Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
England. A favorite of Elizabeth I, he was executed by James I, a fervent anti-smoker,
having spent 13 years as a prisoner here.
In addition to being a prison, the Tower has also been used as a royal palace, a
mint, and an armory. Today, however, it's perhaps best known as the keeper of the
Crown Jewels,
the main ceremonial regalia of the British monarch, which—when
not being used—are displayed in the tower's
Jewel House.
It's probably best to
tackle this soon after your arrival, as the lines seem to build exponentially over the
course of the day. You hop aboard a travelator for a slow glide past some of the
Queen's top trinkets, including the Imperial State Crown (as modeled each year at
the State Opening of Parliament), which looks like a child's fantasy of a piece of royal
headwear, set with no fewer than 3,000 jewels, including the fourth-largest diamond
in the world.
After the jewels, the tower's next most popular draw is probably the
Royal Armory
located in the White Tower,
where you can see various fearsome-looking weapons,
including swords, halberds, and morning stars, as well as bespoke suits of armor made
for kings. The complex also boasts the only surviving medieval palace in Britain, dat-
ing back to the 1200s. It stands in the riverside wall above
Traitors' Gate,
through
which prisoners were brought to the Tower. You can see reconstructed bedrooms, a
throne room, and chapel.
Be sure to take advantage of the free hour-long tours offered by the iconic guards,
the Yeoman Warders—more commonly known as
Beefeaters.
They'll regale you with
tales of royal intrigue, and introduce you to the Tower's current most famous resi-
dents, the six ravens who live on Tower Gardens. According to legend, if the ravens
ever leave the Tower, the monarchy will fall—the birds' wings are kept clipped, just
to make sure. The tours take place every half-hour from 9:30am until 3:30pm in sum-
mer (2:30pm in winter) and leave from the Middle Tower near the entrance.
Tower Hill, EC3.
&
0844/482-7777.
www.hrp.org.uk/TowerOfLondon. Admission £18.70 adults, £15.95
students and seniors, £10.45 children 5-15, family ticket £51.70, free for children 4 and under. Mar-Oct
Tues-Sat 9am-5:30pm, Sun-Mon 10am-5:30pm; Nov-Feb Tues-Sat 9am-4:30pm, Sun-Mon 10am-
4:30pm. Tube: Tower Hill/DLR: Tower Gateway.
East London
Geffrye Museum
MUSEUM If you'd like an overview of British interiors and
lifestyles of the past 4 centuries, head to this museum, housed in a series of restored
18th-century almshouses. Period rooms are arranged chronologically, allowing you to
follow the changing tastes in furnishings in English middle-class homes over the
generations. The collection is rich in Jacobean, Georgian, and Victorian interiors. In
the 20th-century rooms, you'll see the luxuriant Art Deco styles giving way to the
bleakness of the utilitarian designs that followed in the aftermath of World War II.
4
Tower Tips
Tickets are cheaper if booked online:
£16 for adults, £9 for children. If buying
your ticket at the venue, pick them up
at the kiosk at Tower Hill Tube station
before emerging above ground—the
lines should be shorter. Even so, choose
a day other than Sunday—crowds are
at their worst then—and arrive as early
as you can in the morning, or late in
the afternoon.
