The Tower of London

The Royal palace and a fortress of Her Majesty the Tower of London is a title which shows the importance of that place in a more than nine hundred-years’ history of England. The person who got the keys to the Tower – got the keys to the whole kingdom.

Unlike many other old capitals in Europe there was no constant royal residence in London. Fortresses and palaces were built outside the wall of the town. Considering the importance of London William the Conqueror built in the eleventh century at its eastern border a fortress called the White Tower. That was a place where he could defend himself from Londoners. William’s successors continued to make the Tower stronger and stronger so in all times it was the main fortified royal residence of England. Till the eighteenth century English kings and queens spent the night before their coronation here. The Crown Treasures have been kept in the Tower for more than three hundred years.

In the course of its long history the Tower was used for many purposes. In the Middle Ages there was a Royal Mint inside its walls. The State Archives was kept there. The first astronomy laboratory and the oldest zoo were situated in the Tower till the nineteenth century. The zoo was begun by the German Emperor Fredrick who had sent to Henry I three leopards which were the symbols of the English king. One could see a polar bear, lions, elephants and other animals there. Like other old fortresses the Tower of London was not only a royal residence but was also used as a prison. Many people famous in English history including Queen Elizabeth I, and Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, Sir Thomas More were kept there. Some of them were executed there and Queen Mary Stuart was among them. The last execution in the Tower was in 1747.

The Tower of London is not only one of the largest and well-known fortresses but it is also the oldest architectural monument in London. It includes a lot of bigger and smaller towers, palaces, gates and other buildings erected in different periods. The castle was surrounded by several lines of four meters-thick walls with bastions.

The White Tower is the oldest part of the fortress. This is a big and massive building with thick walls and four smaller towers on its corners which was built in 1075—1097. This is the most defended place in the Tower. It was used as a residence for the kings and queens. The White Tower has the Armory. Even today one can see there all kinds of the arms of different periods of English history since the Normans (the eleventh century). Some of the pieces belonged to the kings. The fact that many of the arms were used in old battles makes them even more interesting.

The royal palace was built close to the White Tower in the thirteenth century. It had been the main residence till the sixteenth century when Queen Elizabeth left it remembering the time when she was imprisoned in the Tower. During the revolution of the seventeenth century the palace was ruined by the army of Cromwell. Just near the palace St. Peter’s church stood. This is an architectural monument of the thirteenth century bit it was rebuilt in the sixteenth century.

In our days the Tower of London is a popular museum and numerous tourists visit it. The royal guard wears a historical uniform. Many historical traditions are connected with the Tower. One of the legends is about the black ravens. They say that Britain will be strong and wealthy if the ravens don’t leave the Tower. A special serviceman takes care of the birds and the British Government gives money to feed them.

At night, for more than seven hundred years, a special ceremony has taken place at the main gates of the Tower which is called “the Ceremony of the Keys” and the fortress of Her Majesty closes its gates to keep its most interesting mysteries.