Mystery, Murder and Intrigue at the Tower of London.

The Tower of London

The summer of 2017 was a very intriguing year for us as it was the year that we developed a huge passion for castles and began learning more about their incredibly complex, extensive and blood-soaked histories.

It was the end of July 2017, and Vera, Alex and I were excited for our trip to the Tower of London. Vera and I had travelled over to Tower Hill station from Southend-On-Sea and Alex joined us from Hainault. Whilst waiting for Alex to join us, Vera and I had exited the station and sat on a bench in a small green park opposite the Tower. The Tower stood menacingly in the distance, contrasting aggressively with the modern glass skyscrapers of central London. It was an incredible sight to behold as the ancient, 10^th century brickwork stood as a sharp reminder of England’s blood-soaked Norman beginnings and in the distance the Shard, a glass skyscraper standing unique in the London skyline, stood as a reminder of the ingenuity of modern engineering.

Alex showed up, we crossed the road and bought our tickets for the Tower. Streams of people entered and exited the castle, which stood elegantly next to the famously iconic Tower Bridge.

1. I wonder if they have ever thought about using this bridge in a film?

The Tower’s immense grounds stood before us, shimmering with history and power, giving us a real sense of awe and giving us a clear perspective on how different life must have been all those hundreds of years ago. The entire outer walls are surrounded by a deep, grassy motte, which was the scene of the downfall of many powerful people. Surrounding the Tower are numerous pubs, roads, tourist buses and local vendors. There are so many things to visit and do around the Tower that it is definitely a great day out!

 

The West entrance, known as the Byward Tower, is a great example of the artistic and masonry capabilities of the 13^th century, under the rule of Edward I. It stands as a wall of almost impenetrable defence, with two circular archers’ towers on each side of the entrance. Even if you were able to reach past the archers’ towers, you would be faced with two closed portcullises. Breaching these portcullises would be so time-consuming that you would be killed before you succeeded. Thankfully, the archers’ posts are now deserted, and the portcullises are open to the general public (as long as you have your admission ticket) and the elegant path leads through to the courtyard, encompassed by the outer wall of the Tower. The cobblestone path leads you along the inside of the outer wall, before allowing you to gain entrance to the central grounds of the tower.

2. You know it's London where there's an ancient castle and a grey sky.

Whilst the outer walls and White Tower are physical constructs, the myths, legends, curses and alleged hauntings that surround them massively enhance the mystery of the Tower of London. These myths and legends extend their roots back several centuries and are so powerful that there are specific workers within the Tower, whose job is to simply ensure that these myths don’t come to fruition, such as the Ravenmaster, whose job is to tend to the group of ravens. It is said that, ‘[t]he Kingdom and the Tower of London will fall if the six resident ravens ever leave the fortress.’[1] (The ravens, 2020) The root of this legend extends back to a warning that Charles II (1630 – 1685) was given during his reign. Whilst it is more of a tourist tradition, the Ravenmaster takes his job very seriously, ensuring that seven ravens are well-looked after and remain within the grounds.  As well as the legend of the ravens, there are supposed curses surrounding the Crown Jewels, which are stored at the Tower. However, this is likely to try and prevent people from stealing them.

As well as the legend of the ravens, visitors and inhabitants have mentioned terrifying encounters with ghosts throughout the castle. While old buildings tend to have mysterious legends arising about hauntings throughout the years, the Tower is filled to the brim with eerie mysteries, deaths and unsolved disappearances. In 1483, two princes, aged 12 and 9 were declared illegitimate and were reportedly murdered by their uncle, Richard III, in his ploy to obtain the throne. Their bodies were never found. There have been stories of visitors being poked and prodded as they make their way through the Tower, although these stories have never been properly substantiated. In addition, Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII, was beheaded on the lawns next to the White Tower in 1536 for supposedly committing adultery. However, it is believed that this was also a ploy by Henry VIII to legitimately end their relationship so that he could marry Jane Seymour, who he actually married later that same year.

3. The infamous White Tower.

As we entered into the main courtyard, we were met by the sight of the almighty and imposing White Tower, which was built by William the Conqueror from 1078. It stands in the centre of the castle and is surrounded by gravel pathways and exceptionally well-tended lawns. There were numerous paths leading up to the top of the walls which you can walk on and have a wonderful view of the centre of London. As we looked around, we could see hundreds of tourists from all around the world enjoying the history and beauty of the area. Suddenly, we spotted a few people in special uniform and realised that they were the Yeoman Warders, otherwise known as Beefeaters. These are a special collection of guards who, along with their families, have taken up permanent residence at the castle. They have been guarding the castle since 1485, under the rule of Henry VII. Whilst many aspects of their lives have changed throughout the years, certain traditions have been kept alive and well throughout the centuries. Such examples include the wearing of the special uniform, called the State Dress Uniform, for special state celebrations including the Queen’s birthday. Also, they swear an oath that supposedly dates back to the 14^th century and every night carry out the ancient Ceremony of the Keys, where they lock the outer gates of the fortress and return the keys to the monarch’s representative, called the Resident Governor.[2] (Yeoman Warders at the Tower of London, 2020) You can only become a Yeoman Warder if you have at least 22 years of service in the military.

