The Tudor house - off Hope Square Weymouth
Many years after the black death landed in Melcombe Regis causing the first outbreak of the
black death in Weymouth, after which it spread throughout the country with devastation, the two ports of Weymouth and Melcombe Regis were once again thriving ports importing fine goods from the continent and exporting wool. Weymouth attracted a number of prosperous merchants who built their homes and their businesses around Weymouth harbour. Tudor House on Weymouth harbour still stands today as a reminder of those times.
Tudor House - a 17th Century house dating back to late Tudor times
The Tudor house museum is a 17th century tudor house close to Weymouth harbour, found just off Hope Square Weymouth. The Tudor house was built for one of the many prosperous merchants who made their business around Weymouth harbour in the early 1600s. Originally Tudor house stood on an inlet of Weymouth harbour, allowing trade ships to dock outside for unloading at what would have been a warehouse next to Tudor house. The inlet however has long since been filled in and Trinity street now runs along the reclaimed land that once formed the inlet.
Tudor house - A museum of life for a typical merchant in Weymouth under the rule of the Tudors
The Tudor house museum is set out with furnishings of the period as a middle class Tudor house with 2 huge original fireplaces in one big downstairs room. It is a three storey house with two upper floors making up the bedrooms. A visit to the Tudor house starts with a guided tour of the downstairs room - used as a living space and kitchen. You can then go on to explore the upstairs where details of the rooms and life for a merchant in Tudor Weymouth is told through cards and audio. The Tudor House was once on the harbourside and the ships could dock next to the house ready for unloading at the warehouse next door. In the days of the Tudors, Weymouth traders would have traded fine imported materials such as spices and silks while traders on the other side of the harbour specialised in wool - it is likely the merchant of the Weymouth Tudor house would have traded in such goods. Trinity street, the street on which the Tudor house now stands is reclaimed land but in the times that the Tudor house was built, the land that we walk on today was an inlet of Weymouth harbour where ships could dock and unload their goods.
The Tudors life in Weymouth
A Tudors life in Weymouth was very different to the Weymouth that we see today. Aside from having few freedoms - from being told what religion to worship to what clothes you could wear, life for residents of Tudor Weymouth would have been very different to the Weymouth of today. Until the first bridge was built in the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, the two ports were entirely seperate and bitter rivals, arguing over use of Weymouth harbour. Weymouth on the Tudor house side of the harbour dealt in goods imported from abroad such as spices and silks while Melcombe Regis on the opposite side of the harbour mainly shipped Wool - both were bitter rivals for the use of Weymouth harbour and without that first bridge, the Weymouth Tudors would not have been able to freely visit one port from the other. Very few Tudor people were allowed to vote or could afford to own property in Tudor England, so our Weymouth merchant of Tudor house would have been a highly succesful trader to be able to build his house next to the dock. In a time when shipwrecks and piracy were common and a traders fortunes depended on the safe arrival in port of their ships, Tudor merchants would have wanted to live as close to their ships as possible. The bitterly disputed use of Weymouth Harbour provided both ports of their income and therefore all of the houses and buildings would have congregated mainly around the harbour while much of the land further out, closer to the Weymouth sands would have been untouched, uninhabited fields and marshland. Most of the people of Tudor Weymouth would have either worked on the sea, in the fields or in service.
