Башня Лондона (Tower of London)

Выполнил: студент 5-го курса Института филологии

германо –романского отделения

группы 505

Мирзоев Т. А.

1- Introduction – 1

2- The Bell Tower - 2

3- The bloody Tower - 2

4- The Salt Tower – 3

5- The Beauchamp Tower – 3

6- The Wakefield Tower – 4

7- The Martin Tower – 4

8- The White Tower – 5

a) Chaple of St. John The Evangelist – 5

b) The Arms and Armors (part one) – 5

c) The Arms and Armors (part two) – 6

9 The Crown Jewels – 7

10 Ceremonies – 8

a) The Ceremony of Keys – 8

b) The Ceremony of the Lilies and Roses - 9

Ghost stories - 10

a) The Ghost of Anne Boleyn - 10

b) Traitors’ Gate - 11

The Tower of London is a visual symbol of the Norman Conquest of

England. It was built by William the Conqueror with stone that was brought

over from Caen. The English do not relish the memory and like to think that

the Tower went back to Romans and was founded by Julius Ceaser. This is not

true, but some parts of the complex rest on Roman foundations. William I,

though, brought over a Norman expert as his artificer, Gundulf, who

designed the Tower. The Tower of London is considered now by the Royal

Commission on Historical Monuments as "The most valuable monument of

Medieval military architecture surviving in England."

The Tower was not only a fortress but eventually became a royal

palace, state prison, the Mint, a record office, observatory, and zoo. As a

state prison it was used for criminals considered most dangerous to the

state, and the Mint was the treasury for the Crown Jewels. It became a zoo,

the original Zoo, in 1834 when pets that the king had accumulated over the

years were among a great diversity. The zoo consisted of lions, leopards,

bears wolves, lynxes, etc.

The general appearance of this complex was much as it is today. Inside

the complex, though, there have been many changes. In front of the White

Tower, on the south side, there was a royal palace with private lodgings

and great hall. Medieval kings often took refuge in the lodgings. Many

historic events took place here too, such as the murder of the princes,

Edward IV's sons. It was custom for kings and queens to spend the night, or

a few days, before their coronation in these royal apartments. These royal

lodgings were eventually swept away, leaving the Tower all alone.

After William the Conqueror the king that left a lasting impression on

the Tower was Henry III. By 1236 he had rebuilt the Great Hall and built

the Wakefield Tower next to the royal lodgings. He also built the archway

to the Bloody Tower and the main angle towers along the wall.

A direct waterway entrance from the Thames onto the Tower was

difficult and for a time unachievable. It wasn't until the oratory was

built to the martyr St. Thomas that the foundations were ensured for such

an entrance. The Water Gate, or entrance from the Thames into the Tower,

later became known as Traiter's Gate. Henry III's son, Edward I, finished

off the Tower.

Several episodes reveal the general history of these times. In 1244

Griffith, son of Llewelyn, the last independent Prince of Wales, attempted

an escape from the Tower by making a rope out of his bedclothes, which

resulted in his death after it broke. During the expulsion of the Jews in

1278, hundreds were kept in the Tower. In 1357-8 the Tower served as an

arsenal. Edward III made many preparations for the French war here, which

began with a naval victory of Sluys and ended up as the Hundred Years' War.

Beginning life as a simple timber and earth enclosure tucked in the south-

east angle formed by the joining of the original east and south stone walls

of the old Roman town of Londinium Augusta, the original structure was

completed by the addition of a ditch and palisade along the north and west

sides.

This enclosure then received a huge structure of stone which in time came

to be called The Great Tower and eventually as it is known today

Since the first foundations were laid more than 900 years ago the

castle has been constantly improved and extended by the addition of other

smaller towers, extra buildings, walls and walkways, gradually evolving

into the splendid example of castle, fortress, prison, palace and finally

museum that it proudly represents today.

