New Hall (EHER 6040)

New Hall, now a Catholic School, was acquired by Henry VIII in 1516. He bought the medieval house from Sir Thomas Boelyn and ordered construction of the royal palace just one month before the birth of his first child, Princess Mary. He renamed it Beaulieu Palace, however the name never outlived his reign. The quadrangular palace Henry built was one of his biggest works. In 1523 a garden was laid out at New Hall which in 1530 was referred to as the 'great garden of Beaulieu'. Between 1737 and 1764 New Hall underwent substantial demolition which included the hall and chapel. In 1798 it was purchased by the Canonesses of the Holy Sepulchre for conversion to a convent and school and continues as such to this day. The building was bombed in 1943 and was subsequently repaired. The building was also extensively added to and altered in the 20th century. The only surviving fabric of the palace built by Henry VIII consists of part of the wall at the east end of the house and a carved stone panel. The present building is of red brick and consists of a long range, formerly the north side of the quadrangle, with smaller wings at each end and a small courtyard on the east side with 18th century ranges on the east and south. In 2009 a three day archaeological excavation carried out by Time Team exposed remains of what is considered to have been Princess Mary's nursery wing, as well as an imposing gatehouse and the chapel.

Original HER entry merged with NRHE data import. The north wing of New Hall is the only surviving part of a great quadrangular Palace built by Henry VIII soon after 1518 called Beaulieu. He re-built or enlarged an existing house which was already an important building and made it a magnificent residence. In 1737 John Olmins demolished all but the north and adjoining parts of the east and west wings and remodelled the whole thing into "a gentleman's residence". The Canonesses of the Holy Sepulchre acquired it in 1798 and it still remains their convent and school today. It was extensively damaged in 1943 and has had alterations and additions. What exists today is chiefly the splendid south facade of the north wing of the 1573 house. <1> <2> <3> New Hall is two-storied with basement. Brick walls, stone dressings, slate-covered roofs. Built by Henry VIII shortly after 1518 on a quadrangular plan with gatehouse in the south range, great hall in the east and chapel in the west ranges. In 1573 it was granted to Thomas Radclif, Earl of Sussex, who rebuilt or remodelled the north range but kept the earlier basement. In around 1738 the house, except the north range, was pulled down. The adjoining parts of the east and west ranges were then remodelled to correspond. Some original early 16th century windows remain, also 2 ranges of columns in the basement though their arches have been altered and 2 original doorways in the basement. In the modern chapel is a reset, repainted stone panel with carved achievement of the arms of Henry VIII. Some outbuildings and walls of a garden on the east side may be 16th century. There is a 16th century carved stone dragon in the garden south west of the house <1> The house built by Henry VIII was called Beaulieu. "All that remains of it of architectural or decorative features is some piers and ribs in a basement of the present E wing and a magnificent large carved coat of arms (now in the chapel)k, as good as (and very similar to) the carvings of Christ's and St John's College gateways at Cambridge and King's College Chapel". Stained glass from the house is at St Margaret's, Westminster, London. The north range was modernised by the Earl of Sussex in 1573. That range was pulled down in around 1738. In 1798 it was used for a convent. What survives is mainly the splendid south facade of the house of 1573. This was damaged in 1943 but has been repaired. The former great hall had been redecorated in c1740-1750 and is now (in 1954) used for the chapel of the convent, having been altered again in 1799 <2> Henry VIII rebuilt or enlarged an existing house which was already an important building, and made a magnificent building which was one of his favourite residences. Mary Tudor lived here much of the time between 1532 and 1553. In 1573 Ratcliffe was granted the house by Elizabeth I and made many alterations, probably largely rebuilding the north wing-the present house. This source has an account of the subsequent owners of the house who included the Duke of Buckingham in 1622, and Oliver Cromwell. The present building (in 1975) is of red brick and consists of a long range, formerly the north side of the quadrangle, with smaller wings at each end and a small courtyard on the east side with 18th century ranges on the east and south. The south front of the long range has seven half ocatagonal two storeyed bays each with stone mullioned and transomed windows. Few 16th century features remain but there are many from the 18th century, especially in the long range which has a central Chapel of the mid 18th century