The Tower of London is not a tower. It is a walled fortress of some twenty towers covering twelve acres, begun by William the Conqueror in 1066 to intimidate a newly conquered London, and it has been intimidating people ever since.
The jobs it has held
Over nine centuries the Tower has been a royal palace, a fortress, an armoury, the Royal Mint, the public records office, an observatory, a zoo, and — most famously — a prison. It held Anne Boleyn, Sir Walter Raleigh, Guy Fawkes, and the future Elizabeth I. Its last prisoner was Rudolf Hess, deputy leader of Nazi Germany, held there in 1941.
Executions
Fewer than people imagine. Only seven people were executed on Tower Green itself — a privilege of rank, granted to spare the powerful the humiliation of a public death. Three were queens: Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and the nine-day queen Lady Jane Grey. Public executions of everyone else took place on Tower Hill, outside the walls, in front of enormous crowds.
The Crown Jewels
The Crown Jewels have been kept here since the 1600s and are still in active use — these are working regalia, not museum pieces. They include the Imperial State Crown, with its 2,868 diamonds, and the Sovereign’s Sceptre holding Cullinan I, the largest clear cut diamond in the world. A moving walkway carries visitors past the cases, because otherwise nobody would ever move on.
The Beefeaters
The Yeomen Warders are the Tower’s guardians and guides. Every one is a former senior non-commissioned officer with at least 22 years of military service and a good conduct medal. They live inside the walls with their families, and their tours are free with admission and much better than any audio guide.
The ravens
At least six ravens are kept at the Tower, with a Ravenmaster to look after them. The superstition that the kingdom falls if they leave is usually credited to Charles II. The birds have names, personalities and, occasionally, form — one was dismissed in the 1980s for “conduct unsatisfactory”.
The Ceremony of the Keys
The Tower has been locked every night for over 700 years in the same ceremony, without missing a night — including during the Blitz, when a bomb blew the participants off their feet and they got up and finished it. Tickets are free but must be booked months ahead, and it takes place at 9.53pm precisely.