Royal Opulence

Hampton Court enchanted us with its beauty and depiction of life at the time of the various Henries, William and Mary etc. History does come to life as you wander under Anne Boleyn's Gate, and down a corridor which one of Henry's wives (Catherine Howard??) is believed to haunt, as she ran down it in desperation to plead for mercy from Henry to avoid her execution, but was caught by the guards before she reached the King, and dragged back, to be ultimately beheaded!!! Puts "a bit of a domestic" in a whole new light.... It also inspired us to come home and search the Internet for little bits of history that we were vague on. Exactly why did Wolsey fall from grace, and hence lose Hampton Court to Henry???? What did happen to that Prince John who was kept hidden from the world??? (Coincidentally that was the film on BBC TV that night.)

Even in winter the gardens were stunning, but Kath and I decided to give the Maze a miss as we couldn't even figure it out on the aerial view plan outside - search parties would have been needed for us at dusk, we are so directionally challenged! The vast size and extravagance of the palace and gardens certainly remind us of the difference between the haves and have-nots of those eras, and make the mansions of Lakshmi Mittal or Bill Gates seem like summer cottages.