Images: Otford corner tower, remains of gatehouse, and view across meadow (which would have included former palace site). (Photos: C.A. Stanford)
Acquired: 1537
A property of the archbishops of Canterbury, Henry wrung this from the possession of the recently-elected Cranmer through a forced exchange of estates. At the same time, he acquired the nearby house of Knole. He planned to stay at Knole with his own retinue and to house the rest of the court at Otford, since Otford’s setting “standith lowe, and is rewmatike… where I cold never be withoute sycknes” (Colvin, 217).
Despite its less advantageous setting, the king authorized repairs at Otford in 1538 and again, on a much larger scale, between 1541–46, although the particulars for these works do not survive. In Elizabeth’s time, the house was let to fall into ruin, although some remnants still survive.