Tower of London

Now that Hamish has got a job, we decided we could now loosen the purse strings and do some sight seeing that cost money. Tower of London was first on the list. This ancient fortress was founded by William the Conqueror and almost 1,000 years of British history has been played out within its walls. It was here that Guy Fawkes was interrogated, Richard II and Elizabeth I were incarcerated, the 'Princes in the Tower' disappeared without trace and numerous people tortured and beheaded.

It was a pretty amazing place and we both found it quite hard to get our heads around that we were standing on places that Kings and Queens of England had stood over 700 years ago.

Pictured above is Hamish outside the Towers walls. The grass used to be a moat that help defend the fortress. 

Upon entering the fortress we joined a guided tour by one of the resident Beefeaters. This was much more interesting and we learned a lot as opposed to reading info on signs. Below is picture of our Beefeater for the day.

We learned all about the towers where prisoners were held before they were executed, including Anne Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey, and Sir Walter Raleigh. Most of the towers had carvings in the walls by the prisoners, graffiti from 500 years ago...

The Tower of London consists mainly of the White Tower built by William the Conqueror in 1078, the Inner Ward which includes the Salt Tower, the Beauchamps tower, and the Bloody Tower. The Bloody Tower is the supposed location of the brutal murder of the Two Young Princes, Edward the 5th and Richard of Shrewsbury who mysteriously disappeared in 1483. Then more than 200 years later the bones of 2 young boys were discovered in the White Tower - I wonder who they were...

The Tower itself is a mix of different architectural styles, as random buildings were added and destroyed nearly every century for the last 1,000 years. Below is a picture of Hamish with his Pikeman's helmet on ready to defend the tower with Thunder (left) and Lightening (right).

Every evening, the Yeoman warders (BeefEaters) participate in the Ceremony of the Keys as the Tower is secured for the night. All warders have residence within the Tower, and must also own a residence outside of the Tower, so that upon their retirement, they may return to a home outside of the Tower. It would be pretty sweet to have the address 'Tower of London'.

The Crown Jewels are kept in the Tower of London under close guard. The original ancient crown jewels were destroyed by Oliver Cromwell in 1649, but these ones were still pretty impressive (says Lou). The collection includes the Cullinan diamond which is the largest rough gem-quality diamond ever found, at 3,106.75 carat. The diamond is now mounted in the head of the Sceptre with the Cross.

The White Tower also housed exhibits from the random collections from Royal families over the years, including armor, weapons and horses. Royal children also had suits of armor made which definitely beat hands down the wooden sticks and cardboard armor we used as kids back in the day.

The Tower is also a great spot to get a good view of the London Bridge.

Highlight: Best touristy thing Louise had done, the guided tour was awesome.

Lowlight: Even on a random Friday, the numbers of tourists there was amazing.

Interesting fact: Six Ravens are kept at the Tower in accordance with the belief that if they fly away "the kingdom will fall". To be on the safe side ten ravens (6 on duty and 4 young spares) are actually housed at the Tower of London at the expense of the British government. To prevent the birds from flying away one of their wings is clipped by the Ravenmaster. How very British.
Interesting fact (2): To become a 'Beefeater' you must of done at least 22 years of service for the Army, Royal Marines or Royal Air Force. Members of the Royal Navy cannot apply because while members of the other services take oaths to the Crown, members of the Navy take an oath to the Admiralty.