The manor and palace of Eltham, Kent, 1086-1663

Abstract

The palace of Eltham, situated on a main route between London and the Continent, was for over three hundred years one of the principal English royal residences. The purpose of this thesis is to study the history of the manor and palace until royalty and the court ceased to visit Eltham. After a survey of previous accounts of Eltham history the period before 1305 when the manor became royal property is briefly examined. It is significant that a royal visit to Eltham is recorded a few years before 1305. Six chapters cover the history of events during its royal ownership. A number of different aspects of its history are then examined, the first being the population of the manor. The palace site saw much rebuilding to keep the palace up to date and three chapters cover this aspect of the palace's history. Further chapters are devoted to the surviving remains of the palace, its layout, the tasks and wages of the workmen and the sources and transport of the building materials used there. The next three chapters are concerned with the manor, its parks and gardens, the farming of the demesne and the two seventeenth century surveys of the manor. The palace and manor needed a number of officials for their administration. Three chapters describe their changes between 1305 and 1663 and a final chapter deals with the manorial courts. Three appendices describe different aspects of the court at Eltham such as water, drainage and sanitation; the chapels and chaplains; and the details of the stone used for the palace buildings.