Hunsdon House is a historic house in

Hunsdon Hunsdon is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. It is around east of Ware and north-west of Harlow. The population of the village taken at the 2011 Census was 1,080. See also * Baron Hunsdon * Hunsdon Airfield *The Hundred ...

, Hertfordshire,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, northwest of Harlow. Originally constructed in the 15th century, it was most notably the estate of

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

. It has been rebuilt several times since then, and is no longer as grand as it was in the Tudor era. It is a Grade I listed building.

Early history

It was originally constructed of brick in 1447 by

Sir William Oldhall Sir William Oldhall (1390?–1460) was an English soldier and Yorkist supporter, who served as Speaker of the House of Commons of England between 1450 and 1451. Life The eldest son and heir of two-time Sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk, Sir Edm ...

in the shape of a tower, but as Oldhall supported the House of York during the

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These wars were fought bet ...

, he was stripped of the property by the Lancastrian Henry VI. Upon the Yorkist Edward IV's accession to the throne in 1471, the land was returned to the Oldhall family. John Oldhall then died in the

Battle of Bosworth The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 Au ...

and with the Lancastrians back in power, the estate was taken over by Henry VII. Henry traded it to his mother

Margaret Beaufort Lady Margaret Beaufort (usually pronounced: or ; 31 May 1441/43 – 29 June 1509) was a major figure in the Wars of the Roses of the late fifteenth century, and mother of King Henry VII of England, the first Tudor monarch. A descendant of ...

for Old Soar Manor in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

in 1503. After the death of Margaret in 1509, her grandson Henry VIII gave it to

Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (144321 May 1524), styled Earl of Surrey from 1483 to 1485 and again from 1489 to 1514, was an English nobleman, soldier and statesman who served four monarchs. He was the eldest son of John Howard, 1st Du ...

in 1514. Howard's son reduced the height of the tower for safety reasons in 1524.

Tudor era

When Henry VIII retook possession in 1525 after Thomas Howard's death, he set about expanding the house into a palatial estate in the

Tudor style Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...

, complete with royal apartments and even a moat. Although he visited frequently and enjoyed hunting in the deerpark, the house was mainly used for his children, especially

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, who lived there until her accession to the throne. She even inherited the house after the death of her father and kept it until her death. Prince Edward notably spent much time at Hunsdon, most famously in 1546 when his portrait was painted with the house in the background. made her cousin Henry Carey the first

Baron Hunsdon Baron Hunsdon is a title that has been created three times. It was first created in 1559 in the Peerage of England for the soldier and courtier Henry Carey. His grandson, the fourth Baron, was created by Viscount Rochford in 1621 and Earl of D ...

, after granting the house to him in 1559.

Recent centuries

The manor stayed in the Carey family for over 100 years, after which it passed to the Bluck family and then the Calvert family. Much of Henry VIII's expansions were torn down in the early 17th century, and the moat was filled some time in the 18th century. The house was rebuilt at the beginning of the 19th century, but 1860 renovations by Nicolson Calvert changed much of the architecture to an Elizabethan style. One last renovation in 1983 revealed some of the 15th-century brickwork. The current house is less than a quarter of its size under Henry VIII. Today the building is Grade I listed , privately owned and not open to the public. It is possible to view the exterior from public footpaths when walking the area.

References

{{coord, 51.79536, N, 0.056364, E, display=title Tudor architecture Country houses in Hertfordshire Grade I listed buildings in Hertfordshire Grade I listed houses