It is uncertain how long Henry continued at Greenwich, but perhaps a few weeks only; for we find the road near Peckham mended, in expectation of his passing it, on the 23rd of November, on which day the watermen were likewise paid for removing his "stuff" to Hampton Court;[73] and on the 4th of December we positively learn that he was at that place.[74] Hall says "the King kepte his Christemas at Greenwyche with great solempnite, but all men sayde that there was no myrthe in that Christemas because the Queene and the ladies were absent;"[75] there is only one entry, namely of the sum of 56l. 13s. 4d. given to the Earl of Angus, on the 15th of December,[76] which tends to shew where Henry was at that time, and which agrees with the Chronicler's statement.
Anno. 1532.—On the 16th of January, 1532, it seems his Majesty was at York Place, and on the 18th, books were sent there to him from the bookbinder;[77] and we find that plate and furniture were conveyed there about the same time from Greenwich[78] He was still at Westminster on the 5th[79] and 22nd of February,[80] and 8th of March;[81] on the 18th of which month, according to Hall, he gave an audience to the Speaker and Members of the House of Commons.[82] No account of Henry's residence occurs after that date until the 8th of April, when Lady Sydney sent him a present of orange pies at Greenwich,[83] and where he continued until the 16th. Early in April "sodeynly began a pestylence in Westmynster,"[84] and the disease evidently extended to Greenwich, for on the 11th of that month several persons were sent out of that town "by reason of the plage."[85] On the 16th of April his Majesty went to Westminster,[86] but returned again to Greenwich before the 26th, upon which day a hawk was brought to him at that palace.[87] He was, however, at Westminster on the 8th of May,[88] though it may be inferred that he was at Greenwich on the 15th.[89] There can be little doubt that from the 8th of April to the end of May he divided his time between those palaces, for as the parliament was then sitting at Westminster, his presence was occasionally indispensable; and we learn from Hall, that on the 16th of May, Sir Thomas More delivered the great seal to the King at that place. On the 1st of June Henry was at Eltham,[90] where he resided until the 3rd of July,[91] the entries during which period are excessively curious, as indicative of the manner in which he passed his time.[92] He arrived at Waltham on or before the 4th of July,[93] and continued there, or at Hunsdon until about the 21st, when he commenced his summer progress into Berkshire, Bedfordshire, Bucks, and Oxfordshire. On the 23rd of July he was at Ampthill,[94] at which place he continued until the 28th or 29th,[95] when he proceeded to Grafton; where, on the 31st, a monk brought him a letter in a purse.[96] He quitted Grafton about the 5th of August, and on the 6th was at Buckingham;[97] on the 10th, he was at Woodstock,[98] where he ordered 56l. 13s. 4d. to be paid to Doctor Chambers for the scholars of Oxford, on the 14th.[99] From Woodstock he went to Langley Park, near Colnbrook, at which place a hundred crowns were given to him to play at dice on the 18th;[100] and on the 25th he was at Abingdon.[101] On the 27th he was both there and at Ewelme, the distance between which does not exceed ten miles: at the former, Sir Simon Harcourt's servant brought him a brace of greyhounds, and at the latter an Italian presented him with a melon.[102] His Majesty appears to have passed through Reading on the 28th,[103] and to have reached Windsor on the 31st of August,[104] where he remained until the 17th of September,[105] when he went to Chertsey;[106] but on the 21st he was at Hampton Court.[107] No notice is to be found of Henry's having been at Ampthill after the 28th of July; whence, Hall asserts, he proceeded to Windsor, where he created Anne Boleyn, Marchioness of Pembroke, on the 1st of September in this year; after which he removed to Greenwich.[108] It is manifest from these Accounts, that the King was at Windsor on the 1st of September, but nothing occurs relative to that ceremony: she is for the first time described in them as Marchioness of Pembroke, on the 19th of that month. His stay at Hampton Court was very short, for on the 28th he was at Greenwich.[109] The period had now arrived which Henry had fixed upon for his interview with Francis, the French monarch; and having visited his fleet at Sheppey on the 30th,[110] he set out for Dover early in October, and on the 6th was at the Mote Park, near Maidstone.[111] Hall says that on the 10th of October the King came to Dover, and very early in the morning of Friday the 11th, embarked for Calais, where he arrived at ten o'clock on the same day.