Mortlake Palace

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Wimbledon

In the civil parish of Richmond Upon Thames. In the historic county of Surrey (Modern Authority of London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, 1974 county of Greater London).

The manor of Mortlake was in the hands of the Archbishops of Canterbury before the Conquest, but no record exists of the date at which they first obtained it. At the time of the Domesday Survey it was very extensive, consisting of land for 35 ploughs. It included the manor of Barnes, which was held as 8 hides by the canons of St. Paul's, and seventeen houses in London and four in Southwark were attached to it. It had two mills and took 20s. toll from Putney, probably for a market or ferry there. It also included Wimbledon, which is not mentioned in the Domesday Survey, and as late as 1291 is described as a grange attached to Mortlake. During the time that Mortlake belonged to the see of Canterbury the archbishops frequently resided there. Anselm celebrated Whitsuntide there in 1099. Archbishop John Peckham dated letters from there in 1281. In 1314 the archbishop complained that his trees had been felled at Mortlake, and in the same year the archbishop (Walter Reynolds) died here. While under sentence of excommunication issued in 1330 Archbishop Mepham resided here, and Archbishop Courtenay in 1385 obtained exemption from the onerous demands of the king's purveyor for himself and his tenants at Mortlake. Archbishop Arundel forfeited all his lands, including Mortlake, in 1397 on account of his share in procuring a council of regency in 1386. He recovered them on the accession of Henry IV. Archbishop Morton was staying at Mortlake in 1494–5 when the corporation of Canterbury consulted him about the king's demands for money or men to fight against the King of the Scots. Archbishop Warham dated one charter only from Mortlake. In 1533, while Cranmer was archbishop, it is recorded that certain surplices and other ornaments were stolen from the church of Mortlake.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is TQ20467606

Air Photo from Air Photo and general mapping	1st edition OS Map from Mid to late 19th century maps
Modern Map from Landscape form and features	Modern Map from General location and route planning
Geograph British Isles occasionally has photos of the site and will usually give an idea of the surrounding landscape.

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 401196
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is 021129 'grey' literature, such as watching brief reports, held by H.E.R.s is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded in this website.

• Books
  • Emery, Anthony, 2006, Greater Medieval Houses Vol3 (Cambridge) p320-25 [As Wimbledon]
    Thurley, Simon, 1993, The Royal Palaces of Tudor England (Yale University Press) p78
    Thompson, M.W., 1998, Medieval bishops' houses in England and Wales (Aldershot: Ashgate Publishing) p171
    Malden, H.E. (ed), 1912, VCH Surrey Vol4 p69-70 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=43033
• Other sources, 'grey' literature, unpublished works, etc. (Theses, in-house reports and other such)
  • Payne, Naomi, 2003, The medieval residences of the bishops of Bath and Wells, and Salisbury (PhD Thesis University of Bristol) Appendix B: List of Medieval Bishop's Palaces in England and Wales [available via http://ethos.bl.uk ]