon of January 4, 1698 a Dutch maidservant was drying linen sheets on a burning charcoal brazier in a bed chamber at Whitehall Palace. For some reason the maid left the room and in her absence, the sheets caught fire. The flames quickly spread throughout the palace complex, raging for 15 hours before firefighters could extinguish it.
Many of the palace's wooden structures were destroyed in the fire. The remaining structures were torn down. The Banqueting House, built by Inigo Jones in 1622, survived the fire. Various other parts of the old palace still exist, mostly incorporated into new buildings in the Whitehall government complex.
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| The Old Palace of Whitehall by Hendrick Danckerts, c. 1675 |
Westminster Palace had been the main English royal residence for hundreds of years but in 1512 it was gutted by fire.
York Place was created by Cardinal Wolsey as his central London residence. He expanded it so much that it was rivalled by only Lambeth Palace as the greatest house in London,
Whitehall became an official royal palace in 1530 when Henry VIII of England seized York Place (later renamed Whitehall Palace) after the Cardinal fell out of favour. He transformed it into a magnificent royal residence to replace Westminster as his main London residence.
King Henry VIII hired the Flemish artist Anton van den Wyngaerde to redesign York Place, and he carried on extending it during his lifetime.
 |
| A sketch of Whitehall Palace in 1544, by Anton van den Wyngaerde. |
The name Whitehall was first recorded in 1532; it had its origins in the white stone used for the buildings.
Henry included in his Whitehall residence a recreation centre with tennis courts, a pit for cock fighting and a tiltyard for jousting. He also had a fine bowling alley laid out.
Henry VIII created The Privy Garden of the Palace of Whitehall, a large enclosed space in the mid-1540s. It continued to be used as a pleasure garden by the Tudor and Stuart monarchs of England for many years.
It is estimated that more than £30,000 (several million at present-day valued, or several billion when compared to share of GDP) was spent during the 1540s on the Whitehall residence.
By the time of Henry's death, Whitehall was the largest palace in Europe.
The Tempest, Shakespeare's romantic comedy, was first presented at Whitehall Palace in 1611.
On January 5, 1617, the Native American princess Pocahontas was brought before King James I at the old Banqueting House in the Palace of Whitehall at a performance of Ben Jonson's masque The Vision of Delight.
James I made significant changes to the Whitehall buildings, notably the construction in 1622 of a new Banqueting House built to a design by Inigo Jones. His new Banqueting House introduced the Palladian style to Britain.
Nearly 20 years after the Banqueting House was built, King Charles I instructed Jones to prepare designs for rebuilding the whole of Whitehall Palace. These designs by Jones still exist and are among his most interesting creations.
 |
| Inigo Jones's plan, dated 1638, for a new palace at Whitehall. |
Charles II was fascinated by mechanical things such as mechanical clocks and he had a laboratory at Whitehall where he spent a lot of time on experiments.
Foe around a century Whitehall Palace was the largest and most complex palace in Europe, with more than 1,500 rooms, overtaking the Vatican, before itself being overtaken by the expanding Palace of Versailles.
William III of England and his wife Mary disliked Whitehall Palace, their home in London. The fumes of the sea coal, which burned in most of the fireplaces of London, were too much for a man used to the cool, brown cows and cheeses of the Netherlands. As a result the royal couple lived mostly in Hampton Court.
On the afternoon of January 4, 1698 a Dutch maidservant was drying linen sheets on a burning charcoal brazier in a bed chamber at Whitehall Palace. For some reason the maid left the room and in her absence, the sheets caught fire. The flames quickly spread throughout the palace complex, raging for 15 hours before firefighters could extinguish it.
 |
| View Of A Fire At Whitehall Palace Pastel On Paper by English School |
Many of the palace's wooden structures were destroyed in the fire. The remaining structures were torn down. The Banqueting House, built by Inigo Jones in 1622, survived the fire. Various other parts of the old palace still exist, mostly incorporated into new buildings in the Whitehall government complex.
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