Tower of London is a complex made up of many different sections. The

Tower is surrounded by a moat on three sides and the Thames River on the

fourth. The outside fortifications consist of Legge's and Brass Mount. The

inner fortifications, called the Ballium Wall, have 13 towers: the Bloody

Tower, the Wakefield Tower, the Bell Tower, the Lanthorn Tower, the Salt

Tower, the Broad Arrow Tower, the Constable Tower, the Martin Tower, the

Brick Tower, the Bowyer Tower, the Flint Tower, the Devereux Tower, and the

Beauchamp Tower

The Bell Tower

The Bell Tower stands in the south-west corner of the Inner Ward. It was

built in the 13th century and is so called because of the belfry on top. In

the past, when the bell was rung in alarm, drawbridges were raised,

portcullises were dropped, and gates shut. The bell is still rung in the

evening to warn visitors on the wharf it is time to leave.

Among the most famous prisoners confined to the Bell Tower was Sir

Thomas More imprisoned there in 1534. More, at one time close friends with

Henry VIII, refused to acknowledge the validity of the king's divorce from

Queen Catherine of Aragon (thereby refusing to accept the Act of

Succession) and to acknowledge him as supreme head of the Church.

Catherine, it should be noted, was the daugther of Isabella and Ferdinand

of Spain, known for financing the expeditions of Christopher Columbus. More

was executed July 1535 and buried in St Peters Chapel.

Henry VIII's penchant for imprisoning family was not lost on his

children apparently. This involved two of his daughters (by two different

mothers), both of whom would one day rule. Princess Elizabeth, later

Elizabeth I, was also imprisoned in the Bell Tower -- sent there in 1554 by

her half-sister Mary I on suspicion of being concerned in plots against the

throne.

The Bloody Tower

Originally this was known as the Garden Tower for the constable's

garden that was by it. The square-shaped structure at one time served as a

gateway to the Inner Ward. Its lowest level was built by Henry III and the

other storeys were added later. It gained its present name in the 16th

century because of the murderous deeds, which took place in its dark rooms.

The most notorious deed was the killing of the princes, Edward V and

his younger brother Richard, Duke of York. This occurred in 1483 supposedly

on the orders of the Duke of Gloucester, afterwards Richard III, but there

are some who strongly oppose this view and name Henry Tudor, later Henry

VII as the culprit.

The generally accepted version of the murder is that Elizabeth

Woodville, widow of Edward IV, was forced to allow her sons to live in the

Tower, ostensibly to enable the 13-year-old king to prepare for his

coronation. Sir Robert Brackenbury was asked to take part in the murder but

refused to help. Thereupon Sir James Tyrrell was sent to the Tower with

orders to force the Constable to surrender his keys for one night. Sir

James agents found the two boys asleep. One was suffocated with a pillow

while the other boy was stabbed to death. The murderers carried the bodies

down the narrow stairway and buried them under a covering of rubble in the

basement. They were later reburied by Sir Robert Brackenbury close to the

White Tower, but all knowledge of the graves was lost. In 1674 skeletons of

two boys were unearthed near the White Tower, and in the belief that the

grave of the princes had been found the king ordered the bodies to be moved

to Westminster Abbey.

Many other figures in history suffered imprisonment or death in the

Bloody Tower. Archbishop Cranmer and Bishops Ridley and Latimer who were

condemned to death for heresy in 1555, were imprisoned in the Tower before

being burned at the stake at Oxford. Henry Percy died there in mysterious

circumstances in 1585. The infamous Judge Jeffreys was prisoner here as

well. Sir Thomas Overbury, poet and courtier, was a victim of court

intrigue. His food is supposed to have been poisoned, and he is supposed to

have swallowed enough poison to have killed 20 men before he died in 1613.

Sir Walter Raleigh spent most of his 13 years of imprisonment in the Bloody

Tower, but he was able to perform many scientific experiments. He is

credited with having discovered a method of distilling fresh water from

salt water. Also during his imprisonment he wrote his vast History of the

World which was published in 1614, four years before he was beheaded at

Westminster.

The Salt Tower

This tower, yet another built by Henry III, about 1235 was used in later

days as a prison for Jesuits. It contains a number of interesting

inscriptions, the most notable being a complicated diagram cut in stone for

casting horoscopes. The inscription records that "Hew Draper of Brystow

made this sphere the 30 daye of Maye anno 1561". Draper was imprisoned for

attempted witchcraft in 1561.

