Well, being my last day in London today before heading out to Bath I was determined to visit the Tower of London, although it was quite busy being a weekend, and I didn’t actually realise how cold it was until I had arrived. Being a weekend, there was maintenance on the Tube, so it was a bit of a hike over London Bridge (it’s the boring bridge) and along the River Thames to the Tower. It was very pretty, despite being overcast, but with a wind that cut through you like a knife.
Once inside I was just in time for a tour with one of the Yeoman (Bob). He was such a great guide. All the Yeoman and their families actually live in the tower and are locked in after 9pm each night. To become one, you need to be in the military for at least 30 years of scrupulous and highly honoured service – so quite easy really J Their uniforms cost thousands of dollars (and yes they are uniforms, not costumes!) and the really fancy gear worn on the Queen’s Birthday and other important occasions is worth 13,000 pounds per outfit. Bob was a great guide, really funny and informative – “Any Aussies in the crowd? Welcome home!” We got to see Traitor’s Gate and the Cathedral that holds the bodies of Lady Jane Grey and Anne Bolelyn.
Then there are the ravens, there must be at least six ravens on site at any one time otherwise legend has it the Tower will crumble and the monarchy will collapse. Naturally theirs wings are clipped so they can’t leave, but they are looked after so well that they probably wouldn’t want to anyway – with the oldest raven on site living to be over 40 years of age.
There is a whole section of quaint houses for the Yeoman and an onsite doctor and priest and then of course there is the tower that holds the Crown Jewels. Unfortunately you cannot take photos in this section, but trust me, it’s amazing. To see the crowns and batons and orbs that have been held by so many over the years, and the massive 563 caret star of India sapphire is truly stunning. The way the light reflects off it in an array of colours is like nothing I’ve even seen. You stand on a conveyor belt and cruise by all these stunning pieces, including Queen Victoria’s lovely diamond crown, then round the corner to see the heavy robes worn at coronation and the massively elaborate gold place settings, including a wine goblet that can hold over 100 bottles of wine.
Then it’s on to the White Tower, the original and oldest tower, built in 1080. Here are the stairs where the bodies of the two young princes were found buried after being murdered a number of years before by an unknown offender. Their bodies are now in Innocents Corner in Westminster Abbey, but a plaque is dedicated to them here.
Inside there is another Cathedral where Henry VIII and other monarchs have been thought to sit and pray. One of the original tower toilets is even still here. It was nothing but a hole, with wood over it, and the hole simply ran to the edge of the tower, so everyone’s business would go down the hole and down the tower wall to the ground below. There was armour on display belonging to Henry VIII and his young son, as well as the largest suit of armour ever made. It was fascinating to see original plans of the tower, and an executioner’s block and axe. The Yeoman told us of one inexperienced and slightly inebriated executioner who required eight blows to remove the head of one unlucky man. Anne Bolelyn was so scared of an unclean execution that a specialist was brought in from Scotland, and she was one of the few to be executed by sword.
In one tower you can see a number of inscriptions on the walls carved by occupants awaiting their fate – this is just fascinating, with everything from simply names, to pictures to entire passages of thought. To think these were carved so many years ago. The last execution took place in the Tower in 1941. The man’s name was Jakobs and he was a German sergeant on a spying mission – he was executed via firing squad.
Despite being at the Tower for most of the day, there were still a few areas I didn’t get a chance to see, so I hope to go back another time – perhaps when one of my dear friends reading this comes to see me I could escort you J
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