The hidden palace where royalty once slept

It was once owned by King Henry VIII and used to be bigger than Hampton Court.

But today only a solitary tower and gatehouse remain of Otford Palace, near Sevenoaks.

And, while few outside that part of Kent probably know of this hidden royal landmark, in its 16th Century heyday it was considered "one of the most magnificent houses in England" and a stopover hotspot for those of high status.

Currently being transformed into a hub for historic study and the arts, trustee Nick Rushby described it to Secret Kent as "iconic" and having been like "the Hilton Hotel" of its time.

"The palace was built around 1518 by Archbishop of Canterbury, William Warham, whose power was second only to the king's," said Rushby, of the Archbishop Palace Conservation Trust.

"Other than archbishop, he'd also been Master of the Rolls and Lord Chancellor of England - you name it and he'd done it."

Having been denied a palace in Canterbury, Warham then picked Otford due to its optimal location on the junction of numerous pilgrim routes, as well as that between London and Dover.

King Henry and other visiting dignitaries, from papal legates to renaissance scholars such as Erasmus, would often stay in the tower.

"It may be a shell now, but the tower would have had three floors, each of which had its own lavatory - something that was really unusual for the time," Rushby told Secret Kent.

It became Henry's in 1537 and stayed in royal hands until 1601, when Queen Elizabeth sold it to Robert Sidney, the first Earl of Leicester, who wanted it as his hunting lodge.

"That whole part of the county was one huge hunting park back then," said Rushby, who added that it stayed that way for a few decades until the region was "deparked" and split into large farms.

"Some parts of the palace were used as farm buildings, while others which were not needed had their stonework taken away to make other structures elsewhere - like the folly in Knole Park," he added.

Under the ownership of Sevenoaks District Council since the 1930s, its ongoing restoration has made it popular with visitors once again, partly through its hosting of arts events such as open air theatre shows in the nearby heritage orchard.

And, by highlighting its past, Rushby said that the trust was helping to ensure this iconic building's future.

"It really is a landscape through time," he added.

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