You’ve heard of this place. Hampton Court is the rockstar of Henry’s homes. It was originally built for Cardinal Wolsey, but Henry had a major case of palace envy.
He took it over, of course. Then he went absolutely nuts with expansions. He added a massive kitchen, a real tennis court, and a Great Hall that screams, "Look at my power!"
A fun quirk: The palace had a "Honey Moon" suite. It was built for Anne of Cleves, his fourth wife, as a sort of consolation prize. Spoiler alert: she never lived in it with him.
The Ghost and the Toilet
Hampton Court is famously haunted. People claim to see the ghost of his fifth wife, Catherine Howard, screaming down the hallways. Creepy, but not as creepy as his actual bathroom.
Henry had a commode chair covered in black velvet. It was a portable toilet for a king. He even had a special servant who wiped his royal bottom. Royals, am I right?
Most amazing fact? The palace’s Great Kitchen could feed 600 people twice a day. That’s a lot of roast beef and Tudor-era takeout.
