y was safe, this palace came into the hands of King Henry III.,
who took the opportunity of a visit from his wife's uncle, Peter of
Savoy (afterwards Earl of Savoy and Richmond), to present it to him.
Peter either gave it to or exchanged it with a religious fraternity,
from whom it was rebought by the Queen, Eleanor, who gave it to her son
Edmund, Earl of Lancaster.

After the Battle of Poitiers, King John of France was brought here a
prisoner, and, oddly enough, though he was soon set at liberty, his
death occurred here many years later when he had returned to make amends
for the escape of one of his sons held hostage by the English until the
payment of his ransom.

John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, had made the palace into a most
magnificent building, and here he lived in great state. Chaucer,
Froissart and Wycliff are mentioned as having been his frequent guests.
In the sack of the town by Wat Tyler this house particularly attracted
the attention of the unruly mob, who did their utmost to wreck it, and
were assisted by the explosion of several barrels of gunpowder, which,
ignorant of their contents, they had thrown upon the flames. The costly
plate and rich furniture were flung into the Thames by the rioters.
After this it lay in ruins until King Henry VII., himself a descendant
of John of Gaunt, founded here a hospital for 100 poor people, but he
hardly lived to see his project carried out. Amid the general spoliation
of the religious houses that followed, Henry VIII. seems to have
respected his father's wish and left the hospital alone. It is described
as a goodly building in the form of a cross. However, it was suppressed
under Edward VI., and restored by Mary, whose maids of honour "did with
exemplary piety furnish it with all necessaries." Elizabeth laid hands
on it, and later it seems to have been reserved for such nobles as had
the favour of the Crown and the right of free quarters, something in
the same way as Hampton Court is reserved at present. There is an
illustration by Hollar showing the palace-hospital as it was in 1650. It
is right on the water's edge, presenting a very solid line of wall to
the river, pierced by two rows of small windows. In the upper stories
the parapet is battlemented, and a square tower built over arches
projects from the frontage. We have also a plan of about a hundred years
later (1754), showing the congeries of buildings that then covered the
precincts. The part near the river