This morning we went to see the Crown Jewels. They are in here. Unfortunately you aren’t allowed to take photographs of the shiny stones. They are, as you might imagine, a more than impressive collection.
This guy is guarding them — among a lot of other security, of course. He is a member of the Grenadier Guards, named in honor of the defeat of the Grenadiers of the French Imperial Guards at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. They started their service in the 17th century. Most recently they’ve been in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan for three separate tours.
This is the Bloody Tower, famous as a prison keep and torture site. Scottish King John Balliol, Sir Walter Raleigh, boy princes Edward IV and Richard, Anne Askew and others were held there. Or tortured there. Or died there. These were less than enlightened times. Now there’s a torture exhibit. And, nearby, a gift shop!
This bronze, nine-pounder was cast by Louis Ernest Maritz in the Netherlands in 1813 for Napoleon I. It was captured by the English at Waterloo in 1815. It was named “L’Etonnant” — The Thunderer.
This cannon was cast by Vallette in the French town of Metz in October of 1813, for Napoleon. It was named “Le Guebre” — The Fire Worshipper.
This one was also cast by Vallette in July of 1813. It was named “Le Cigne” — The Swan. The English captured a lot of guns at Waterloo.
Here’s the famous Tower Bridge. Built between 1886 and 1894, it is a combined bascule and suspension bridge. This is not the London Bridge that is falling down in singsong fashion. The bridge once opened almost 50 times a day, but now only opens about three times a day.
Our Beefeater, he gave us our tour of the Tower of London. In theory they are responsible for any prisoners in the Tower and safeguarding the British crown jewels. In reality they act as tour guides and are tourist attractions themselves. Ours was a funny guy. He told all the Americans “This could all be yours if you’d only paid your taxes!”
He also picked on me. And some Australians.
Chris Skaife is something of a celebrity as the Ravenmaster. The raven tradition dates back centuries, and are said to help safeguard the tower and the kingdom. Skaife made sure to let you know that you can follow him on Twitter.
This is the Tower Hill Memorial, a national war memorial for members of the Merchant Navy and fishing fleets. It commemorates those who died during both world wars and have “no grave but the sea.” The memorial lists 24,000 names.
And, here she is, in the famous phone booth photo. I bet no one ever does this in the States:
Later, a big museum post.