In several places on the walls a pierced heart, hand, and foot have been

carved. This symbol signifies the wounds of Christ. As in other towers

where the Jesuits were imprisoned. The monogram I.H.S, with a cross above

the H, occurs in several places -- the sign made by the Society of Jesus.

The Beauchamp Tower

Henry III and his son, Edward I, are to be attributed to the creation

of the Beauchamp Tower. Henry III is responsible for many of the towers and

structures in the Tower of London, with eight wall towers built during the

latter part of his reign. It was during Edward's reconstruction of the

western section that he replaced a twin-towered gatehouse built by Henry

with the Beauchamp Tower around 1275-81.

Architecturally, the large amount of brick used, as opposed to solely that

of stone, was innovative at its time for castle construction. The tower

takes its name from Thomas Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick, imprisoned 1397-99

by Richard II. The three-storey structure was used often for prisoners of

high rank.

Of special interest are the inscriptions carved on the stone walls

here by prisoners. The most elaborate is a memorial to the five brothers

Dudley, one of whom was Lord Guildford Dudley, husband of Lady Jane Grey.

This unhappy pair were executed in 1554.

The Wakefield Tower

Opposite Traitors Gate is the Wakefield Tower built in the early 13th

century. Here the Crown Jewels were housed from 1870 until 1967. The tower

has 2 chambers, the ground floor acting as a guardroom to the postern which

led to the royal apartments above. These apartments were destroyed by

Cromwell. The upper floor now contains a large and magnificent octagonal

vaulted chamber in which there is an oratory.

Wakefield Tower was probably named after William de Wakefield, Kings

Clerk and holder of the custody of the Exchanges in 1334. In the 14th

century the State records were transferred to the Wakefield Tower from the

White Tower, and in surveys of the period the building is referred to as

the Records Tower.

Henry VI died in the Wakefield Tower on May 21st 1471. Henry VI, who

was also founder of Eton College, and of Kings College, Cambridge, is

supposed to have been murdered on the orders of the Duke of Gloucester,

later Richard III.

The Martin Tower

Built by Henry III this tower is famous as the scene of Colonel Thomas

Bloods fruitless attempt to steal the Crown Jewels. After the Restoration,

the newly-made regalia was kept in the Martin Tower (known at the time as

the Jewel Tower) in sole custody of the Deputy Keeper of the Jewels, a man

named Talbot Edwards who lived with his family in the tower.

Blood, disguised as a clergyman, became very friendly with Edwards,

even to the point of proposing a marriage between the old mans' daughter

and a supposed nephew of his. Early on a May morning in 1671, the colonel

appeared by appointment with his "nephew" and a friend to arrange the

marriage. While awaiting the ladies, Blood suggested that his friends might

see the Crown Jewels. As soon as the chamber was opened Edwards was

attacked and badly injured. Blood hid the State Crown beneath his cloak;

one accomplice slipped the Orb into his breeches, while the other began

filing the sceptre in half to make it more portable. They were then

unexpectedly disturbed by Edward's son returning from abroad and a running

fight followed during which all three were captured.

Blood eventually obtained an audience with Charles II to whom he

remarked that "it was a gallant attempt." Charles -- with uncharacteristic

leniency -- immediately pardoned Blood, granted him a pension and promised

that his Irish estates, seized at the Restoration, would be restored.

Edwards, on the other hand, was granted 200 pounds by the Exchequer and his

son was given 100 pounds. The old man, however, was forced to sell off his

expectation for half its value, and he died of his injuries soon

afterwards.

The White Tower

The great central keep was built by William the Conqueror and finished

by his sons and successors, William Rufus and Henry I. It is 90 feet high

and is of massive construction, the walls varying from 15 feet thickness at

the base to almost 11 feet in the upper parts. Above the battlements rise

four turrets; three of them are square, but that on the Northeast is

circular. This turret once contained the first royal observatory.

The original single entrance was on the south side and it was reached

by an external staircase. There were no doors at ground level. The walls on

the upper floors were penetrated by narrow slits positioned in wide splays.

On the southern side, four pairs of original double slits remain. In late

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