The Tower of London


Founded nearly a millennium ago and expanded upon over the centuries since, the Tower of London has protected, housed, imprisoned and been for many the last sight they saw on Earth.
It has been the seat of British government and the living quarters of monarchs and the repository of the Crown Jewels .
The British Crown Jewels contain a vast assortment of crowns, sceptres, orbs, rings, and other fine jewellery.In 1603, part of the Tower of London became a museum.
King James I had ordered that the royal jewels be kept in the Tower Jewel House and be put on display for the Tower visitors.



The Imperial State Crown
Front	Back

It holds the 317.40 carat Cullinan II diamond (the second largest diamond in the world), the 107 carat Black Prince's Ruby (actually a spinel), the 104 carat Stuart Sapphire (part of the Crown Jewels of Charles II), and the St. Edward's Sapphire.


The Tower was not only a fortress but eventually became a royal palace, state prison, the Mint, a record office, observatory, and zoo.

As a state prison it was used for criminals considered most dangerous to the state, and the Mint was the treasury for the Crown Jewels.

It became a zoo, the original Zoo, in 1834 when pets that the king had accumulated over the years were among a great diversity.
The zoo consisted of lions, leopards, bears wolves, lynxes, etc.
Seven ravens are in permanent residence in the Tower of London.
Their wings are clipped, so they can't fly away.
A superstition from the time of Charles II claims that when there are no longer ravens in the Tower, both the White Tower and the kingdom will fall.


In front of the White Tower, on the south side, there was a royal palace with private lodgings and great hall.
Medieval kings often took refuge in the lodgings.

Many historic events took place here too, such as the murder of the princes, Edward IV's sons.
It was custom for kings and queens to spend the night, or a few days, before their corontion in these royal apartments.
These royal lodgings were eventually swept away, leaving the Tower all alone.
After William the Conqueror the king that left a lasting impression on the Tower was Henry III.
By 1236 he had rebuilt the Great Hall and built the Wakefield Tower next to the royal lodgings.
He also built the archway to the Bloody Tower and the main angle towers along the wall.


A direct waterway entrance from the Thames onto the Tower was difficult and for a time unachievable.

It wasn't until the oratory was built to the martyr St. Thomas that the foundations were ensured for such an entrance.

The Water Gate, or entrance from the Thames into the Tower, later became known as Traiter's Gate.

Henry III's son, Edward I, finished off the Tower.


Several episodes reveal the general history of these times.
In 1244 Griffith, son of Llewelyn, the last independent Prince of Wales, attempted an escape from the Tower by making a rope out of his bedclothes, which resulted in his death after it broke.
During the expulsion of the Jews in 1278, hudreds were kept in the Tower.

In 1357-8 the Tower served as an arsenal.
Edward III made many preparations for the French war here which began with a naval victory of Sluys and ended up as the Hundred Years' War.


The Tower served as a refuge at one point for Richard II, his court, and ministers when the peasants revolted in the summer of 1381.
They stayed in the Tower while London burned outside its walls, including John of Gaunt, Richard's uncle's.
Among the King's company in the Tower was his mother, Joan of Kent (widow of the Black Prince), the Archbishop of Canterbury, Treasurer Hales, and Richard's other lords and ministers.
The marriage of King Henry VIII to his second wife, Anne Boleyn, took place at the Tower on May 19, 1533.
But the Tower of London was not always a place of celebration.
On May 19, 1536, Anne Boleyn was executed under Henry's orders at the Tower Green.
Anne had been accused of misconduct, but the plain truth was that she had born a daughter rather than a son, who would become a future king of England.


This daughter was Elizabeth I, who would later become the Queen of England.
Elizabeth was held prisoner in the Tower for two months by the order of her half sister, Queen Mary.
Mary felt that her throne was being threatened by Elizabeth, so she imprisoned her in the Tower.
Elizabeth was innocent, and people knew it, leading to a public outcry.

Elizabeth was released on May 19, 1554 (ironically, May 19 was the day on which Anne Boleyn was married and killed, and the same day that Elizabeth was released from jail.)
In 1558, Elizabeth became the queen of England.
She spent three days on her coronation in the Tower, to symbolize that it was her duty to "take possession" of it as the royal monarch of England. (Fisher, 1987)
On January 15, 1559, she left in a festive parade to be crowned at Westminster Abbey.
Elizabeth would never return to the Tower.