Page 20 - Oundle Life July 2023

JACOBEAN
GEM
Apethorpe Palace
Apethorpe Palace is recognised as one of the finest Elizabethan country houses and one of the top ten palaces in England. It was once owned by Henry VIII, passed down to
to the south of the village. But the history that has played out there away from prying eyes has been remarkable. James I met his favourite
his daughter Elizabeth I, and was lived in by James I and Charles I.
The state rooms and long gallery built upon the orders of James I remain amongst the finest surviving examples of Jacobean architecture anywhere in Britain, and the direct links to both Tudor and Stuart monarchs make it one of the most important former royal palaces too.
Pope Nicholas IV attempted to seize control of
it for the Catholic Church in Rome
lover George Villiers at the palace
and it became a favourite playground for the pair, the king cryptically admitting that he used the venue for his ‘princely recreation’ and ‘commodious entertainment.’
Built between 1470 and 1480, it
has been known as Apethorpe Hall, Apethorpe House, and Apthorp Park over the years but in 2015 English Heritage agreed to change name of the property to Apethorpe Palace due to its
There were at least 13 extended royal
visits recorded by Stuart monarchs between 1603 and 1636, a claim that no other house in the country can make.
It’s easy to pass through the sleepy village of Apethorpe without even knowing the palace is there, tucked away as it is, in a discreet location
heavyweight royal connections.
When the former Libyan owner, Wanis
Mohamed Burweila, left the country for political reasons in 1984, the 80,000-square-foot palace was left to fall into a state of disrepair.
In order to save the historic building, the
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