King John's Palace is the remains of a former medieval royal residence in Kings Clipstone, north-west Nottinghamshire. The name "King John's Palace" has been used since the 18th century; prior to that the site was known as the "King's Houses". It is not known how or when the building became associated with King John as he only spent a total of nine days here. The site is standing on private land within Sherwood Forest.
Early History The earliest reference to the King's Houses dates back to 1164 during the reign of Henry II (1154–1189). The first period of significant building took place between 1176 and 1180, when Henry ordered £500 to be spent, and also created a deer park at Clipstone. Hunting game was the preserve of the aristocracy and deer parks provided a form of recreation, foodstuffs for feasting and an arena for crucial political and economic deals to be made. In 1194 Richard I arranged a meeting with William, King of Scots at Clipstone, and in 1290, Edward I convened Parliament here.Queen Eleanor the first wife of Edward I was taken ill at the palace and moved to Harby, Nottinghamshire.
The King's Houses were once very well-appointed. The ruins that are visible today are the remains of a Romanesque chamber dating from around 1180. The stone chamber was accessed through a large, buttressed central doorway and had a timber upper floor which allowed views over the deer park from ornately carved windows. However, the chamber was only a small part of a large, multiphased complex of buildings which is known to have existed at Clipstone from documents, geophysical survey and archaeological excavation. These included a gatehouse, tower, individual hall and chambers for the King and Queen, several chapels, kitchens, stables for 200 horses, and lodgings for many royal retainers. There was also a Great Pond which provided 100 pike and 1600 roach during Edward II's visit in December 1315. Clipstone remained an important royal centre until the late fifteenth century when the English monarchy began to focus on other residences. In 1525 it was said of the King's Houses that "ther is great dekay & ruyne in stone-work tymber lede and plaster". By the mid-18th century, the site had been reduced to the ruin that stands today. King John's Palace was consolidated during 2009 by Paul Mendham Stonemasons during a conservation project funded by English Heritage and Nottinghamshire County Council. The site is the focus of an ongoing archaeological project by Andy Gaunt of Mercian Archaeological Services and the buildings archaeologist James Wright.
The King's Houses
Establishment of the palace and deer park
The establishment of the King's Houses was linked to Clipstone's location in the heart of the royal forest of Sherwood. In the Middle Ages, a forest was a defined geographic area subject to the forest law, which had been brought to England by the Normans. The law protected beasts of the chase, primarily deer, for the king. It also protected the woodland that formed their habitat. Forest law was enforced over the land regardless of who owned it. In the 13th century the forest stretched from the River Trent in the south to the River Meden in the north, and from Wellow in the east to Sutton-in-Ashfield to the west. In the 12th century it may have covered all of Nottinghamshire north and west of the Trent. A reference to the forest in Nottinghamshire made in 1155–56 early in the reign of Henry II (1154–1189) points to there being a forest in the reign of Henry I (1100–1135), however a dispute over the keepership of the forest in the early 13th century suggests a forest in Nottinghamshire dating back to the reign of William I. Sherwood Forest was therefore well established by 1164. Wright is of the opinion that the extant building dates from the period of Henry II given that it bears several Romanesque architectural features which were phased out by the end of the 12th century.
History of the King's Houses and Clipstone Park
Clipstone became a favoured residence of the monarchy for over two hundred years. The historian David Crook listed the following visits: Henry II in 1181 and 1185, Richard I in 1194, John in 1200, 1201, 1205, 1210 and 1215, Henry III in 1244, 1251 and 1255, Edward I in 1279, 1280, 1284, 1290 and 1300, Edward II in 1307, 1315, 1316, 1317, 1318 and 1320, Edward III in 1327, 1328, 1330, 1331, 1332, 1334, 1335, 1345 and 1363, and Richard II in 1387 and 1393 Such visits could be brief, such as John's overnight stay on 19 March 1200. The reign of King John saw the endowment of the chapel of St Edwin in 1205. He is also said to have held a parliament at the nearby Parliament Oak during one of his visits. During the reigns of Edward II and Edward III an extension to the park led to petitions lodged by the men of Clipstone, Warsop and Mansfield Woodhouse over their loss of their rights to husbote (timber for building), haybote (timber for hedging), collection of ferns and leaves (for compost and manure) as well as pastureland. There are only three recorded visits to the King's Houses by Henry III. Philip Rahtz attributes the standing ruin to this phase of building, however J. Wright considers that the presence of Romanesque features associated with the extant structure which have been identified subsequent to Rahtz's fieldwork may push back the dating to Henry II's construction of 1176–80. In 1282, Edward I ordered the construction of a stable capable of accommodating 200 horses, and John Steane is of the opinion that it was intended to provide for the entire entourage of the Household, or possibly even act as a royal stud.
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