You Can Buy a Castle Where Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn Slept

Slept for about a week-and-a-half, that is
By Lilla Ross,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 11, 2017 12:19 PM CST
You Can Buy a Castle Where Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn Slept
The exterior of Thornbury Castle.   (Savills)

If you’re looking for a castle with a vineyard, a kitchen garden, and oodles of curb appeal, Thornbury Castle should be on your list. So long as you can foot the $10 million asking price, that is. The 16th-century castle's early decades weren't exactly smooth ones. Construction began on it in 1510, with the Daily Mail reporting the main wings were completed within 3 years. But Edward Stafford, the Duke of Buckingham, didn't reside there long: He was executed for treason in 1521, and Henry VIII seized it. The king and second wife Anne Boleyn stayed there for 10 days in 1535 during what's described as their "honeymoon tour" (the two wed in 1533). Boleyn famously lost her head the next year.

The castle remained in royal hands until the death of Mary I—Henry's daughter with first wife Catherine of Aragon— at which time the property was returned to the Duke's descendants. But it passed two centuries unoccupied and fell into ruin, until it underwent a renovation in 1850, reports the Telegraph. Today it is an exclusive hotel with 28 rooms featuring four-poster beds. You can dine in the dungeon, play croquet on the lawn, and engage in falconry and archery, according to its website. It also is a popular venue for weddings—hopefully ones more successful than Henry’s. (Henry and Anne make this list of 5 infamous love scandals.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X