Elizabeth's successor James I did not like the palace much and so traded it to Elizabeth's chief minister (and his own) Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury , in exchange for Theobalds, which was the Cecils' family home. Cecil liked to build and so tore down three wings of the "Old Palace" (the back and sides of the square) in 1608 and used the brick to build the present structure.
Hatfield House is a popular tourist attraction because it has so many objects associated with Queen Elizabeth, including some gloves and a pair of silk stockings that are believed to have been the first ones in England.