Building    From 1440  To 1660

Greenwich Palace / Palace of Placentia

Categories: Property, Royalty

The palace was built, as Bella Court, by Humphrey Duke of Gloucester, regent to the child king Henry VI.  When the king married Margaret of Anjou Humphrey fell out of favour and died in prison in 1447.  Margaret took over Bella Court and renamed it the Palace of Placentia, under which name (derived from Latin for 'pleasant place to live') it was the main royal residence until the 1600s, though it was rebuilt by Henry VII, 1498 - 1504. 

The Civil War left it in a bad state and Charles II had the Tudor buildings demolished intending to build a sumptuous replacement.  But only the King’s House was built and the site was never again a royal residence. It remained empty until the Greenwich Hospital was built.

The dates 1440 - 1660 are approximate.

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This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Greenwich Palace / Palace of Placentia

Commemorated ati

Greenwich Palace

The plaque was unveiled to commemorate the 450th anniversary of Queen Elizabe...

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John Blanke - Trinity Laban Conservatoire

'fl' stands for 'floruit' (Latin) which means 'he or she flourished', and den...

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Other Subjects

John Abernethy Warburton

John Abernethy Warburton

Initially this plaque looked like it was raised by a man simply concerned about his property. The only notable Warburton we could find in the area is a Dr Warburton who managed the insane asylum w...

Person, Property

1 memorial
Friary House

Friary House

There has been a house on this site since about 1551 and it was occupied by, amongst others, John Popham. Guests at the house included Queen Elizabeth I and, in the early 1700s, Queen Anne. 1800 th...

Building, Property

1 memorial
St Dunstan's House, Fetter Lane

St Dunstan's House, Fetter Lane

The current St Dunstan's House, an office block, is the nearest building on Fetter Lane.  Its predecessor, from which the decorative panels were rescued, stood there from 1886 until its demolition ...

Building, Property

1 memorial
St Joseph's Almshouses

St Joseph's Almshouses

Roman Catholic almshouses, funded by Joseph and Mary Knight.   Designed by Pugin, building began in 1847.  24 cottages were planned but only 18 built, in two blocks of 9, at the north-east corner o...

Building, Property, Social Welfare

2 memorials
House of Commons

House of Commons

The palace of Westminster has been the home of Parliament since a meeting there in 1295. It split into two "houses" in 1341 but, having been built as a royal residence, the palace had no suitable m...

Building, Politics & Administration, Property

4 memorials