1,000 years of hidden English history

Eltham, is not an ordinary London suburb

At first sight the busy High Street is much like any other, apart from the church and two old buildings, the village pub and the wine bar next door.

No one would imagine that busy little Eltham is full of history, one of London's most interesting villages, and that hidden behind the trees it still has the banqueting hall of an ancient Plantagenet palace.

No one would guess that Eltham is older even than Greenwich, its famous neighbour.

The village of Eltham is dominated by a large church. Its grim grey Victorian face seems to be frowning at a pleasant old pub called The Greyhound which has been standing for about 300 years on the opposite side of the High Street.

This church can remember the ruthless vandals, in the time of Oliver Cromwell, the men who ransacked the village and tried to destroy the ancient palace created with so much love and care by the early Plantagenet kings.

It is not a church of unusual beauty. St John the Baptist, known as St John's, is comparatively modern but the north aisle of stone has a label over the doorway which is dated 1667.

It stands proudly opposite the pub, as the first little church once stood, solemnly guarding and protecting the village, rather like a large policeman, and it certainly belongs to the past, with its yew trees, and its lych-gate, and its huge graveyard, overgrown with weeds, where children play among the tombstones.

The villagers quite like the village church, as they like The Greyhound, but both are now taken for granted, no more important than the long row of shops.

They are pleased with their nice modern convenient village. Should a visitor ask the way to the wonderful moated palace, or what remains of it, they will look at him with an air of surprise.

This is a little known beauty spot.

The average Londoner has never even heard of Eltham, let alone paid it a visit, and yet this is the place where King Henry III spent Christmas in the year 1270.

Edward II and his Queen, Isabella, spent much of their time at Eltham Palace, quarrelling and making love, and their son, Prince John of Eltham, was born here in 1316.

It was here that Edward II established the order of the Garter, and gave a splendid tournament, spending Christmas here like his ancestors.

The Black Prince rode through the tilt-yard gate to take part in another tournament in 1347.

We know that King Richard II, who dearly loved his romantic palace, built part of the beautiful stone bridge which still spans the moat and has groined arches and buttresses.

Today we can cross that lovely bridge, looking down at the lion and unicorn, later placed so cleverly on the grey stone wall of the moat, watching the slow movement of swans on the peaceful green water which winds round the royal gardens like a shining royal necklace.

It seems that nearly all the Plantagenet kings spent Christmas at Eltham Palace, at night feasting and dancing, in the great banqueting hall, hunting deer the next day, galloping their huge horses in the royal parks which are now almost hidden by houses, or used for a different sport altogether - the noble game of golf.

Henry IV and spent Christmas here, so did Henry VI, and Edward IV, who rebuilt the banqueting hall in 1482 to house an enormous banquet for 2,000 guests.

Unfortunately the Tudor kings preferred Greenwich to Eltham, and , who was born at Greenwich, finally decided to make Greenwich his home. No doubt the villagers felt rather hurt when this happened.

They loved Henry, remembering him as a child, afterwards a young and handsome king, and they proudly recalled a memorable Christmas in the year 1515.

On Christmas Eve, after "Chapel" at Eltham, the Cardinal Wolsey became Lord Chancellor of England.

On the twelfth night of the same Christmas, Henry had given a wonderful party, including a masque acted by the lords and ladies, followed by a stately dance, and finally a banquet of some 200 dishes which was served, of course, in the great hall.

Fourteen years later Henry was still at Eltham, as handsome and amiable as ever, and in January 1529, when Wolsey visited the palace, he made certain laws for the King's happy household which came to be known as the Statutes of Eltham.

But when he wrote those rules, Wolsey did not know that a great change was coming. In that same year, 1529, Henry forsook his wife, Catherine of Aragon, and Wolsey died about twelve months later, deprived of his riches, humiliated by Henry.

And that, for the village, was the greatest possible tragedy, for Henry lost interest in the palace and moved his household to Greenwich.

At Greenwich the tournaments and banquets continued, but no longer at Eltham. Everyone knew that Henry hunted deer in Greenwich Park, but the beautiful red deer at Eltham grazed contentedly beneath the trees, unwanted by Henry who owned them.

