History
The history of the Manor House Hotel is well documented in the books and websites about West Auckland. Likewise the facts that:- West Auckland won the first World Cup for football in 1909 and won it again in 1911, which meant that West Auckland could keep it indefinitely.
The murderess, Mary Ann Cotton lived in the village. Henry VIII is said to have used the Hotel as a hunting lodge whilst visiting the area. It may be of interest to note that a replica of the regalia worn by Henry VIII and some of his wives is on display in the reception area of the hotel. A short history of him and his wives is recorded for your information.
THE TUDORS Henry VII (Henry Tudor of Lancaster) defeated King Richard III of York in battle at Bosworth in 1485 and became the first of the Tudor Kings. He had said that if he won the battle, he would marry Elizabeth of York, thus uniting the families of Lancaster and York. The Red Rose of Lancaster and the White Rose of York combined to form the Tudor Rose after the marriage. The Tudor Rose was made up of the outer White Rose and the inner Red Rose.
Henry VII wanted to leave a son a kingdom with no rivals to his throne. He wanted Spain as an ally to diminish any threat from England’s old enemy France. To this end, he chose the Spanish Princess, Catherine of Aragon to wed his eldest son, Prince Arthur. A few months after the wedding in November 1501, Prince Arthur died. His 10-year-old brother, Henry would now be in line to be the next King of England and eventually Catherine’s new husband, as Henry VII still wanted an alliance with Spain. In 1509 Henry VII died and his son became Henry VIII and married his brother Arthur’s widow, Catherine of Aragon.
As a result of this marriage, between 1510 and 1518, six children were born, all except Mary died young. In 1511 a boy, Prince Henry, lived for only six weeks. Because no male was produced from this marriage, in 1533 Henry VIII divorced Catherine of Aragon and started looking for a new wife. In the same year he married Anne Boleyn. This again did not produce any male children and as Henry thought that she was being unfaithful, he had her beheaded in 1536. Ten days after the execution, Henry married his third wife, Jane Seymour.
In 1537 their son Edward was born and Jane Seymour died a few days later. The baby Edward was made Prince of Wales, as a sign of the union between England and Wales, which became law in 1536. In 1540 Henry married a German Princess, Anne of Cleves but soon realised that she was not the woman he thought she was. They were divorced after a very short time. Again in 1540, Henry married a lady-in-waiting to Anne of Cleves, called Catherine Howard but she was accused of being unfaithful and was beheaded in February 1542. In 1543 Henry married for the last time to Catherine Parr.
She cared for Henry’s children, Mary, Elizabeth and Edward and took a great interest in their education as a result of which Henry founded Trinity College, Cambridge. Henry did not live to see Edward grow up. His will left the crown to each of the children in turn, with no one person as regent. Henry died in January 1547. His 9-year-old son, Edward lived for six more years. Mary I, (Catherine of Aragon’s daughter) became Queen and then Elizabeth I, (Anne Boleyn’s daughter). None had any children The Tudor line ended with Elizabeth I.