Editing Eltham Palace (section)

==History==
===1300–1930===
The original palace was given to [[Edward II of England|Edward II]] in 1305 by the [[Bishop of Durham]], [[Antony Bek (bishop of Durham)|Anthony Bek]], and used as a [[royal residence]] from the 14th to the 16th century.  According to one account, the incident which inspired [[Edward III of England|Edward III]]'s foundation of the [[Order of the Garter]] took place here.  As the favourite palace of [[Henry IV of England|Henry IV]], it played host to [[Manuel II Palaiologos]], the only [[List of Byzantine emperors|Byzantine emperor]] ever to visit England, from December 1400 to mid-February 1401, with a [[jousting|joust]] being given in his honour.<ref>Brian Cathcart [http://www.newstatesman.com/200609250019 An emperor in Eltham] ''New Statesman'' 25 September 2006. The [[Latin Empire of Constantinople|Latin Emperor of Constantinople]], [[Baldwin II of Constantinople|Baldwin II]], visited the court of [[Henry III of England|Henry III]] on two occasions, in 1238 and 1247, in search of assistance against the Byzantine successor state of [[Empire of Nicaea|Nicaea]]. ''Cf''. [[Matthew Paris]], ''Chronica Majora'', ed. H.R. Luard, London: 1872–1883, 7 vols. (Rolls series, 57): vol. 3, 480–481; vol. 4, 625–626.</ref> There is still a jousting [[tilt yard]]. The 1401 Eltham tournament was described or commemorated in literary form as thirteen letters, in old French, addressed to Henry's daughter [[Blanche of England]]. Each letter, purportedly written by a legendary patron, praises one of the combatants. Two of them, William Bardolf and John Clinton, are identified by their heraldry. The letters were probably read aloud during the event.<ref>Sarah Carpenter, 'Chivalric Entertainment at the Court of Henry IV: The Jousting Letters of 1401', ''Medieval English Theatre, 43 (D. S. Brewer, 2022), pp. 39-107.</ref>

[[Edward IV of England|Edward IV]] built the [[Great hall|Great Hall]] in the 1470s, and the future [[Henry VIII]] grew up here; it was here in 1499 that he met and impressed the scholar [[Erasmus]], introduced to him by [[Thomas More]]. Erasmus described the occasion:<ref>''Collected Works of Erasmus'', Toronto University Press,  volume 9, letter 1341A. The reference can be found also in R. W. Chambers, ''Thomas More'', 1935, edn 1976, p. 70; E. E. Reynolds, ''Thomas More & Erasmus'', 1965, p. 25, and ''The Field is Won, The Life and Death of St Thomas More'', 1968, p. 35.</ref>

{{Quote|I had been carried off by Thomas More, who had come to pay me a visit on an estate of Mountjoy’s (the house of Lord Mountjoy near Greenwich) where I was staying, to take a walk by way of diversion as far as the nearest town (Eltham). For there all the royal children were being educated, Arthur alone excepted, the eldest son. When we came to the hall, all the retinue was assembled; not only that of the palace, but Mountjoy’s as well. In the midst stood Henry, aged nine, already with certain royal demeanour; I mean a dignity of mind combined with a remarkable courtesy…. More with his companion Arnold saluted Henry (the present King of England) and presented to him something in writing. I, who was expecting nothing of the sort, had nothing to offer; but I promised that somehow, at some other time, I would show my duty towards him. At the time I was slightly indignant with More for having given me no warning, especially because the boy, during dinner, sent me a note inviting something from my pen. I went home, and though the Muses, from whom I had lived apart so long, were unwilling, I finished a poem in three days.}}

[[Tudor dynasty|Tudor]] courts often used the palace for their Christmas celebrations. With the grand rebuilding of [[Greenwich Palace]], which was more easily reached by river,<ref>"Through the benefite of the river, a seate of more commoditie", observed [[William Lambarde]], in his ''Perambulation of Kent'' 1573, noted by Walter Thornbury and [[Edward Walford]], ''Old and New London: A Narrative of Its History, Its People and Its Places'' 1893:238.</ref> Eltham was less frequented, save for the hunting in its enclosed parks, easily reached from Greenwich, "as well enjoyed, the Court lying at Greenwiche, as if it were at this house it self". The deer remained plentiful in the Great Park, of {{convert|596|acre|km2|1}}, the Little, or Middle Park, of {{convert|333|acre|km2|1}}, and the Home Park, or Lee Park, of {{convert|336|acre|km2|1}}.<ref name="Thornbury and Walford 1893:239">Thornbury and Walford 1893:239.</ref>

The courtier [[Roger Aston]] was keeper of the little park at Eltham in 1610 and built four bridges for the convenience of [[James VI and I]].<ref>Frederick Devon, ''Issues of the Exchequer'' (London, 1836), pp. 106-7.</ref> In the 1630s, by which time the palace was no longer used by the royal family, Sir [[Anthony van Dyck]] was given the use of a suite of rooms as a country retreat. During the [[English Civil War]], the parks were denuded of trees and deer. [[John Evelyn]] saw it 22 April 1656: "Went to see his Majesty's house at Eltham; both the palace and chapel in miserable ruins, the noble wood and park destroyed by [[Nathaniel Rich (soldier)|Rich the rebel]]".  The palace never recovered. Eltham was bestowed by [[Charles II of England|Charles II]] on [[Best-Shaw baronets|John Shaw]] and in its ruinous condition— reduced to Edward IV's Great Hall, the former [[buttery (shop)|buttery]], called "Court House", a bridge across the moat and some walling—remained with Shaw's descendants as late as 1893.<ref name="Thornbury and Walford 1893:239"/>

