The Tower of London is the monument that best tells a thousand years of English history. Fortress, royal palace, prison, mint, armoury, menagerie and today home of the Crown Jewels, it stands on the north bank of the Thames, at the south-eastern corner of the old Roman city. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988.
History
After the conquest of 1066, William the Conqueror built a fortress to control London and the river. Its heart is the White Tower, about 27 metres high, with walls up to four and a half metres thick, completed around 1100 with stone imported from Caen in Normandy. Over the following centuries monarchs added two rings of walls, a moat and some twenty towers. The Tower was a royal residence until the 17th century, but it is remembered above all as a prison: nobles, political rivals and fallen queens were locked up and often executed here. On Tower Green two of Henry VIII's wives were beheaded, Anne Boleyn in 1536 and Catherine Howard in 1542, as was Lady Jane Grey in 1554 (see Henry VIII). The last prisoners were Second World War spies.
What to see
- The Crown Jewels: the Jewel House displays the regalia used at coronations, including St Edward's Crown, used to crown Charles III in 2023, and the Imperial State Crown, with more than 2,800 diamonds, the Black Prince's Ruby and the Cullinan II diamond. The Sovereign's Sceptre holds Cullinan I, one of the largest cut diamonds in the world. The collection was remade after 1660, because the medieval regalia had been melted down under Cromwell's republic.
- The White Tower: home to the Royal Armouries collection, with Henry VIII's armour, and the Norman Chapel of St John, one of the oldest churches in London.
- Traitors' Gate: the river entrance through which prisoners arrived, among them the future Elizabeth I.
- The medieval walls and towers, which you can walk along, with the carvings left by prisoners in the Beauchamp Tower.
Beefeaters and ravens
The Tower is guarded by the Yeoman Warders, popularly called Beefeaters, former senior non-commissioned officers of the armed forces who live in the fortress and lead tours full of humour. Legend has it that if the ravens ever leave the Tower the kingdom will fall: so at least six are always kept, looked after by a dedicated keeper, the Ravenmaster. Every evening at 9.53pm, for some seven hundred years, the Ceremony of the Keys has taken place, the ritual locking of the fortress, which you can attend by booking well in advance.
Practical information
The nearest Underground station is Tower Hill (District and Circle lines). Tickets cost over £30 for an adult and are best bought online; allow at least three hours for a full visit. Arrive at opening time and head straight for the Crown Jewels before queues build up. The free Beefeater tour, included in the ticket, is not to be missed. Next door is Tower Bridge; see also what to see in London and the London guide.