Highlights of St James's Palace
There are so many things to see at St James’s Palace. It was built by Henry VIII on the site of a former hospital (dedicated to St James), which was established in the 12th century to treat women with leprosy.
In 1698, after the Palace of Whitehall was destroyed by fire, St James’s Palace became the principal residence of the British monarchy. It continued to serve as a residence for the Kings and Queens of England until Queen Victoria, who became the first sovereign to rule from Buckingham Palace in 1837.
As part of your visit, you will learn about the Palace’s fascinating Tudor origins and retrace a centuries-old ceremonial route through the State Apartments. Discover some of the highlights below.
The Colour Court
The Colour Court, one of the four courtyards at St James’s Palace, was named after the flag, or ‘colour’, that was once displayed there to indicate which regiment of the Household Division of the British Army was guarding the King or Queen.
In the centre of the Court, you will see the base of a flagstaff, where the Changing of the Guard ceremony – a colourful handover of duties between two guard groups – once took place. The ceremony moved to the larger Friary Court in the mid-19th century, where the first troop movements continue to take place today.
One of the most striking features in the Colour Court is Henry VIII’s Great Gatehouse, which formerly provided access to the Palace. It is an impressive example of Tudor architecture and retains much of the original red brickwork.
The Chapel Royal
Next to the Great Gatehouse, tucked in close to its turrets, is the Chapel Royal, which was built by Henry VIII. It features a magnificent, coffered ceiling - one of the most important decorative Tudor ceilings in existence.
As part of the heraldic decoration, the initials ‘H’ and ‘A’ (to celebrate Henry's fourth marriage to Anne of Cleves) appear eight times alongside Anne’s coat of arms, badge, the ducal arms of Cleves and the names of 20 territories in possession of the Cleves family at the time.
The Chapel is steeped in royal history. It was the setting of Charles II’s baptism in 1630, and his father, Charles I, received the Holy Sacrament there before being led to his execution at Whitehall Palace in 1649. Many royal weddings have also taken place in the Chapel. It is best known for Queen Victoria’s marriage to Prince Albert on the morning of 10 February 1840; their daughter, Victoria, Princess Royal, was also married there to Prince Frederick William of Prussia in 1858.
Today, it continues to host royal weddings and christenings, including most recently, Prince Louis in 2018.
The Lower Corridor
Among the paintings on display in the Lower Corridor, look out for this wonderful portrait of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. It was painted in 2017 by Ralph Heimans to mark the Duke’s retirement from public duties at the age of 96. He is standing in the Grand Corridor at Windsor Castle and is shown wearing his Windsor Uniform with the pale blue sash of the order of the Elephant – a Danish order of chivalry.
If you look closely, the impressive background refers to the Duke’s ancestry. His grandmother, Princess Victoria of Hesse, was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria and both his mother, Princess Alice, and grandmother were born in the Tapestry Room situated at the end of the Corridor at St James’s Palace. They are depicted in the Family of Queen Victoria by Laurits Tuxen, the painting to the right of the Duke.
Heimans recounted that he attempted to capture the Duke’s charm and charisma, which are undoubtedly revealed in this sensitive portrait. Learn more about Heimans's portrait in our Collection Online.
The Grand Staircase
For over 200 years, guests have ascended the Grand Staircase, the beginning of a ceremonial route through the State Apartments, to meet with a royal audience. Among some of the treasures on display, is a beautiful malachite vase with gilt bronze handles that the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, the consort of the Tsar of Russia, sent via her ambassador in 1827 as a gift for George IV.
The style and decoration of the Staircase itself has changed enormously since Henry VIII built the original flight of stone steps in the 16th century. Today, it reflects the taste of Edward VII. During Queen Victoria’s reign, many of the Palace rooms (including the Staircase) featured boldly patterned wallpapers that she commissioned in the 1880s from the textile designer, William Morris. A specially designed pattern of intertwined foliage with a pale-blue background was known as ‘the St James’s wallpaper’. But upon Edward VII’s accession to the throne in 1901, he began removing the jewel-covered fabrics and floral wallpapers that characterised Victorian interiors in favour of lighter colours.
Today, you can see the bright white and gold decorative scheme that Edward introduced across parts of the royal residences. However, some of Morris’s patterns have survived unchanged – be sure not to miss his stencil decorations in the Tapestry Room.
The Tapestry Room
Originally known as the ‘Consort’s Presence Chamber’, the Tapestry Room features a spectacular original fireplace that survives from the reign of Henry VIII. In one of the carved quatrefoils (a design made of four intersecting lobes) you can see the initials ‘H’ and ‘A’ for Henry and his second wife, Anne Boleyn, which are intertwined with a true lover’s knot.
This room is best-known for its display of tapestries that tell the story of Vulcan and Venus from Homer’s Odyssey. Charles I, when Prince of Wales, commissioned a suite of nine tapestries from the Mortlake tapestry workshop, the designs for which may have been adapted from an earlier series owned by Henry VIII on the same subject. Following Charles's execution in 1649, most of his collection of art (including the tapestries) was sold, and the suite was dispersed across Europe along with countless other works.
Some of the tapestries were bought back by Queen Victoria in the 19th century. Today, you can see fragments of the original suite, as they were cut and hung by William Morris and his company in the 19th century.
The Picture Gallery
The Picture Gallery was built during the reign of Queen Victoria and originally displayed portraits. One of the most striking paintings is Sir Edwin Landseer’s Issac van Amburgh and his Animals. Van Amburgh was an American lion tamer whose performances took Victorian London by storm. Victoria greatly admired the show, attending seven times over a period of six weeks in 1839.
This painting was Victoria’s first commission to Edwin Landseer, who later went on to produce 40 works for the royal couple, including paintings of their beloved dogs. Find out more about Landseer’s works in our Collection Online.
Today, the Picture Gallery is used for official purposes, including during the Accession Council, which is held at St James’s Palace. His Majesty King Charles III was proclaimed King in the Picture Gallery on 10 September 2022, before moving to the Throne Room to hold his first Privy Council meeting.
The Throne Room
Central to the Throne Room is an ornate, carved gilt and wood throne chair, which features the cypher and crown of Queen Elizabeth II. The chair dates to the reign of George IV and represents the principal seat of the British monarchy. Today, all ambassadors and high commissioners to the United Kingdom continue to be accredited to the Court of St James’s.
Above the throne, you will see a magnificent canopy of state. The silk velvet is embroidered with crowned national emblems, a Garter Star (a reference to the English Order of Knighthood, the Order of the Garter) and Queen Victoria’s coat of arms – the lion and the unicorn.
The Throne Room plays an important part during the Accession Council, a ceremony in which a new Sovereign is formally proclaimed. His Majesty King Charles III was proclaimed King on 10 September 2022 at St James’s Palace and held his first Privy Council meeting in the Throne Room.
