A group of amateur historians from a Northamptonshire village have unearthed a long-lost royal Tudor palace in the area. Today Collyweston is a sleepy English village with a nature reserve and of course, the traditional pub. Yet 500 years ago it played host to royalty as home to Henry VIII’s grandmother Margaret Beaufort and hosted Henry VII, Henry VIII, and Elizabeth I. It was lost after falling into disrepair in the 17th and 18th Centuries - until an intrepid group of history enthusiasts rediscovered it. Starting with a budget of under £1,000 the Collyweston Historical and Preservation Society (CHAPS) drew on local folklore and research to establish likely sites. They then utilised further research, geophysics, ground-penetrating radar, and archaeological digs to confirm the site of the palace. Their breakthrough came earlier this year when a dig unearthed finds that experts from the University of York have verified as part of the palace. The palace is much bigger than their initial estimations - being more than 1,000 paces all the way around. Its history rivals many Tudor palaces, as not only was it the venue for a lavish party at which Henry VII bade his daughter farewell when she married King James IV of Scotland but it also hosted Henry VIII and Elizabeth I and her Privy Council. Excavations will get underway again next year when the hunt will be on for a banqueting hall built in the Elizabethan era.
