ecial festivals of the Christmases of 1572 and 1593 were
kept by her....

The entrance to the portion of the palace built by Wolsey is by a sort of
outer court of great extent, the gates of which have their pillars
surmounted by a large lion and unicorn as supporters of the crown royal,
and each of the side gates by a military trophy. Along the left side of
the area are barracks and such offices; the greater part of the right side
is open toward the river, and there stand nine as lofty and noble elms, in
a row, as perhaps any part of England can match. Two gateways are before
you; the one to the left leading to the kitchen-court, the center one to
the first quadrangle. This chief gateway has been restored, in excellent
keeping with the old building, and has a noble aspect as you approach it,
being flanked with octagon towers, pierced with a fine pointed arch, over
which are cut, in rich relief, the royal arms, and above them projects a
large and handsome bay-window, framed of stone.

You now enter by a Gothic archway the first of the courts of Wolsey
remaining. These two are said to have been the meanest then in the palace.
There were originally five; the three finest of which were pulled down to
make way for William III.'s great square mass of brickwork. The writers
who saw it in its glory, describe it in entireness as the most splendid
palace in Europe. Grotius says, "other palaces are residences of kings,
but this is of the gods." Hentzner, who saw it in Elizabeth's time, speaks
of it with astonishment, and says, "the rooms being very numerous, are
adorned with tapestry of gold, silver, and velvet, in some of which were
woven history pieces; in other Turkish and Armenian dresses, all extremely
natural. In one chamber are several excessively rich tapestries, which are
hung up when the queen gives audience to foreign ambassadors. All the
walls of the palace shine with gold and silver. Here is likewise a certain
cabinet called Paradise, where, besides that every thing glitters so with
silver, gold, and jewels, as to dazzle one's eyes, there is a musical
instrument made all of glass except the strings."

It was, indeed, a Dutch taste which leveled all these stately buildings to
the ground, to erect the great square mass which replaced them. A glorious
view, if old drawings are to be believed, must all that vast and
picturesque variety of towers, battlements, tall mullioned windows,
cupolas and pinnacles, have made, as t