In the Princes' Chamber at window level one can see six red wall panels. These spaces were intended to contain copies of the 16th Century Armada tapestries which had been burnt to cinders in the Great Fire at the Palace in 1834. However, the plans to make copies were never carried out, and the bare wall spaces still remain - these engravings are an artist's impression of what the tapestries might have looked like.

The original Armada tapestries were commissioned by Lord Charles Howard - the British Fleet Commander, in 1591 to commemorate the British Victory over the Spanish Armada. They were placed in the Court of Requests where all ten could be hung together.

The tapestries were richly embroidered with gold and silver threads - the borders being decorated with medallions enclosing portraits of the naval commanders involved, and the main sections depicting various stages of the sea battle between the two fleets

Additional Information on
The Armada Tapestries

The Armada Tapestries were commissioned by Lord Charles Howard in 1591 to commemorate the British Victory over the Spanish Fleet. Howard was the Lord High Admiral who had commanded the victorious British forces. He commissioned the tapestries from the Delft workshops of Frans Spierings to the original designs of the Dutch maritime artist, Hendrick Vrom - who had, in turn, taken his ideas from charts drawn by the famous British architect of the period, Robert Adam.

Lord Charles Howard sold the tapestries to James I in 1612. They then became part of Charles I's private art collection, but interestingly from the time of the Commonwealth they managed to escape sale (the rest of the collection was sold off), being reserved for Cromwell's own use. The tapestries were then hung in the House of Lords, which at the time was being used for meetings of the Committee of Parliament. They were later re-hung in the Court of Requests when the Lords moved there from their old chamber. In this new situation all ten could be hung together. Unfortunately, the tapestries were burnt to cinders in the Great Fire at the Palace in 1834.