[112] From these Accounts it is evident that Henry went from the Mote to Sheppey by water, thence to Canterbury, where he slept, and then proceeded to Dover. The payments mentioned "to the waits of Canterbury;" to the "keeper of the house where the King lodged" in that city; to the master of the barge and watermen for rowing him to Sheppey;[113] as well the reward to a man who brought bills to Dover,[114] occurred after his Majesty had quitted those places; as the first three were paid on the 11th, and the fourth on the day, when, from the next item, it is certain the King was at Calais, namely, on the 12th; and which agrees with Hall's statement. The proceedings of the royal party whilst in France; the particulars of the interview between the Monarchs; and of the feastings on the occasion, are minutely related by that Chronicler, but it is not necessary to allude more fully to them, than to observe, that the Accounts about that time are extremely interesting. Among the entries most worthy of notice, are the present of grapes and pears from the Great Master of France to Anne Boleyn; the money lost by the King to the Cardinal of Lorrain, the Duke de Guise, and others, at tennis and dice at Boulogne, and which amounted in one day to 163l. 6s. 8d.; the purchase of a hat and feather for Henry at that place; a gratuity to the singers of the French monarch, and to those of the Cardinal of Lorrain; payment of the doublets given to the guard to wrestle in before the two kings at Calais; the sum of 700l. paid to Cromwell without any reason being mentioned; the purchase of masking geer, or masquerade dresses; the large sums paid for jewels, and which amounted during his stay in France to 3592l. 12s.; the charges of the fool's lodgings and expenses; Henry's offering to the image of our lady of Boulogne, and which is especially mentioned by Hall;[115] the presents of hawks from Francis to Henry; the charges for boats for carrying the King from the ship to the shore, and again from Calais to his vessel on his return, &c. The whole amount paid by the person who kept these Accounts from the time the King left Dover until he again landed there, namely, thirty-three days, was 4033l. 10s. 11d. Of that sum, as has just been shewn, all excepting about a ninth, was for jewellery, great part of which was evidently given as presents to persons in the King of France's suite. According to Hall, Henry embarked at Calais on the 13th of November at midnight, and arrived at Dover at five in the morning of the 14th,[116] which agrees with the entry on the 13th of a payment of 4s. 8d. "for a boat to bring the King aboarde his ship at Calys;"[117] and of the same sum "paied to the King's own hands for his offering to our Lady in the Rock at Dover," on the 14th.[118] It is certain that Henry remained at Dover until the 16th, when he went to Sandwich, and seems to have rested there that night, to the friars of which place he gave 3l. 10s. "by way of rewarde;"[119] and crossed the river Stour on the next day[120] on his way to Canterbury, where he apparently stopped at the house of Sir John Feneux.[121] The waits of that city again played to the king, and were rewarded with 18s. 8d. on the 19th,[122] on which day his Majesty arrived at Sittingbourne; and the "wife of the Lion," or in other words, the wife of the man who kept the Lion Inn there, received a gratuity of 4s. 8d.[123] On the 20th, Henry was at Stone Castle, near Dartford, where it may be inferred he remained that night, as 9l. 6s. 8d. was given him, which he lost at play to Anne Boleyn, Sir Francis Bryan, and Sir Francis Weston.[124]
Thence the King removed to Eltham at which place he was on the 24th,[125] and on the 28th he was at Greenwich, where he remained until the 30th, on which day he went by water to Westminster.[126] On the 1st of December he was at the Tower of London,[127] but on the 9th his Majesty was again at Greenwich[128] before the 18th of which month, he had been twice in his barge to the Tower.[129] On the 21st he seems to have gone to York Place,[130] but if so he returned the same day to Greenwich,[131] where Hall says he spent his Christmas,[132] and which is corroborated by the last entry in these Accounts; "Item the same, [i. e. the last] day delivered to the King's grace at night at Grenewich, ij c. corons, 46l. 13s. 4d." evidently for play.[133] It would be superfluous to point out all which occurs relative to Henry's progresses; but it must be observed that he was always attended by a smith with locks and bolts for his chamber-doors;[134] that money was given to a footman to be distributed in charity by the way;[135] that in the hunting season his hounds were sent from one palace to another, the expenses of removing which are minutely stated;[136] that he was generally followed by his fools, jester, minions, and other favourites;[137] and that the celebrated Anne Boleyn frequently accompanied him.[138] Wherever he went gratuities or rewards were given to the keepers of the parks or forests through which he passed, or hunted, not merely to those belonging to the Crown, but to the keepers of the parks of private persons; and if he went on board one of his ships, a sum was distributed amongst the crew.