and altered again after 1798. <3> Field survey, 1975 The remains of the 16th century mansion of Beaulieu (now called New Hall, a convent school) is generally as described by <1> and <2>. The remaining south facade of the north wing, partly restored in style after 1945 bomb damage, is outstanding. No architectural features of the original chapel are visible, though the probable site lay on the west side of the north wing. Published survey (25") correct. <4> Henry VIII purchased New Hall from Sir Thomas Boleyn in 1516, and the resulting palace was one of Henry's largest works. In 1521, £16000 was advanced for the construction programme, and the total cost of the work was circa £17000. Henry renamed the manor house Beaulieu. In 1737-64, much of the house was demolished to make it a more manageable property. Little now remains of the original house. The only surviving fabric consists of the lower part of the wall at the east end of the house and a carved stone panel. The name 'Beaulieu Palace' was never really used as its common name and was rarely used after Henry's death. In 1573 Elizabeth I granted the house to Thomas Radcliffe, Earl of Sussex. Between 1737 and 1764, the owner, Lord Waltham, ordered the demolition of much of the house, including the hall and chapel as it was simply too large for the owner. <5> In 1523 John Ryman a garden was laid out at New Hall which in 1530 was referred to as the 'great garden of Beaulie' . For a more detailed description of the gardens at New Hall see its description in the Parks and Gardens register. <6> An earlier incarnation of the building was home to Thomas, earl of Ormonde, who had been granted a licence to crenelated in 1491. <7> <8> Beaulieu Palace was the first palace Henry VIII ever built. A month before the birth of his first child, Princess Mary, Henry ordered that construction begin on the palace. This was in 1516, just seven years into his reign. In 2009 a three day archaeological excavation carried out by Time Team, what is considered to have been Princess Mary's nursery wing was uncovered, as well as a section of the gatehouse. From the archaeological evidence, the gatehouse appears to have been an imposing structure and would have made an impressive impact. <9> This is an evaluation comprising geophysical survey and trial trenching revealed structural evidence for Beaulieu Palace, including the Gatehouse, 'Nursery Floor' and Chapel. This report was produced as part of Time Team's excavations. The GPR and resistance surveys have detected, either individually or collectively, much of the gatehouse, the western half of the southern range and the western range of buildings around the main courtyard. Internal detail has been identified as well as potential structural information such as the gatehouse’s enlarged foundations with respect to those beneath the living quarters. In mapping these structural elements, the surveys have also served to substantiate the map evidence. By demonstrating its accuracy, the positioning of trenches over any features not clearly detected through geophysics (such as the chapel) could be achieved from the plans with some degree of certainty. The resistance survey has also located a large zone of increased response not correlating with any mapped structure – this may be a service feature of uncertain antiquity. <10> Three evaluation trenches were excavated in order to establish the extent, condition and date range of archaeological remains of a Tudor Palace of New Hall (otherwise known as Beaulieu Palace). The trench location addressed the specific Project Aims outlined for three major areas of investigation: the Gatehouse, the Chapel and the West Wing (Trenches 1,2 and 3 respectively). Trench 1 produced evidence for several phases of activity. A number of possible prehistoric pits was found as well as remains of a medieval wall pre-dating the Tudor gatehouse. The main body of evidence was represented by the extant brick foundation walls of Tudor Gatehouse and related remains of cobble surface of the courtyard. Trench 2 revealed substantial brick foundations for the south eastern corner of the Tudor Chapel, along with internal walls and related construction debris. The east wall of the chapel was built before the south wall. The latter butted up to the east wall rather than being bonded into it. Evidence for mortar floor sub-base and extensive levelling was found. The evidence for extensive World War II bomb damage was also found. Trench 3 revealed brick foundations for the wall of the western façade and two bay windows of the western range of the Palace. Two small rooms with brick floors and integral drains were revealed immediately behind the windows suggesting s change of plan during construction. Evidence for further changes including the insertion of an additional drain was noted. A modern pit containing large amount of worked stone derived from the bomb damage was found in the north-eastern part of the trench. <11> Additional references <12> - <15> Photographs <16> - <18>