Tuesday morning I ventured out on the London Underground to visit the Tower of London. It really is one of the most remarkable places on earth. The White Tower was built by William the Conqueror in 1078--more than 900 years ago. The centuries reach out and grab you. It's amazing when you think of all the people who passed through the Tower's gates and those that perished there. Some of the famous prisoners included kings of England, Scotland and France.The Tudors seemed particularly bent on executing people. The great lawyer and scholar Sir Thomas More was imprisoned and executed there because he wouldn't recognize Henry VIII as head of the Church in England. Henry also had wives Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard beheaded at the Tower. Lady Jane Grey met the same fate. Princess Elizabeth was imprisoned for a time by her half-sister Queen Mary I, and it was from the Tower that Elizabeth set out to be crowned in Westminster Abbey after the death of Mary.
In addition to serving as a fortress and prison, the Tower was a royal palace, an armory, a treasury, a zoo (first in Europe), the Royal Mint, a public records office, an observatory, and is the home of the Crown Jewels.
I took an intimate guided tour with a Yeoman Warder--just me and 100 other tourists. The Beefeaters (don't call them that to their faces) always put on a great show. Most would do well at a stand-up comedy club, and this guy was no exception. He had a supply of jokes up the sleeve of his blue and red tunic--hundreds of years of jokes. All Yeoman Warders are retired non-commissioned officers from the British armed forces (except the Royal Navy). Our Yeoman was the only former Royal Marine at the Tower. I got points with him for being the only person on the tour who knew the date of the Battle of Trafalgar (1804).After spending several hours wandering around the Middle Ages, I found myself in the City of London, smack in the middle of a modern financial center. The streets were full of conservatively-dressed professionals with grim faces. Britain's economy is slipping into recession.
Click here if you want to see more photos of my day.
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2 comments:
What are you saying about a Royal Marine?
P - you need to try and get tickets for the "changing of the keys" ceremony at the tower - it happens at 9 or 10pm every night for the last 600 or so years - really cool. You have to write somewhere and request far in advance - look it up on line - but a very cool thing to do!
Cathy
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