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Historic Royal Palaces blog

Insights and behind the scenes from our palaces

Bringing the Circumcision of Isaac tapestry back to life

17 January 2025

It's been nearly five months since conservation work started on Henry VIII's 'Abraham' tapestries, starting with the Circumcision of Isaac. And what a few months it's been!

Triumph and tragedy: Thomas Cromwell's legacy at the Tower of London

06 December 2024

For Thomas Cromwell, hero of Wolf Hall, the Tower of London would be the scene of the start of his career and the end of his life. Here, Chief Historian Tracy Borman explores the Tower through the lens of Thomas Cromwell's rise and fall.

Thomas Cromwell's fateful match-making

29 November 2024

Tracy Borman explores the real history behind Thomas Cromwell's downfall, which forms the dramatic conclusion to Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light.

Jane Boleyn, Lady Rochford: The Most Hated Woman in Tudor England?

01 November 2024

Tracy Borman investigates whether Jane Boleyn, widow of George Boleyn, deserves her notorious reputation, or whether the hostile accounts of her a product of Elizabeth I's later attempts to rehabilitate her mother.

The Extraordinary Life and Death of Lady Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury

25 October 2024

On 27 May 1541, Lady Margaret Pole – another victim of Henry VIII’s increasingly bloody regime – was led to her execution inside the Tower. But Margaret was no scheming minister or prisoner of conscience. She was a 67-year-old woman who had spent her life serving the Tudors.

Conserving Henry VIII's Abraham Tapestries

18 October 2024

Textile Treatment Conservator Alice Young introduces a new major project at Historic Royal Palaces, to keep the Abraham tapestries looking their best for future generations.

Imagining Anne Boleyn's Coronation in 1533

10 May 2024

Curator of Historic Buildings, Alden Gregory imagines the ambitious festivities that Henry VIII commissioned to welcome Anne Boleyn as his second Queen Consort.

The Extravagant Funeral of Henry VIII

16 February 2024

Curator of Historic Buildings Alden Gregory explores the elaborate hearse created to mark Henry VIII’s death, and how it links to the King’s use of temporary architecture during his life.

Secrets of Henry VIII's Whitehall: The Archaeology of a Lost Palace

17 August 2023

More than 300 years after the destruction of Whitehall Palace by fire, archaeological excavation and scientific analysis continue to uncover the lost stories and secrets of Henry VIII's once elaborate home.