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St James's Palace, London

In 1532 Henry VIII acquired an area of water meadow near Westminster, as one of his many royal chases. On this property was a thirteenth century hospital for leprosy victims, called St James's. Henry VIII replaced the hospital with hunting lodge accommodation for himself and his guests. Henry's hunting lodge, originally St James's House, became St James's Palace, and much of Henry's original building survives. Like Hampton Court it was built in red brick, an ordinary building material today, but a very expensive status symbol in the sixteenth century. The Chapel Royal, the Gatehouse, some of the turrets, and the Tudor Rooms in the State Apartments are all part of Henry VIII's original building. The Gatehouse, in St James's Street, still carries an engraving of Henry's crown.

 

St James's soon became a premier royal palace, and has played a role in many historic events. As the Armada approached England in 1588, Elizabeth I was staying at St James's. It was from here that she left to give her famous speech to troops at Tilbury: "I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too..." By the seventeenth century St James's had become more controversial, after the building of the Queen's Chapel, for use by Charles I's Catholic wife Henrietta Maria. This beautiful chapel completed in 1629 caused resentment and suspicion amongst the Protestant establishment, and contributed to the conflict that eventually erupted between Charles and Parliament in the English Civil War. Charles was to lose this war, and in January 1649, Charles was taken from St James's Palace, through Horse Guards Parade to his place of execution at Banqueting House. Charles II, who would recover his father's lost throne was born at St James's, as was Charles II's brother James II who lost the throne again. He was deposed following the Glorious Revolution to be replaced by William and his wife Mary. Mary was, once again, born at St James's. When Whitehall Palace burnt down in 1698, St James's became the main residence for all monarchs up until William IV. Today the palace is used for state occasions, and receptions, and provides London accommodation for the Princess Royal. Clarence House, the official residence of the Prince of Wales, is also part of St James's Palace.

 

 

 

St James's Palace from St James's Street

The majority of the building is not open to visitors, but it is possible to walk through the grounds. I suggest walking through from St James's Park, across the Mall into Marlborough Road. Here you will see the Queen's Chapel, which caused Charles I such problems. The Queen's Chapel has limited public opening, for Sunday services at 8.30am and 11.30am Easter to July. Then from Marlborough Road walk past one of the palace courtyards into St James's Street. Here you will see the Henry VIII Gatehouse.

 

Standing in St James's Street looking back at the weathered red brick palace, you get a real sense of what the monarchy is now for. The modern monarchy is a symbol of stability in a rapidly changing world. The family itself, inspite of aspirations to being a model family, has all the ups and downs of any other family. It is not a symbol of stability in that sense. Indeed the history of St James's shows that royal history has been anything but stable. But families, for all their troubles, are beguiling in their continuity, taking us back in easy steps into the past. St James's Palace is the place where the Accession Council meets on the death of a monarch, and where a new monarch is announced.

Incidentally, St James's Street itself takes you back in time. It has two of the oldest surviving shops in Britain; Berry Bros and Rudd, selling wine, and Locks, selling hats, both of which date from the eighteenth century. St James also has terraced housing dating from the very earliest developments in this design, built by Nicholas Bourbon between 1670 and 1700. Bourbon was taking advantage of all the building land available following the Great Fire of London - look for numbers 36 - 43.

 

 

Directions: St James's Palace is in Marlborough Road, just off the Mall in London. Click here for an interactive map centred on St James's Palace. The nearest Underground station is Green Park.

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