Hector could see the Belt of Hampton was only an old jewelled cat collar, but he remembered his manners and answered, “oh yes, wonderful!”
When they passed each other on the sports field, Hector gave a low bow to Sir Guy and said, “I want to thank you for my wonderful tunnel.” “It is my duty and a pleasure to care for all rabbits,” replied the Lord, returning the bow.
I’ve had the best idea,” he told his friends. ”When my tunnel is dug, you can all come over to my house, to watch MY television.” Well, can you imagine how happy the Coneys felt? They leapt and bounced about like absolute loons. Hector goes wild! Jo Rutherford 2010
Nannie got to work straight away, she crushed a leaf, mixed it with a little sticky honey, and applied the comforting cream to his scratch. “Your ear will soon be as good as new,” she said.
The King’s Beasts are the ten statues guarding the gateway bridge at the Palace. They are the family emblems of the King, Henry VIII, and of the family of his new wife, Jane Seymour. The Beasts are the King’s crowned lion, the Royal dragon, the Tudor dragon, the Richmond greyhound, the Mortimer lion, the Beaufort yale, the Clarence black bull, the Mortimer panther, the Seymour panther, and the Seymour unicorn.
'They do say that Shakespeare came to Hampton Court on Midsummer's Eve to see the magical statues come to life, to cast a spell of protection upon the Palace, but because the event is a very private affair, he did not see the magic, and so instead wrote Midsummer Night's Dream.'
Later that evening, Tom called round to take Hector stargazing. They stretched out in the mouth of the tunnel, and looked up at the great Moon and the twinkling stars in the big, black blanket of the night. “I never knew it was so beautiful,” gasped Hector. “Look at the moon, she has a face!” And for the first time in his life Hector felt he was a part of Nature.
Across the Park moonlight danced and glinted on a golden statue above a silvery pond. “That is the Fountain of Diana,” whispered Tom, “the Goddess and Protector of the Moon and the Creatures of the Wild. All the statues in Hampton Court are magical. And they do say, that when an animal is in danger Diana’s statue comes to life, and darts like a streak of lightning through the trees, to raise the alarm.”
“Coooooooo,” thought Hector, suddenly remembering the lightning bolt he saw when he was lost... just before he was found. “Coooooooo” “And they also say that Nannie is her helper! But watch out,” warned Tom. “When the moon is full it lights the night, so stay out of sight, or Foxy will spot you in a flash!”
Summer visitors to the Park watch the Shakespeare play Midsummer Night's Dream, a comedy telling how the Queen of the Fairies fell in love with a donkey. Humphrey the Lord of the Hampton deer and Head of the Herd finds the play absolutely ridiculous. He stamps his hoof during the performance and bellows loudly, "The queen of the fairies would never fall in love with an old donkey, not when the park is so full of such handsome deer with such magnificent crowns of horns."
Hampton Court Warren, a fabulous place where the walls and ceilings are decorated with paintings of the kings and queens of Britain, just like the real Palace
A little of the history influencing the warren at Hampton Court
Hampton Court Palace has developed since the 11th Century from a medieval manor with farm into a magical Tudor palace. From 1236 the farm was occupied by the Hospitallers of St John, and became a Priory, caring for travellers and growing food and medicinal supplies for St John headquarters in Clerkenwell, London. http://www.twickenham-museum.org.uk/detail.php?aid=80&ctid=3&cid=49 You can visit the St John Museum in Clerkenwell, to learn about the history of hospitals and the St John Ambulance Brigade http://museumstjohn.org.uk/ In 1250 Henry III gave the prior the right to hunt (known as free warren which was for more than rabbits). In 1338 the Priory had 840 acres of land , a war and various buildings. Cardinal Wolsey took the property and demolished most of it, to create Hampton Court Palace. The only remaining relic of the order in the palace, still rings for service in the chapel, and has the following inscription on it:- STELLA , MARIA, MARIS, SUCCVRRE, PIISIMA, NOBIS, (Mary most gracious, Star of the Sea, come to our assistance) The date of the bell is fixed by the letters 'T. H.' stamped on it, which are the initials of a famous bellfounder, Thomas Harrys, who lived about 1479. In 1528, Henry VIII took the palace and spent more than £62,000 on extensions. In the Middle Ages, the park reared rabbits for food in artificial warrens. You can still see signs of the warrens. The best examples are at Warren Plantation and north of the junction between Lime Avenue and Chestnut Avenue.
