The lost little UK village that was totally knocked down by Henry VIII

King Henry VIII, who was crowned on this day in 1509, once made the decision to knock down an entire small village in England. Measuring just 1,859 acres, tucked between Ewell and Cheam, once stood the tiny Anglo Saxon village of Cuddington.

Cuddington, which is thought to have originated as early as the 8th Century, had been built up to include a church, manor house and a handful of farms by by 1538. Later that year, Henry VIII bought the manor house from Richard Codington and his wife, Elizabeth - which shortly led to the entire village being knocked down.

With the birth of his longed-for first son, Edward VI, Henry decided he wanted to build the grandest of palaces - with Cuddington being the best place for such a build.

After thinking Cuddington was the perfect place to commission the building, it was later known as Nonsuch Palace.

Thought to have cost more than £24,000 at the time, the build would equate to around £15.2 million today.

Following his death in 1547, the late royal was not able to see his architectural triumph built to completion.

Although it was previously hailed as one of the finest buildings of its age, it ultimate demise came about in bizarre circumstances.

Despite this, it returned into the royal realm in 1660 after Charles II gifted the magnificent palace to his mistress, Barbara, Countess of Castlemaine.

However, it was torn down when she sold off its building materials in order to pay off her gambling debts.

Although Cuddington is no more, Epsom and Ewell Borough Council even still recognises it as a ward.