After
we got our London Passes, we headed to the London Tower to check
it out.
The photos below are what we saw.
Approaching
the Tower grounds from the north provided a great view of the
moat area which is now grass.
Kathleen
and Steve pose for a photo with the Tower ramparts in the
background.
Our
London Passes got us quickly in the door and onto the cobble
streets in the castle. This is the main walkway.
The
Yeoman Warders, also known as "Beefeaters" (like the gin), are
all decorated war veterans (note the ribbons on his
chest). This Beefeater is preparing for a tour and softly
hitting on one of the tourists.
When a
tour bus arrives, there is a tsunami of tourists that charge the
entrance. This section of the castle is undergoing some
renovation.
We took
a side route that put us in the king's bed chamber.
The
chambers had a large fire place.
The
White Tower is the original castle which was started in 1066
subsequent to the Norman invasion by William the
Conqueror. A portion of the grounds are under
restoration. Over the centuries this building served as
the king's residence, the mint, the armory and a host of other
uses.
The
changing of the guard brought out a Yeoman Warder and a set of
guards. The guards had modern automatic rifles with fixed
bayonets.
The
Yeoman is doing crowd control and insisting the people get out
of the way of the guards.
The
Tower Castle held the king's armament including some very large
artillery.
Weapons
have been improved over the years from large crossbows to to the
breach-loading cannon.
Ravens
are closely associated with the Tower Castle. Legend
foretold the fall of the crown if the ravens ever left the
castle so the king appointed one of the yeoman as the
ravensmaster. The ravens were fed and cared for over the
years. Note the band on this raven's leg.
The
inside of the White Tower was turned into a museum of armament
including armor.
These
old suits of full armor were heavy and unwieldy.
This
artwork is new since the last time we visited the White Tower in
2005. This dragon is composed of individual arms including
pistols, muskets, cannons and helmets.
The
armory had many flintlock pistols and muskets. Note the
spears on the left of the photo above.
Many old
cannons were on display, most were made out of bronze.
Neither
of these two pieces fared well. The one in the foreground
blew apart and the rear cannon sagged and bent.
The
display had a full rack of sabres. Select the sword of
your choice.
We
elected to go see the crown jewelst, but there was a long
line. While in line, we moved past this modern artillery
piece.
The
guards were on duty outside the entrance to the jewels.
Note this guard has an automatic rifle with locked
bayonet. These guards are active duty military, so I have
to assume that the rifle is locked and loaded.
Back in
the day, the king had a set of wild animals at the Tower
Castle. His own private zoo included animals collected
from various UK colonies. The wire statue is a baboon.
The
upper wall walk gave us a view of statues on nearby buildings
including this beauty.
We left
the Tower Castle and headed along the Thames providing a nice
view of the HMS Belfast docked on the south shore of the river.
Close to
the Tower of London is the Tower Bridge. Tower Bridge is a
draw bridge that allows tall ships to pass. The upper deck
is a sidewalk.
We
walked out onto the bridge deck and it was cold and windy.
But, we could see the rivet and plate construction technique.
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Photos and Text Copyright Bill Caid 2015, all rights
reserved.
For your enjoyment only, not for commercial use.