Place Name
Named after the Norman fortification Castle Baynard which once stood near here. It was built by a Norman called Bainiardus who came over with William the Conqueror. At some stage it was given to Robert Fitzwalter or Fitzwater by Henry I whereupon it stayed in the family for some 200 years. After being destroyed by fire in the early 15thCentury it was rebuilt by Humfrey, Duke of Gloucester, in 1428 and in 1446 passed to Henry VI. It was during this second time of Crown possession that it was much used by the royal household not lest by three of Henry VIII’s wives, Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn and Anne of Cleaves. It burnt down in 1666 and was not rebuilt.
