| Print | More

BRIDEWELL PALACE

ALTERNATIVE NAME:

BRIDEWELL PRISON, BRIDEWELL ROYAL HOSPITAL

ABOUT THIS MONUMENT

+ / -

EH Visitor Information
Related Monuments
Related Text
Investigation History

More Pictures
Modern Map
Old Map
Aerial Photograph

Monument Types
Sources
Thesaurus
Description

DESCRIPTION

+ / -

Bridewell Palace was originally built by Thomas Wolsey from 1510 but was transferred to King Henry VIII in 1515. It was completed in 1523 and provided Henry with an important residence near to Westminster and the capital, after Westminster Palace had burnt down in 1512. The palace was built on the banks of the Fleet River and it was named after a holy well nearby dedicated to St Bride. In 1553 Edward VI gave the palace to the City for the reception of vagrants and homeless children and for the punishment of petty offenders and disorderly women.

Bridewell Palace consisted of two brick-built courtyards with the royal lodgings arranged around the three-storey inner courtyard. These were entered by a grand processional staircase from the outer courtyard. The kitchens and gatehouse were on the north side of the outer courtyard and there was a long gallery (240 feet) which connected the inner court with Blackfriars. Bridewell was the first royal palace not to have a great hall and it also had a processional staircase, which was a feature that would continue to be present in the king's later residences.

The City of London took full possession of the building in 1556 and converted the palace into a prison, hospital and workrooms and became known as Bridewell Royal Hospital and Bridewell Prison. The majority of the palace was rebuilt in 1666-1667 following its destruction in the Great Fire of London. The prison closed in 1855 and the buildings were demolished in 1863-1864. The site was first covered by De Keyser's Royal Hotel and since 1931 has been occupied by the Unilever Building.

DETAIL

+ / -

MORE INFORMATION & SOURCES

+ / -

1.[Name centred TQ31618101]. SITE OF BRIDEWELL PALACE [AT]
['A' Name centred TQ31648104]. SITE OF GATE [AT] (1)

(17) BRIDEWELL HOSPITAL, on the W. side of New Bridge Street, is a modern building but contains from the old building a fireplace, now in the Court Room. (For further details see Inventory). (2)

When the Palace of Westminster was largely destroyed by fire in 1512, Henry VIII was left without a palace in London. To remedy this, in 1515 he began the construction of a new palace at Bridewell, on part of a site owned by Cardinal Wolsey. After Wolsey's fall in 1530, the King gained Whitehall, and Bridewell ceased to be a residence, but it was used for the attendance of favoured ambassadors. In 1522 the entourage of the Emperor Charles V stayed at Bridewell when the emperor visited Henry VIII. In 1556 Queen Mary bestowed the buildings on the City of London for the establishment of a workhouse for the vagrant poor. The whole of the southern portion, including the two towers overlooking the Thames, were destroyed in the Great Fire. The principal buildings formed a four-range structure arranged around a courtyard, with a smaller outer court on the east side. It was finally demolished in 1863-4. (3-4)

Thomas Wolsey built a house at Bridwell from 1510-15 which when he took up Hampton Court and York Place he transferred it to the king. Henry wanted a house between Westminster and the capital especially after Westminster Palace had earlier burnt down.
Bridewell was finally finished in 1523 and it consisted of two brick-built courtyards with a long gallery ending in a Watergate at the Thames. The royal lodgings were arranged around the three-storey inner courtyard (the king's on the south and the queen's on the north). These were entered by a grand processional staircase from the outer courtyard. The kitchens and gatehouse were on the north side of the outer courtyard and there was a long gallery (240 feet) which connected the inner court with Blackfriars. Bridewell had two innovative features: it was the first royal palace not to have a great hall and it also had a processional staircase, which was a feature that would be ever present in the king's later residences. (5)

Henry VIII built a new palace at Bridewell and the Emperor Charles V came to visit Henry and Catherine of Aragon. The Emperor did not lodge at the Blackfriars, but his entourage was entertained and lodged here.
A communication gallery was built from the palace over the Fleet River into the Blackfriars. Henry VIII occupied Bridewell frequently, and it was here that the court was assembled to debate the validity of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. The King and Queen also lodged here whilst the question was being argued in the Hall at Blackfriars in 1529.
Edward VI alienated the palace and bestowed it on the City of London to be used as a house for the poor, and a place of confinement for idle and vicious vagrants. (6)

The City of London took full possession of the building in 1556 and converted the palace into a prison, hospital and workrooms and became known as Bridewell Royal Hospital and Bridewell Prison. The majority of the palace was rebuilt in 1666-1667 following its destruction in the Great Fire of London. The prison closed in 1855 and the buildings were demolished in 1863-1864. (7)

The National Grid Reference for the former site is: TQ3161381023 (8)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 1:1056 1916.

( 2) Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England) 1929 An inventory of the historical monuments in London. Vol.IV: the City

Page(s)160

(3) edited by Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert 1983 The London encyclopeadia

Page(s)86-7

(4) by H M Colvin ... [et al] 1982 The history of the King's Works, volume 4 : 1485-1660 (Part 2)

Page(s)53-58

(5) Simon Thurley 1993 The royal palaces of Tudor England : architecture and court life

Page(s)40-44

(6) World Wide Web page

London online. 2009. Bridewell history, http://www.londononline.co.uk/history/tudor/1/ [Accessed 19-MAY-2009]

(7) World Wide Web page

London Lives, http://www.londonlives.org/static/Bridewell.jsp [Accessed 03-JUL-2012]

(8) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

1:1250, 2008

MONUMENT TYPES

+ / -

COMMENTS

+ / -

Please help us keep our information accurate let us know if you see any errors on this page.

Further information about monuments may be obtained by contacting NMR Enquiry and Research Services , through the English Heritage website.

EH Archives
EH Prints
English Heritage
Heritage Explorer
Heritage Gateway
Images of England
National Heritage List for England
English Heritage Archive
ViewFinder