 King Henry VIII lived in the Grade 1 listed palace known as Hampton Court, located in the heart of Richmond, upon Tames, a truly majestic site to behold for anyone lucky enough to ever get the chance to visit it. This impressive, towering structure boasts an incredible number of amenities that rival the greatest palaces in the world. I'm talking 241 chimneys, nearly 1,400 rooms, 5 internal courtyards, and a mind-boggling floor area of more than 5 million square feet. Top that off with over 60 acres of formal gardens, as well as 750 acres of surrounding parkland. You've got yourself the very definition of extravagance. Also Michael and I have dropped our own house tour of our new home that we moved into this year, so go ahead and subscribe to our personal channel if you want to see where we're living and more of what we're up to. In these videos we don't reveal any addresses and even though I've done a house tour of my own place, please do not show up at any private residences because it's not safe for anyone. Its origins begin with the Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, King Henry VIII's Lord Chancellor, who undertook the transformation of this property from a relatively humble and ordinary country house into the magnificent specimen it is today. It was Wolsey's intention to create a grand building for himself in which he could host not only the king and the royal court, but also monarchs from all across Europe. And so after investing huge sums of money, he constructed a palace fit for a king. In fact, Wolsey was so successful at accomplishing his goals that the whole thing kind of backfired when King Henry fell so in love with the place that he decided to take Hampton Court for himself. By the 1530s, Henry's home had become many different things, a palace, a hotel, a theater, but largely it served as a huge leisure complex for the country's elite. In fact, the king used to demonstrate the palace's splendor by throwing lavish banquets with the country's most extravagant personalities and attendants, spawning over some fabulously expensive art. While living here, King Henry stayed in the private apartment quarters that were personally styled after his own taste. But even with that area taking up a sizable portion of the property, there was still enough room for 30 extra suites of lodging sprinkled throughout the Tudor Palace, in particular located inside the west front known as base court. For the most part, King Henry VIII adored the time he spent living here, but that's not to say that everything was perfect. After all, his third queen, Jane Seymour, died here while in the process of giving the king his much-longed-for-son Edward. In fact, it's been suggested that Jane's ghost appears each and every year walking the halls of this palace on the anniversary of her death, October 24th. And that's not the only ghost that haunts these halls. King Henry VIII's later wife Catherine Howard was also arrested while living here and later executed at the Tower of London for the crimes of adultery and treason. It's said that prior to her execution, she caught wind of what was about to happen and went running down the halls of what is now called the Haunted Gallery, where her ghosts can still occasionally be seen and heard begging for mercy. It's difficult to explain just how important this palace was during these early years of its existence and the role it played in running the country. To give you a bit of context, the kitchens would be a great indication. On different occasions during Henry's reign, he would sometimes have as many as 1,200 courtyards visiting him at any one time, all of whom needed meals prepared for them. To accomplish this, King Henry had the existing Great Kitchen enlarged and he created a space big enough to pump out as much as 1,600 meals a day, and that's without modern technology. Following the reign of King Henry VIII, Hampton Court would maintain its position as one of the kingdom's most prized and popular palaces. In fact, many of the 17th century's most dramatic events took place in its hallowed Great Hall, including William Shakespeare's original productions of Hamlet and Macbeth in 1603, which were put on for King James I. James was also responsible for organizing the 1604 Hampton Court Conference, which might sound like something of a bore, but resulted in the publication of the King James Bible in 1611, the first authorized version of the Holy Scripture to be printed in English. Years later, James' son King Charles I would utilize the palace to house much of his art collection, including paintings of Matanga's Triumph of Caesar. Unfortunately for Charles, soon enough, this palace would turn into his prison. In 1647, he was placed under house arrest after his defeat in the Civil War. The king would later escape through the privy garden, but was later recaptured and executed in 1649. I'm just thinking of all the ghosts that must be in this place. During the Commonwealth period of 1649-1660, Oliver Cromwell would save the palace from imminent destruction by making it his home. Despite his Holy Puritan ideals, Cromwell appreciated fine arts, mainly the tapestries that hung on the palace's walls, and he enjoyed his time