I had thought that the Tower was just that: a tower. But it was an entire stronghold, a whole castle, with courtyards, and houses, and churches, and chapels, and more.
Here's a glimpse of Traitors' Gate. Ominous.
It seems Autumn is just now coming to London-- the leaves are starting to turn into gorgeous colours. Against the stone greys and slate, it was striking to see.
Here is the Norman White Tower, built in 1025 to protect the Normans from the citizens of London. Today, it houses a wonderful collection of Henry VIII's personal armor and arms, and also charted a detailed accounting of his growing girth throughout the years. Titled "Dressed to Kill", an allusion to Henry VIII's propensity to send people to the Tower, it's a great exhibit, complete with stations where you can practice your own sword skills by hitting targets and drawing longbows.
Here's a picture of the Ravens at the Tower. The legend of these Ravens in the Tower of London is so important to the people of England that ten ravens (6 on duty and 4 young spares) are actually employed by the Tower of London at the expense of the British government, in return for their service they are treated very well and in deference to the ancient legend and the decree of King Charles II at least six ravens are provided with Raven's Lodgings at the Tower of London.
A glimpse of some of the courtyards of the Tower. In the background, you can pick out a guard in traditional red uniform.
The façade of the building/vault where the Crown Jewels of England have been kept since the 1300s.
A statue up on one of the walls of the Tower.
Queen Alexandra's crown. I wasn't allowed to take photos of any of the other jewels, but I snuck this one.
A Yeoman.
A guard outside the Jewel House.
A church inside the Tower.
Some buildings alongside the outer wall of the Tower. One of them is the Queen's residence.
A unique sculture in the Tower-- a dented pillow, surrounded by a quote.
The infamous Tower Green, where prisoners were executed and later buried. This list of executed persons includes Anne Boleyn, Robert Deveroux, and Lady Jane Grey
Prisoners at the Tower were kept in this tower, and the remains of the grafitti carved into stone can still be seen.
Some of the carvings are quite elaborate. I can only imagine how much time it took to complete such a work of art.
I have to wonder, what did the prisoners use to carve this grafitti into the stone? Surely prisoners were not allowed to have knives or picks...
The Torture Chambers. This is a sort of compression torture device, called the Scavenger's Daughter-- it was the type of torture that produced the quickest results, evidently.
A view of the Tower from the outer Ward.
Through one of the archways by Traitors' gate, you can see the Tower Bridge, stretching over the Thames.
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