Tudor House & Garden
A historic house and garden in Southampton’s Old Town
Tudor House & Garden occupies a timber-framed house facing St Michael’s Square in Southampton’s Old Town. The museum explores the lives of its residents, with historic rooms, a reconstructed knot garden and the remains of King John’s Palace.
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The house in the Old Town
Tudor House stands on Bugle Street, among the historic streets inside Southampton’s former town walls. Its black-and-white timber frontage is a landmark on St Michael’s Square. The exterior can be included in an Old Town walk, while the house and garden make a separate museum visit.
The property brings together different periods. The main house was developed between 1491 and 1518; the adjacent remains called King John’s Palace are older, dating from around 1180. The name should not be taken to mean the palace was built as this later house’s garden feature.
The house and its residents
In 1491, John Dawtrey joined three cottages to form a larger home. The scale and timber frontage expressed the prosperity of a man involved in Southampton’s public life. Richard Lyster owned the house from 1518 and furnished it as a wealthy household.
Later occupants and changing uses left further layers. The museum’s story follows the building through these different lives rather than presenting every room as an unchanged Tudor interior. It opened as a museum in 1912.
Rooms and garden
The visit combines the building itself with displays, an audio tour and digital material. It gives a domestic perspective on Southampton alongside the port and city history presented at SeaCity Museum.
The knot garden was designed by garden historian Sylvia Landsberg in the 1980s, drawing on manuscripts and historical documents. Formal paths, low hedges and plants chosen for culinary and medicinal uses show how a garden of this kind might have looked in the 1500s. King John’s Palace is reached through the garden.
The Air Raid Shelter is temporarily closed. It should therefore not be treated as an assured part of the visit.
Admission and visiting
The museum suggests one to three hours to appreciate the house, audio tour and digital resources. Normal opening is Monday, Tuesday and Thursday-Saturday 10:00-16:30, with Sunday 11:00-16:00. It is closed on Wednesdays. Admission tickets are available through the museum’s website.
Wheelchair access is limited. Platform lifts serve the upper floor, but the basement, attic, parts of the garden and King John’s Palace involve steep steps. The lifts have size limits of 1.1 m by 0.8 m and cannot take larger mobility scooters or electric wheelchairs. Visitors needing the lifts should contact the museum before arrival to confirm they are available.
Getting there through the Old Town
The museum address is Bugle Street, Southampton SO14 2AD, facing St Michael’s Square. Bargate and the Walk the Walls trail provide an outdoor context for the visit, without requiring entry to every historic building on the way.
For a day combining indoor and outdoor stops, the opening day of Tudor House is an important starting point. The things to do overview compares it with SeaCity and Solent Sky, while getting here covers arrival in Southampton.