HAMPTON COURT PALACE - THE LION GATES

Septimus and Clara Miller visited London in 1906 and took in the sights! These postcards show an interest in architectural detail. In this case we have a PC from the Wellington Series published by Gale and Polden Ltd., London, Aldershot and Portsmouth. They bought quite a few of this series as a memory of their visit to Hampton Court.

I have an idea that they were using the Bradshaw's Guide to frame their tour in London. They would have got there by train, leaving from Waterloo Station in central London and would have got off at Hampton Court railway station in East Molesey. It's just twelve miles (18 km) from the centre of London.

Hampton Court Palace was built by Cardinal Wolsey, starting in 1514. The Cardinal moved out on July 3, 1529 and the King (Henry VIII) moved in and began enlarging it.

Almost two hundred years later Hampton Court was redesigned and extended during the reign of William and Mary. At that time Christopher Wren planned that an avenue of lime trees in Bushy Park should become the focus for a new grand entrance to the palace. A road was built through the park to the Lion Gate at Hampton Court and more limes and an avenue of horse chestnut trees was planted.

"The Lion Gates are at the Bushey Park entrance to the Palace. The gates were made for Queen Anne, and her initials are engraved into the columns. The wrought-iron gates may have been made by Jean Tijou, a French artist, and are more recent than the pillars; they might on the other hand have been designed by Sir Christopher Wren. Jean Tijou did make the wrought-iron screen in the Southgardens, in approx. 1694."

http://www.fromoldbooks.org/Leyland-ThamesIllustrated/pages/047-Hampton-Court-The-Lion-Gates/