Early Tudor Weymouth and Tudor castles
The Tudor period followed the wars of the roses and lasted from 1485 to 1603 over the reign of 5 monarchs - from Henry Tudor, Henry VIII, Edward Tudor, Mary Tudor and Elizabeth Tudor. It is thought that Tudor house was built towards the very end of the Tudor dynasty and contains genuine items from the Tudor period. Tudor House was built at the end of Elizabeth Tudors reign (Queen Elizabeth 1st) but the Tudors made their mark on Weymouth long before that. Henry VIII set about fortifying Weymouth as he did all along the South coast in response to the threat of war with France and Spain - Weymouth is the closest port to Cherbourg and therefore one of the most at risk ports of both invasion from mainland Europe as well as a target of foreign pirates. The now ruined Sandsfoot Castle was built and stood proud on the coastline until its defeat and ruin in the Civil wars (starting in 1642). The ruin of Sandsfoot castle is set in small gardens open to the public and offering lovely views over Portland harbour. Portland castle, another one of Henry VIIIs fortifications is also open to the public, in the custody of English Heritage, Portland castle overlooks Portland Harbour where it was strategically positioned to protect the ports and their ships from invasion and piracy. Both are important examples of a Tudor Castle in Dorset. Another castle on Portland predates both of the aforementioned castles by a few hundred years - the Bow and Arrow castle overlooking Church Ope Cove stands high on a cliff where it is not accessible - however the
Church Ope Cove 'pirates graveyard' Portland, the beautiful Church Ope Cove and the Portland museum are also all around this area.
Queen Elizabeth 1 - The Spanish Armada battle at Portland
Perhaps the most famous event in Queen Elizabeth 1 golden age was the attempt of the Spanish Armada to invade our shores. Residents of Tudor Weymouth would have been amongst the first to witness the fearful sight of those Spanish galleys sailing menacingly towards Britain and it was another resident of Tudor Weymouth who bravely mobilised a flotilla of 6 ships from Weymouth harbour to meet ships of the ill-fated Spanish Armada at Portland Bill where a battle took place. The skirmish helped to greatly hamper the Spanish ships and struck one of the first blows against the vastly superior force. Elizabeth the 1st knighted the leader of the ships for his services to his country.
Queen Elizabeth 1 joins the two ports of Weymouth and Melcombe Regis
Queen Elizabeth 1 joined the two ports of Weymouth and Melcombe Regis together by royal charter (1571) and a while later, the first Weymouth harbour bridge was built across the harbour towards the end of the 16th century - where the current bridge stands and the merchants of both Weymouth and Melcombe Regis eventually were able to enjoy the benefits of being part of a larger port. An inscription on Weymouth harbour bridge commemorates this important event in the history of Weymouth.
Notable events through history since Tudor House was built
The Tudor house has stood for many centuries and as such its residents have witnessed much through the years. The golden age of Queen Elizabeth 1 came to an end in 1603 and a few years later English history was about to take a serious downturn with civil war engulfing the country. Weymouth again played its part with the Crabchurch conspiracy - Elizabeths bridge across Weymouth harbour playing a key role in events. A cannon-ball is still to be found in the wall of a house that stands in Weymouth, while walls of buildings from the age also show cannon-ball scars. Battles were taking place all over England and along with the Crabchurch conspiracy, one of the biggest battles of the civil war in Dorset occurred along the coast at Corfe. Corfe Castle was the seat of the Royalist Bankes family who kept it safe in royal hands throughout much of the war before being one of the last castles to fall in Dorset in 1646 when it was betrayed by one of its own garrison. After successfully repelling the initial Parliamentarian siege of 1643, Corfe Castle fell in 1646 to a second siege and was slighted on parliaments orders. When the family fortunes returned with the restoration of the monarchy, they opted to build the grand National Trust mansion of Kingston Lacy on the lands they held there instead of concentrating their efforts on Corfe Castle - which has remained a ruin to this day. The grand house at Kingston Lacy commemorates Marys efforts with life size statues of Sir John Bankes, Mary Bankes and King Charles 1st on the staircase overlooking the grounds - the original keys to Corfe Castle can also be seen hanging on above a fireplace in one of the grand mansions rooms.
Tudor House demolition order and its rescue
Much later on. Tudor house fell into disrepair and was even subject to a demolition order prior to the outbreak of World War 2, however with the outbreak of War, the demolition didn't occur and despite the best efforts of the Luftwaffe, despite sustaining bomb damage, Tudor house survived, was restored and stands as an important reminder to Weymouths history to this day.
