SPELTHORNE HUNDRED 



Anne Boleyn was crowned in June 1533, and 

 in July she came to Hampton Court, where a 

 series of magnificent ' revellynges ' took place in 

 her honour. Besides joining in hunting, dancing, 

 gambling, and other diversions,** she seems to 

 have shared Henry's love of music, and to have 

 amused herself and her ladies by doing needlework, 

 of which specimens were to be seen at Hampton 

 Court for many years after her death."* As well as 

 his other additions to the palace Henry caused a 

 new suite of rooms to be erected for Anne, instead 

 of the ' Queen's Old Lodgynges ' ; but she never 

 occupied the splendid apartments designed for 

 her." 5 



There were great rejoicings at the birth of 

 Elizabeth, but Henry very soon made manifest 

 how all-important he considered the birth of a 

 son. It becomes sufficiently apparent what the 

 dominating motive was for the vast labour, time, 

 trouble and expense lavished on obtaining his 

 divorce. Anne was too slight a creature to retain 

 any sort of influence over the king when she thus 

 failed to satisfy his ambition. In January 1536, 

 possibly at Hampton Court, it is said that she 

 made her first discovery of Jane Seymour's attrac- 

 tion for Henry," 6 and her remonstrances only 

 completed her estrangement from the king, who 

 had apparently for some time previously contem- 

 plated the possibility of annulling his marriage 

 with her.* 37 Four months later, on 19 May 1536 

 she was executed on Tower Green, and the general 

 sentiment of the country was one of joy at her 

 death. 238 



A fortnight before her execution Henry left 

 York Place for Hampton Court, and on 1 1 May 

 Cromwell visited him there and settled with him 

 the details of the coming trial ; returning the same 

 night.' 59 



Jane Seymour was sent to Sir Nicholas Carewe's 

 house, about seven miles from London, but was 

 shortly removed to a house on the Thames nearer 

 to the king. 140 The following week, when the 

 death of Anne was announced to Henry, he imme- 

 diately went by barge to the house where Jane 

 Seymour was staying. A dispensation for the 

 marriage was obtained from Cranmer on the very 

 day of Anne's execution.'" The next morning at 

 six o'clock J.tne secretly joined the king at Hampton 



HAMPTON 



Court, and there, in the presence ot a few courtierSf 

 they were formally betrothed,"' not married as has 

 sometimes been stated. Ten days later they were 

 married in the ' Queue's Closet at York Place." IU 



BADGE OF QUEEN JANE SEYMOUR 



The new apartments not being finished, Jane 

 Seymour does not seem to have resided at Hampton 

 Court during the first year of her reign," 4 but in 

 September 1537 she retired there to await the 

 birth of the anxiously-expected heir to the throne.* 4 * 

 The king accompanied her, and was present when 

 on Friday 1 2 October, the vigil of St. Edward's 

 Day, 1537, at two o'clock in the morning, the 

 long-desired prince was born." 6 How much the 

 evil of a disputed succession was dreaded is shown 

 by the extreme joy of the whole nation.*" A 

 circular announcing the birth, signed by Jane 

 Seymour, was sent to ' all the estates and cities of 

 the realm. Given under our signet at My Lord's 

 Manor of Hampton Court, 12 Oct. I537/ 148 

 By tradition the room in which Edward VI was 

 born is one on the first floor in the south-east 

 corner of the Clock Court. This room was 

 partially rebuilt and altered in the reign of 



*" Fricdmann, Life of Anne Boleyn, 

 i, 213. 



984 Wyatt, Memoir of Anne Boleyn, in 

 Cavendish, Life of ffolsey (ed. Singer), 

 ii, 442. There is a gateway still 

 known as 'Anne Boleyn's Gateway,' 

 p. 376. 



*" See architectural account, plan at 

 All Souls' Library, &c. 



286 Wyatt, Memoir of Anne Boleyn, 

 443 ; L. and P. Hen. VIII, x, 103, 

 201, 24$. 



a8 ' It is not within the scope of this 

 paper to enter into the question of 

 Anne's guilt or innocence, even in such 

 details as may be connected with 

 Hampton Court ; vide L. and P. Hen. 

 fill, x, 879, &C, ; Friedmann, Anne 

 Boleyn, vol. ii ; Wyatt, Memoir of Anne 

 Boleyn, &c. She is said to haunt a cer- 



tain staircase in the palace, near the 

 * Quene's Lodgynges ' which she never 

 inhabited. The staircase itself is part of 

 Wren's building, but joins the older part. 



8 L. and P. Hen. fill, x, 377. 



239 Sir W. Paulet to Cromwell 1 1 

 May 1536, P.R.O. Cromwell Corresp. 

 xxxiv ; Chapuys to Chas. V, Vienna 

 Archives P.C. 230, i, fol. 82 ; cit. 

 Friedmann, Anne Boleyn, ii, 269. 



340 Diet. Nat. Biog. 'Jane Seymour.' 



"1 L. and P. Hen. fill, x, 915. 



* Ibid. 926. 



*" Ibid. 1000, -vide Pref. to vol. x, 

 pp. xxxi, xxxii (Gairdner). Betrothal at 

 that period was often considered quite 

 as binding as marriage. Hence the 

 frequency of divorces on the plea of 

 pre-contract. 



The Chap. Ho. Accts. C. &, fol. 



335 



283, &c. ; C. j^, fol. 98, &c., show a 

 considerable amount of work done in 

 altering the arms and initials of one 

 queen for the other. 



" L. and P. Hen. VlII, xii, 41, 

 1164. Great precautions were taken 

 about 'the death,' which at the time 

 was ' extremely sore ' in London ; L. 

 and P. Hen. VIII, xii, 839. 



*" Wriothesley, Chron. 1 1 (Camd. 

 Soc.) ; L. and P. Hen. VIII, xii, 889 ; 

 Lit. Remains of Ediv. VI, \, pp. xxiii, civ. 



**' 'Incontinent after the birth Te 

 Deum was sung in Paul's and other 

 churches of the city, and great fires 

 [were made] in every street, and goodly 

 banqueting and triumphing cheer with 

 shooting of guns all day and night'; 

 Add. MSS. B.M. 6113, fol. 81. 



443 L. and P. Hen. fill, xii, 889. 