Henry was a changed man changed by Anne Boleyn - and yet no one could believe it when he talked quite openly of divorce. News travelled quickly across Blackheath from one village to another.

At Eltham, after Wolsey's death, Catherine left the palace at Greenwich and died five years later at Kimbolton, lonely, unwanted, longing on her deathbed for a message from the king.

It seemed impossible, but the marriage took place in 1533 and now Anne Boleyn was Henry's Queen. By this time the villagers at Eltham were turning for help and guidance to the Roper family at an old and beautiful mansion called Well Hall.

Not far from the church, this delightful house had a large rose garden as well as a moat and was approached, like the palace, by a charming stone bridge.

Well Hall was known to the King because the Ropers were a Catholic family of considerable wealth. Indeed Margaret Roper was the daughter of Henry's friend, Sir Thomas More, who presently became Lord Chancellor.

Sir Thomas More almost was know in Eltham as well as the rest of the family for sometimes he used to stay at the Chancellor's lodgings by the palace, and sometimes at Well Hall to be with Margaret, his favourite daughter.

Sir Thomas had a sense of humour. There is a little story explaining how the marriage was arranged between Margaret and William Roper.

Young Sir William was taken by old Sir Thomas to the bedroom where his two daughters were sleeping.

The proud father then flung aside the sheets and displayed the naked girls. When they had both been rolled over, young Sir William exclaimed: "I have seen both sides!" Then, patting Margaret's bare buttocks, he said: "Thou art mine!"

Such things were sometimes done to make sure that a future bride had no supernumerary nipple - the mark of a witch and this was one of the charges later levelled at Anne Boleyn which led to her execution.

At any rate, William and Margaret were married in 1521.

Until Anne Boleyn appeared on the scene they and the King and Sir Thomas were all very happy meeting one another in Eltham and also in Chelsea.

No one could guess that Sir Thomas would be executed by the ruthless Henry for refusing, as a good Catholic, to recognise the King's marriage to Anne Boleyn, Henry did this to his friend in 1535.

Less than a year later Anne herself was executed - and the following day Henry was secretly married to his new favourite, Jane Seymour.

In Eltham, Margaret Roper was deeply upset by the dreadful ending to her father's life. His head was spiked on the end of a pole and displayed for all to see at London Bridge.

Somehow his head was rescued by Margaret. We know that his headless body was buried in Chelsea Old Church. Some say his head was finally buried in the Roper vault in St Dunstan's Church, Canterbury. We know that a leaden casket, found in 1824, contained a head, and this we presume to be his.

How she must have suffered. The last years of her life were spent in Well Hall because Henry, in a fit of fury, had demolished her father's house in Chelsea and reduced her family to poverty.

She was probably at Well Wall at the time of Anne Boleyn's execution, followed a year later by the death of Anne Seymour. Then came the news that Henry was to marry a German princess, Anne of Cleves.

All the villagers were greatly excited when the princess arrived, and they turned out in force when she was met by Henry in the middle of Blackheath, with waving flags, beating drums, and a fanfare of trumpets.

But Henry found his German bride unattractive, calling her a 'Flanders mare' and with the marriage annulled by Parliament, and Thomas Cromwell, who had arranged it, quickly executed, Henry married Norfolk's niece, Catherine Howard, and again the village had cause for celebration.

Margaret Roper was still living at Well Hall when Catherine Howard was executed two years later.

News came in 1543 that Henry, was to marry his sixth wife, Catherine Parr, but again there was great excitement in the village. Henry may have been hated and feared in Chelsea but in Eltham and Greenwich they continued to love him.

It is strange to remember that all these dreadful things happened in the last eight years of Margaret Roper's life, while she lived at Well Hall, grieving for her father.

She was often seen, a sad little figure moving like a shadow in her garden, tending her roses, watching her birds and her bees, greeting her friends and receiving messengers on horseback from Greenwich.

Margaret's garden is still there, a public garden used by locals, enjoyed by many children. Sometimes they play on her beautiful stone bridge, used by her hundreds of times, but they have never even heard of poor Margaret.

Her home was demolished by the heartless Sir Gregory Page, who bought the property in the eighteenth century for £19,000.

It should have been saved for posterity.

Continued....

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