The current house was built in the 1930s on the site of the original, and incorporates its Great Hall, which boasts the third-largest [[hammerbeam roof]] in England.<ref name="dowsing">{{cite book| author=James Dowsing| title=Forgotten Tudor palaces in the London area| publisher=Sunrise Press| place=London| date=3 June 2002| isbn=978-1-873876-15-2}}</ref> Fragments of the walls of other buildings remain visible around the gardens, and the 15th-century bridge still crosses the moat.<ref>{{NHLE|desc=North Bridge across Eltham Palace Moat|num=1218925|access-date=22 September 2020}}</ref>

<Gallery mode=packed heights=160px>
Eltham Palace Panorama.jpg|The south side of the palace, with the medieval great hall on the left
Joseph Mallord William Turner - Interior of St. John's Palace, Eltham - Google Art Project.jpg|JMW Turner's painting of the great hall {{circa}}1793
Eltham Palace, April 2018 (4).jpg|The great hall in 2018
</Gallery>

===1930–present===
In 1933, [[Stephen Courtauld]] and his wife [[Virginia Courtauld|Virginia "Ginie" Courtauld]] (née Peirano) acquired a 99-year lease on the palace site and commissioned [[Seely & Paget]] to restore the hall and create a modern home attached to it. Seely and Paget added a minstrel's gallery and a timber screen to the hall, while creating a design for the main house inspired by [[Christopher Wren]]'s work at [[Hampton Court Palace]] and [[Trinity College, Cambridge]].<ref name='seelypaget'>{{cite web|url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/lgbtq-history/seely-and-paget-at-eltham-palace/|work=English Heritage|title=The Partners: Seely and Paget|access-date=17 December 2019}}</ref>

The home was decorated internally in the [[Art Deco]] style. The entrance hall was created by [[Scandinavian design|Swedish designer]] [[Rolf Engströmer]]; light floods in from a glazed dome, highlighting blackbean veneer and figurative marquetry.<ref name="palace">{{cite web|title=Eltham Palace |url=http://www.propascene.com/exhibithighlight/elthampalace.htm |publisher=prop a scene |year=2000 |access-date=3 January 2012 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302092733/http://www.propascene.com/exhibithighlight/elthampalace.htm |archive-date=2 March 2012 |df=dmy }}</ref> Other rooms in the house, including the dining room, drawing room and Virginia Courtauld's circular bedroom and adjoining bathroom, were the work of the Italian designer [[Piero Malacrida de Saint-August]], while Seely and Paget designed many of the bedrooms.<ref name='seelypaget' /> Keen gardeners, the Courtaulds also substantially modified and improved the grounds and gardens.<ref name=EngHer/>

<Gallery mode=packed heights=120px>
Eltham Palace - interior, composite view of entrance hall.jpg|The Art Deco entrance hall
Eltham Palace - interior, view of Virginia Courtauld’s bedroom.jpg|Virginia Courtauld's bedroom
Eltham Palace - interior, view of library.jpg|The library
Eltham Palace - interior, view of dining room.jpg|The dining room
Eltham Palace - interior, view of drawing room.jpg|The drawing room
</Gallery>

Stephen was a younger brother of [[Samuel Courtauld (art collector)|Samuel Courtauld]], an industrialist, art collector and founder of the [[Courtauld Institute of Art]].  His study in the new house features a statuette version of ''The Sentry'', copied from a [[Watts Warehouse#War memorial|Manchester war memorial]], by [[Charles Sargeant Jagger]], who was - like Stephen - a member of the [[Artists' Rifles]] during the First World War.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/the-sentry-etham-palace-charles-sargeant-jagger/bgFswHovVBJ87Q?hl=en|title=The Sentry, Eltham Palace|publisher=Arts and Culture|access-date=22 September 2020}}</ref>

The Courtaulds' pet [[lemur]], [[Mah-Jongg (lemur)|Mah-Jongg]], had a special room on the upper floor of the house which had a hatch to the downstairs flower room; he had the run of the house. The Courtaulds remained at Eltham until 1944. During the earlier part of the war, Stephen Courtauld was a member of the local [[Civil Defence Service]]. In September 1940 he was on duty on the Great Hall roof as a fire watcher when it was badly damaged by [[The Blitz|German incendiary bombs]]. In 1944, the Courtauld family moved to Scotland then to [[Southern Rhodesia]] (now Zimbabwe), giving the palace to the [[Royal Army Educational Corps]] in March 1945; the corps then moved all its administration to Eltham Palace in 1948.<ref name=eh>{{cite web|url=https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/eltham-palace-and-gardens/history/the-army-at-eltham/|title=The Army at Eltham|publisher=English Heritage|access-date=15 December 2019}}</ref> Following the formation of the Educational and Training Services Branch of the new [[Adjutant General's Corps]], staff moved to [[Worthy Down Camp]] in [[Hampshire]] in 1992.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rhqagc.com/membership.html|title=Regimental Association Subscriptions|access-date=18 May 2014}}</ref>

In 1995, [[English Heritage]] assumed management of the palace, and in 1999, completed major repairs and restorations of the interiors and gardens.<ref name=EngHer>{{cite web|title=The History of Eltham Palace and Gardens|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/eltham-palace-and-gardens/history/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120302020755/http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/eltham-palace-and-gardens/history/|archive-date=2 March 2012|url-status=dead|publisher=English Heritage}}</ref>

<Gallery mode=packed heights=120px>
File:Eltham Palace moat.jpg|Moat
File:Eltham Palace garden.jpg|Garden
File:South Bridge Eltham Palace 01.JPG|South Bridge
</Gallery>
{{wide image|Eltham Palace.jpg|700px|The north side of the palace}}