living here like a king. After the restoration, King Charles II marked his return to Hampton Courts with the commission of the beautiful canal that borders the property in preparation for the arrival of his soon-to-be bride, Catherine of Braganza. The couple then honeymooned at the palace and spent their time lazing around in boats shaped like swans up and down the canal. Of course, just because he was married doesn't mean that the king didn't have something of a wandering eye. In fact, his main mistress, the Countess of Castle Main, along with all of their legitimate children, were allowed to live on the grounds of Hampton Courts. When William III and Mary II took to the throne in 1689, they asked Sir Christopher Wren to build them an elegant new baroque palace. And while Wren originally planned on destroying the entirety of Hampton Courts to make way for this new creation, he ultimately decided to leave much of this Tudor sensation as it stood, and added onto it instead, with a spectacular fountain court. The new wings around the fountain court contained fresh state apartments in private rooms, one set each for both the king and queen. These royal suites were of completely equal value in order to reflect William and Mary's unique status as joint sovereigns. William and Mary were also responsible for commissioning many of the most amazing areas of the Hampton court gardens to complement their new wing. This includes the great fountain garden and a brand new privy garden. It was also during this time that the palace's infamous maze was added to the grounds too, one that reportedly takes at least 20 minutes on average to make your way to the center of, and was originally constructed out of hornbeam. Another landmark here is the Royal Chapel, which once contained a great double window filled with stained glass depicting Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon and Cardinal Wolsey. Unfortunately, when the Commonwealth took over, much of this space was destroyed. Then in 1710, Queen Anne commissioned Christopher Wren to remodel it, and he placed Grand Timber over the original brickwork. He also added boxed in pews, an organ and a staircase leading down from the royal pew. During the reign of King George I, his primary contribution to Hampton court was to build an impressive suite for his son George, the Prince of Wales, and his wife, Princess Caroline. The King also commissioned a new kitchen at the time, which today is known as Georgian House, and can now be rented out if you're ever looking for a place to stay while visiting England. When King George II succeeded his father in 1727, the palace entered its final phase as a royal residence. He and his wife completed work on their own suite of royal apartments, but by 1737, he no longer felt inspired living here, and the royal family vacated the premises, allowing others with grace and favor to take over. Many of the individuals who would call Hampton court home during the subsequent years were aristocratic widows in tough circumstances, who were offered free accommodation in return for their husband's services to the monarch. And even though the apartments built over the centuries were very grand, they weren't necessarily all that comfortable to live in. Residents tended to complain about the palace being unbearably cold, damp, and access to hot water being difficult to come by. With so few people wanting to stay there, Queen Victoria opened the palace to the public in 1838. It has remained a magnet for visitors ever since, drawing millions from across the world to experience the grandeur, ghosts, and fabulous art hanging on the walls. By the 1920s, further leisure activities had been provided, including taking tea in the Tilt Yard Cafe, enjoying a game of mini-putt on the palace screens, and even a game of tennis on the courts. Today, the palace is also home to two famous annual festivals, the Hampton Court Music Festival and the RHS Flower Show. Apartments stopped being handed out to aristocrats on the premises sometime around 1960, but the rumor is that a few elderly residents are still living at Hampton Court today. Nowadays, the palace is still owned by the royal family and right of the crown, which means that it's held in trust for each new monarch and can't be sold. But for the most part, the palace and its grounds are cared for by an independent charity known as Historic Royal Palaces, which receives no funding from the government or the crown. If you can't quite make it to England, you can always catch some of the Hampton Court interiors when they pop up on TV series, such as Netflix's Bridgerton or even movies like The New World and Sherlock Holmes, A Game of Shadows. But either way, that's gonna bring this latest edition of House Tour to a close. Be sure to let me know what you thought by leaving some comments down below. I'm Kerri the Vampire Slayer and please take a second to like, subscribe and turn on your notifications to make sure that you never miss a video. If you want to learn more about England's many palaces, then check out our recent looks into the homes of Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles III and Prince Andrew. I'll see you all in another one. Bye!