Wednesday marked another day trip outside of the jolly old city of London, and this time I got to come along! After a pleasant, roughly thirty-minute-long train ride, our group disembarked in Richmond upon Thames and made the short walk to the beautiful Hampton Court Palace.
Shawn discussed some of the history of this royal residence during a class meeting, so I knew ahead of time that the current interconnected building is an amalgamation of sorts between Tudor and Baroque structures. But I did not quite absorb what that meant until I finished up in a room from one audio tour, then walked into a connecting room with completely different architectural features. It might be jarring or disorderly for some, but I rather like it! It makes the place far more interesting than it might be otherwise and, silly though it may sound, I think it makes it a lot more fun!
Whenever we all got our headphones and audio tour packs, the group scattered like roaches when the lights turn on, so, as per usual with these sorts of historical tours, I embarked on my own journey. After taking some reference photos of the Clock Court (because of course my first thought in a new historical place is “I wonder if I could recreate that with stagecraft”), I started on the tour of King Henry VIII’s Apartments, which, despite the connotation of the name, consisted of a lot more than his private living spaces.
The first and foremost (at least in my mind) was the Great Hall, prime location for the meals of courtiers and merriment on special occasions. Shakespeare and the Lord Chamberlain’s Men (later the King’s Men under the royal patronage of King James I) performed in this room on a number of occasions, and my fondness for the Bard required me to take photos of every possible surface and structure in the hopes of possibly recreating it all onstage in the future. The wood paneled lower sections of the walls (if you can consider three or four times my height “lower”) were draped in large, elaborate tapestries of Abraham and other religious figures. Apparently, their golden thread once glittered and their colors were vibrant, but centuries of aging has understandably dulled them. I had a delightful chat with the attendant on duty at the time about the history of the building and learned some facts that were not listed on any of the placards. For example, the pretty stained-glass windows were not originally that intricate, but during the Victorian Era some panes had minor damage that needed fixing, and the people responsible for doing so thought “Instead of restoring only what we need to, why don’t we replace every one of them with something more ostentatious?” I also learned that King Henry VIII characteristic obesity did not set in until later in his life. For his youth and most of his adulthood he was a strong, athletic man, so much so that he wore hose that were cut short so he could show off his calves! Overall, I think this room’s aesthetic and character was my favorite out of the entire estate. It felt so lived in, and like such a place of occasion, that I could see the courtly goings-on vividly in my imagination.
The rest of the Tudor section of the palace suffered in comparison to the first room, but the servant’s rooms and passageways, the Waiting Chamber (or whatever the proper name was for the room where people would wait for the king to emerge from his private chambers), and the hallway now used as the Tudor Royal Family’s portrait gallery were all beautiful and helped paint the picture of courtly life in its time. The Council Chamber stood out above the other normal rooms because, in addition to replicating the original decoration and furniture, a projection shone onto the meeting table in the center depicted the hands and papers of its members, whose names, titles, and brief descriptions were hung on the back of their respective chairs. That, combined with piped in audio of a simulated Council meeting regarding one of King Henry VIII’s many marriage disputes, made the space feel palpably real (though I wish it were not so dark that my pictures turned out poorly).
The final portion constructed under the Tudors was the Chapel Royal, a location of various christenings and the seat of King Henry VIII’s religion practice and his religious control over the Church of England he would eventually found. The room was courageous, with the ceiling, oddly enough, being extravagantly decorated with blues and golds and symbols of heraldry and authority. I would share photos of it here, but I followed the posted signs (unlike a few American and British tourists) and restrained myself.
Next came the Georgian section of the castle, the source of the Baroque-Tudor stylistic clashes in the building’s architecture. The audio tour had guests travel through the rooms as a courtier would, coming closer to the monarchs and growing higher in privilege and authority with each passing doorway. I learned a lot about King George I, his son, the eventual King George II, and their respective spouses, as well as their myriad familial issues. But for all of that, they were remarkably good monarchs, generally staying out of Parliament’s way and not interfering with the lives of the common people. The death of King George II marked the last royal to reside at Hampton Court Palace for quite some time, his grandson, King George III, opting to live elsewhere.
With time before our scheduled return train getting low, I set out for the exit through the gorgeous gardens, unexpectedly running into Margaret, Leah, and Grason, and taking a slight detour with them to try our hand at the hedge maze and figuratively stopping to smell the roses.
Today was a delightful departure from the city of London, which, though fascinating, can feel cramped at times. And though I am currently nursing sunburns due to the visit, I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who wants to try out someplace different!
Theatre in London U of A 
Thank you!
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