Upon the personal character of Henry the Eighth, it has been remarked in the preface, these Accounts throw much light; and as whatever relates to the private conduct of eminent persons, is by far the most pleasing, and perhaps most useful part of antiquarian inquiries, the information here presented on that of Henry, is both valuable and interesting.[139]
His Majesty's principal amusement was gambling in its most extensive and diversified shapes, and all his relaxations from the duties of his station in a greater or less degree partook of it. The philosopher will be at no loss to account for the fact; for it is the frequent attendant upon that satiety which unlimited power is sure to produce, though it is often equally the passion of those who want even the necessaries of life. That Henry, tired of more rational enjoyment, and incapable of finding a permanent relief from the ennui of greatness, should have indulged to excess in games of chance is not surprising; and to shew the extent to which that passion was carried, it is sufficient to state that the whole amount paid for his losses at cards, dice, tennis, and other games, together with those lost in wagers amounted in three years to 3243l. 5s. 10d. It is not a little singular that though passionately addicted to gambling himself he was sufficiently careful of the morals of his subjects to issue a proclamation in the 18th year of his reign, forbidding them to play at cards and bowls.
Of his "out-of-door" amusements, shooting at the rounds, hunting, hawking, fishing, horse-racing, bowls, and tennis, were the chief; and in his palaces many hours were daily passed at "the tables" or back-gammon, shovel-board, dice, and cards: wagers on races run against dogs, or at shooting or hunting; payments to people for making dogs perform tricks; gratuities to persons for different feats, as eating a buck, riding two horses at once; and others of a similar description are continually mentioned. Music and literature also occasionally lent their aids to his enjoyments; and that he encouraged the latter is manifest from the exhibitions he founded at the Universities, his occasional gratuities to scholars, and his support of boys at St. Paul's, and other schools, both in this country and Paris. His love of architecture is shewn by the money he expended in building, at his different residences, and we find that he spent on York Place, from April, 1530 to July, 1532, 2400li., besides 10l. 19s. 2d. for glazing it, and 20l. 0s. 8½d. for iron work, on the house at More Park, 60l. in April, and 50l. in June, 1530; and on his buildings at Hunsdon 1533l. 6s. 8d. between May, 1530, and April, 1532; forming a total, exclusive of repairs and alterations, of 4064li. 5s. 10d. within three years. Nor was he indifferent to painting, as several entries occur of money given to painters for their works; but as they have been commented upon by Horace Walpole in his "Anecdotes of Painting," they afford no new information on that interesting subject. That writer also gives several entries relative to Hans Holbein from the "Book of Quarterly Payments" in the library of the Royal Society; and as they are intimately connected with the allusion here made to Henry's taste for the arts, accurate copies have been made of them from that manuscript.
After the death of Jane Seymour, the King was not a little perplexed in his choice of her successor: the Duchess Dowager of Milan was first thought of, but she is said to have declined that honor, because nature had not prepared her for it, by endowing her with two heads! Walpole informs us, that the first of these entries refers to Holbein's having been sent to paint her portrait in December, 1538:
December, Ao. 30 Henry VIII. 1538. "Item, Payde to Hans Holbyn, one of the kingis paynters, by the kingis commaundement, certefyed by my lord pryviseales lettre xli. for his costs and chargs at this tyme sent abowte certeyn his gracs affares into the parties of High Burgony, by way of his gracs rewarde, xli."
That the painter was abroad at Christmas, in that year, is evident from the entries of payments then made to the royal establishment;