Stepping Back Into History at Hatfield House

On Saturday Adam and I had the day to ourselves as the boys Grandparents (my in-laws) took the boys to the Royal Air Tattoo Air Show which was very exciting for the boys! We've been to a couple of air shows before and they're amazing (super loud, but amazing!). Adam and I decided to make the most of the time together just us and booked to go and see the new Elvis movie on Friday night after dropping the boys round to their grandparents. I didn't know what to expect, but the movie was incredible and Austin Butler who played Elvis was phenomenal! I'd assumed the movie would be good as it had Tom Hanks in it, but I was blown away by what a good actor Austin Butler was. I spent the evening googling all about Elvis and his family after watching the movie. 

On Saturday, it was a beautiful sunny day which was perfect as we had planned to visit Hatfield House. It has been on my list to visit for a while as I knew it was where Henry VIII's children grew up and were privately educated. It was also where Elizabeth I (the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn) found out she would become Queen after the passing of her older sister Mary. Not much of the palace they would have lived in survives at Hatfield which is such a shame. Three quarters of the original palace was demolished by Robert Cecil who was the chief advisor to James I after Queen Elizabeth I died. He left one wing remaining which served as the stables for the newly built Hatfield House for the next three centuries until it was restored by the 4th Marquess in 1915. 

What remains of the Old Palace

Hatfield House 

The remaining wing contains the banqueting hall (which was dressed up for a wedding when we went) with most of its original roof timbers and its absolutely stunning and in a way reminds me of the stunning Great hall at Hampton Court Palace (former home of Henry VIII). 

Hatfield House was built in 1611 and was decorated lavishly for the Cecil family but also for when King James I visited. Over the years the house has continued to be lived in by following generations of the Cecil family and even many movie scenes have been filmed there including scenes from The Avengers, Paddington 2, Lara Croft Tomb Raider, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and many many more!

It's a beautiful house and its layers of history and character are evident when you walk around the rooms there. The gardens are also beautiful, but I have to say that it was the tour of the old palace that a member of staff called Dermot gave us that really made the experience for me. It cost £6 each extra, but it was worth it for the way that Dermot brought the history of the Tudors alive. He was clearly very passionate about his job and had obviously done so much research about Hatfield House, The Old Palace and the Tudor monarchs themselves and as someone who shares the passion for the history of the tudors I really appreciated his knowledge and enthusiasm! 

Hatfield House is definitely worth a visit and I'm really glad it's another Tudor-related property ticked off of my bucket list! 

Thank you for reading. 

  Alex xo