Erection date: 1904
{On the stained-glass plaque:}
Here at Eltham Palace in Epiphany-tide of 1364 King Edward III entertained with great splendour three noble kings. John of France, David Bruce of Scotland and Waldemar of Denmark.
We wondered what brought about this gathering of kings (four if you include the host, King Edward III), but could not track down any reference to the event. It seems the kings just happened to be in London at the same time so - let's party!
But what brought each one to London? We were astonished to discover that both the French king and the Scottish king had been captured by the English (at different battles) and had been released subject to a series of ransom payments being made. Both kings had failed to fulfil the terms of the agreements and had returned to renegotiate.
Oddly it seems we never captured the Danish king. He was in Avignon in 1364 so presumably his route took him via Eltham Palace.
This gathering of three/four kings was out-kinged by the "Banquet of the Five Kings" hosted in 1363 by the Vintners' Company at their hall in the City of London. (The additional king was Peter I of Cyprus, and no, we didn't capture him - he was travelling around Europe meeting rulers, looking for support in his crusade to 'liberate the Holy Land').
Epiphanytide follows on immediately after Christmas - its origins are found in the story of the three kings visiting the new born Jesus. So if you are going to entertain three kings this is the right time to do it. The exact dates of Epiphanytide in 1364 prove very difficult to discover, probably in the region of 6 January - February 2.
Site: Woolwich Town Hall 1 (6 memorials)
SE18, Wellington Street, Greenwich Town Hall
In 1906 this building replaced the previous, also purpose-built, 1842 Woolwich town hall which still survives, nearby, on the corner of Calderwood Street and Polytechnic Street.
Designed by Alfred Brumwell Thomas, this building was built as Woolwich Town Hall which it was until 1965 when, following a shake-up of local councils, it became Greenwich Town Hall.
For another window and the Queen Victoria statue see Woolwich Town Hall 2.
We understand there are still more stained glass windows in the town hall: depicting historic events in the parishes of Woolwich, Plumstead and Eltham and showing Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and the Launching of the ship Henry Grace à Dieu at Woolwich Dockyard in 1514. We could not find them, so they may be in private rooms.
The windows all date from 1904 and are by Geoffrey Webb.
Credit for this entry to: Alan Patient of plaquesoflondon.co.uk
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