Visit the iconic locations that figure prominently in the Predestination series
Framlingham Castle
A huge castle in Queen Mary's heartland of East Anglia
This image is an AI rendering of the actual (still extant) building
Framlingham Castle is a castle in the market town of Framlingham, Suffolk. It is managed by English Heritage and run as a tourist attraction.
The musician Ed Sheeran, who grew up in the market town, wrote and sang a song called 'Castle on the Hill'.
Historical note
Constructed by Roger Bigod, the Earl of Norfolk, the castle was unusual for the time in having no central keep, but instead used a curtain wall with thirteen mural towers to defend the centre of the castle.
During the 15th and 16th centuries Framlingham was at the heart of the estates of the powerful Mowbray and Howard families. Two artificial meres were built around the castle, which was expanded in fashionable brick. With a large, wealthy household to maintain, the castle purchased supplies from across England and brought in luxury goods from international markets. Extensive pleasure gardens were built within the castle and older parts were redesigned to allow visitors to enjoy the resulting views.
Interestingly, in 1636, Framlingham Castle was given to Pembroke College, Cambridge, who retained it for the next three hundred years, although, I have yet to find any details of what they used it for!
Usage in the series
Proclamation
Framlingham Castle was where Mary Tudor gathered her forces as she prepared to battle for the crown that she believed was hers according to her father's will.
Dee and his friends enter the castle to retrieve an incriminating poem. Jack gets captured at one point and is held in the prison tower, which juts out from the curtain wall and whose ruins can still be seen today.
I draw my readers' attention to the sketch of the interior of the castle, in Chapter 30 - Desolation, which was kindly drawn by my 90 year-old mother, Catherine Downes. Thanks Mom!
Hampton Court Palace
A royal palace west, built for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey.
This image is an AI rendering of the actual (still extant) building
Hampton Court Palace is a royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames (west of central London).
The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief minister of Henry VIII. Wolsey spent lavishly (200,000 crowns) to build the finest palace in England. During his fall from Henry VIII's grace he gave Hampton Court to Henry, but it wasn't enough to save him. After Wolsey died, Henry further enlarged the building, starting with the kitchens, and followed by a Great Hall (with a hammerbeam ceiling) and a tennis court.
Edward VI was born here, and Queen Mary had her honeymoon here with Philip of Spain. Successive monarchs added to and altered the buildings.
Usage in the series
Divination
Dee leaves Cambridge for Hampton Court, seeking safety from attack by the imagined conspirators, only to find that the palace was just as dangerous, both morally and mortally. Nonetheless, some foresight and cunning sees him through the shifting allegiances and allows him to rise above the corruption.
Speculation
Dee, Catherine and Nicholas quiz the Lord Protector, Edward Seymour, regarding the use of the recovered gold.
Predestination
King Edward VI's court was often at Hampton Court Palace.
William Herbert, John Cheke, and William Cecil were all given honours on the same day at Hampton Court, 10th October 1551, and Herbert received his Earldom the very next day at the same location.
In Predestination, Edward summons Dee to Hampton Court twice; firstly to name his reward for averting a poisoning, and secondly for his investiture into the Brotherhood of the Red Rose.
History records Gerolamo Cardano visiting Hampton Court to offer astrological forecasts to Edward.
Oxburgh Hall
A moated and crenellated country house in Norfolk
This image is an AI rendering of the actual (still extant) building
Oxburgh Hall is a moated country house.
It is an example of an inward-facing great house. It is surrounded by a square moat about 75 metres on each side.
Although originally square, enclosing a courtyard, the south section was pulled down in 1772 for Sir Richard Bedingfeld, creating a U-shaped house.
The entrance, reached by a three-arched bridge on the north side, is through a fortified gatehouse.
Usage in the series
Predestination
Oxburgh Hall is the final main location in Predestination, where the search for the Bloodstone ends.
Jack and Kat hide in the attic, and Kat accidentally leaves behind a prayer book.
During the 2020-22 Covid-19 lockdown a project to re-roof Oxburgh Hall was underway. Whilst examining the attic, the archaeologist Matt Champion found a page from a rare 15th-century illuminated manuscript and fragments of late 16th century books. I wonder who left them there, and what they were doing in the attic? Could it be that the Predestination story is true after all?
Temple Church
The 'Round Church', HQ of the Knights Templar in London
This image is an AI rendering of the actual (still extant) building
Temple Church is famous for being a round church, a design typical of the Knights Templar.
It is classified as a Royal Peculiar meaning it is not under the jurisdiction of the diocese, but instead is under the direct jurisdiction of the monarch.
It was damaged during WWII and has since been rebuilt and repaired. It offers regular choral performances and organ recitals. The Temple Church maintains two clergy, one being the Master, whose official title is the rather grand "Reverend and Valiant Master of the Temple" A list of all the Masters since 1540 is available, which is rather cool.
Several knights are buried and/or have effigies in the church, including William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke. William was possibly the greatest knight to have ever lived; he served five English Kings. Even at the age of seventy he vigorously led (the nine-year old) Henry III's army against Louis of France during the Baron's war. During his regency he reissued the Magns Carta. On his deathbed he was invested in the Knights Templar.
Historical note
The Temple Church was built by the Knights Templar in 1185 as their English headquarters.
After their suppression in 1307 it passed first to the crown then to the Knights Hospitaller who rented it out to two colleges of lawyers which evolved into the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple, two of the four Inns of Court. The church itself lies between the two inns.
Usage in the series
Predestination
The clues to the location of the Bloodstone of Boiorix lead Jack and Kat to the Temple Church.
They steal a page from a book of minutes. The page mentions keeping safe items related to the Bretwalda Egg. A Bretwalda was the Anglo-Saxon ruler of the Britons. The Bloodstone was known to be egg-sized. QED.
The page references an ancient chamber beneath the buttery and even provides a diagram of it; the diagram is marked with a faint 'X'. This is spot that Jack and Kat search for their next clue.
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