4. A great number of tourists and various attractions within the castle.

There are numerous buildings to enter and they all serve different purposes, including housing the Crown Jewels and showing various historical artefacts gathered throughout the centuries. There are hundreds of displays with information about the castle, ranging from the history of different areas of the castles to information about specific kings and people who played an important role in the history of the castle. While Alex, Vera and I were moving around the castle, we were learning about Edward I and his residence at the castle during his reign from 1272 to 1307, I felt someone tug on my shirt and I turned around, thinking Alex or Vera were playing a joke on me. As I turned around, I noticed that there was no one nearby at all. While it was strange, I immediately dismissed it as me having probably snagged my shirt on something and carried on. We then saw the bedroom and were surprised by how, compared to the homes that people live in nowadays, scarce and small the room was. However, we were also aware that the living conditions in the 14^th and 15^th centuries were vastly different to what we are accustomed to now. International trade was exceptionally more challenging 600 years ago for numerous reasons, including cost, waiting time and the potential perils of the journey, so it is easy to understand that people only had access to items and good that were made relatively locally.

5. Even on a sunny day, the castle itself sits in darkness. Maybe I need to change my camera settings.

We then made our way into the impressive White Tower, whose walls extended high into the sky and has an external staircase, similar in purpose to the forebuilding of Rochester Castle. The inside of the White Tower is an incredibly impressive affair, sporting a variety of historic artefacts in excellent condition, such as the Line of Kings, which has been on display for around 350 years. Moving through the castle, we came into St. John’s Chapel, which is one of only a few surviving Anglo-Norman church interiors that are still preserved today. Henry III, during his reign from 1216 to 1272, developed the church interior by adding in stained glass windows of various religious figures, including St. John the Evangelist and a painting of Edward the Confessor.

 

We sat quietly and somewhat pensively in one of the pews, quietly taking in the age of our surroundings and thinking about the fact that tourists had been coming to visit the castle for literally hundreds of years. The room was incredibly beautiful, although relatively bare compared to the churches that exist now. However, that seemed to just add to its charm, as it was a relic of a different time.

 

Brief History

The Tower of London is, by far, the most famous castle in the whole of the United Kingdom, as well as being very well-known throughout the entire world. Its foundations extend back to the 11^th century, following the successful invasion by the Norman conqueror, William the Conqueror. London was a stronghold and William felt the need to overtake the city to ensure his stronghold over the country. Therefore, he felt it was of the utmost importance to decimate the areas surrounding the city, after which the city’s leading men surrendered and begged for mercy.

 

Construction of the White Tower began in around 1078. Gundulf, the Bishop of Rochester, who was also put in charge of restoring and developing areas of Rochester Castle, was put in charge of overseeing the stone construction of the Tower. However, the labour force consisted solely of local Englishmen. The original location was given favouritism for several reasons, including its closeness to the river Thames, which served as a major port for imports and exports, and there already existed a good portion of Roman wall, which had been built during the reign of Emperor Claudius in 200CE.  William decided to build the White Tower at this location and enjoyed the power and control that came with this castle. It served as a powerful warning for incoming merchants about the power and might of the new King.

 

Between 1190 and 1350, numerous construction works were undertaken to extend the castle buildings and fortify the area. Whilst construction began during the reign of Richard the Lionheart in 1189, his extended absences due to being on crusades led to his brother, John, seizing authority and mounting an attack. He forced Longchamp, the then-Chancellor, to surrender by surrounding the castle and waiting until supplies ran out. Following this, King John, as well as being famous for being a horrible person and awful king, kept an exotic menagerie at the castle, including lions and elephants. This exotic zoo actually remained open at the castle until the 19^th century! Many of the animals were gifts to the kingdom by various other rulers and diplomats.

 

Several wars and sieges took place throughout the years and it was during these times that some strategic weaknesses were discovered. Henry III took refuge in the castle in 1238 and decided to spend an inordinate amount of money to build huge curtain walls and numerous defensive towers. This actually alarmed Londoners who thought the King was trying to very publicly display his power.

Following this, Edward I spent tens of thousands of pounds developing the castle between 1275 and 1285. He also developed a stunning residence, but rarely stayed there. Minor extension works were carried out in the early 14^th century but work on the castle quietened down following this. It wasn’t until the 18^th century that further restoration work was carried out on the castle, which focused on adding a new gateway and drawbridge. Then, in the first half of the 19^th century, the moat was drained and converted into a dry ditch.

 

The castle was then severely damaged during the second world war, in 1940, when bombs dropped by axis forces destroyed the North Bastion.

 

In addition to this, the castle has served many roles throughout its history, including a prison, royal residence, site of executions, a royal menagerie and tourist hotspot. Did you know that the first ever prisoner at the Tower, Ranulf Flambard, was also the first person to escape the Tower? He was imprisoned around 1100 and escaped in 1101 by climbing through a window using rope that had been smuggled in bottles[3]. (The Tower of London prison, 2020) However, as the years passed and the castle became more fortified, it became nigh impossible to escape. Many people had different experiences during their incarceration, ranging from relatively luxurious to downright abysmal. Other famous prisoners include Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey, William Lord Hastings and Guy Fawkes!

 

Overall, I would completely recommend visiting this castle as it is a shining example of British history and sets a wonderful tone for the beauty of the city that it is located in.

 

By Kyle P.

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[1] Historic Royal Palaces. 2020. The Ravens. [online] Available at: <https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/whats-on/the-ravens/#gs.8mjsjy> [Accessed 15 June 2020].

[2] Historic Royal Palaces. 2020. Yeoman Warders At The Tower Of London. [online] Available at: <https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/yeoman-warders-at-the-tower-of-london/#gs.8mga2v> [Accessed 15 June 2020].

[3] Historic Royal Palaces. 2020. The Tower Of London Prison. [online] Available at: <https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/tower-of-london-prison/#gs.8mqtje> [Accessed 15 June 2020].