LONDON
The Tower of London has a dark past.
Its 1,000 years of history echo with the
crimes and punishments of monarchs,
traitors and torturers. The tower is a
formidable royal fortress, medieval
palace and priceless treasure house
rolled into one.
CROWN JEWELS
The royal family’s most precious
jewels are kept in the Tower under
strict lock and key. Millions of
tourists ride a travelator past
the glittering collection, which
includes the world’s largest
colourless cut diamond. The Star
of Africa is a whopping 530.2
carat beauty mounted on the top
of a 17th century sceptre used by
the Queen for state ceremonies.
BEEFEATERS
Forty Yeoman Warders guard the
Tower of London. They live with
their families in the Tower and are
nicknamed ‘beefeaters’ because
they were originally paid with
meat instead of money. Their job
is a ceremonial one even though
they are all ex-soldiers. Only one
beefeater has the special title of
‘Raven Master’.
LIFE AT THE ZOO
For 700 years an exotic menagerie of animals lived inside
the royal fortress. There were tigers, lions, ostriches, snakes
and even an African elephant! In 1252, the king of Norway
gave Henry III a polar bear as a present. It was attached to a
long chain so it could go fishing in the Thames.
THE RED SEA
In 2014, the empty moat
around the Tower of London
was filled with exactly 888,248
blood-red poppies – one for
each soldier who died during
World War One. The dramatic
art installation marked 100
years since Britain went to
war in 1914.
ROYAL PRISONERS
Hardcore criminals were not the only
‘guests’ at the Tower of London –
several members of the royal family
were incarcerated here, too. In the
15th century, the two young sons
of King Edward IV were locked up
there by their wicked uncle Richard
so that he could take over the
throne. In 1536 King Henry VIII had
his second wife, Anne Boleyn, tried
and executed in the Tower – clearing
the way for him to marry someone new.
TORTUROUS TIMES
Life at the Tower was hardly a bundle of laughs. King Henry I was the first
monarch to use the Royal residence as a state prison in 1100, but it was during
the Tudor era in the 16th and 17th centuries that things really got nasty.
Prisoners were tied on a rack and stretched, or hung by their wrists from the
ceiling in manacles, to make them confess their crimes. Heads were chopped
off in public executions on Tower Hill, a hillock just behind the fortress.
WATERSIDE SPOT
William the Conqueror cleverly had the
fortress built on the banks of the River
Thames – London’s lifeline to and from
the outside world. Prisoners sent to the
Tower would arrive by boat along the river,
entering through Traitors’ Gate. Today, the
once bloody riverbanks buzz with fun as
Londoners enjoy waterfront playgrounds
and parks, outdoor art exhibitions, busker
shows and street theatre.