Towering Over London‏

The White Tower

Lady Margaret Pole hitched up her long dress and ran, pursued by a large man wearing a black leather hood, wielding an axe. The drunken executioner had already tried forcing her head down onto a wooden block before the 68-year-old made her bid for freedom while protesting her innocence. His first blow missed her neck and drove into the flesh on her shoulder, his shock at missing the target gave Lady Margaret her chance to escape. The executioner quickly caught up with the grandmother and delivered another 11 bloody blows before the poor woman was finally dead. Lady Margaret had been politically savvy. She had survived the dangers of court for a long time as Lady-in-waiting to Catherine of Aragon, but was the victim of the crimes of her son, Reginald, against Henry VIII. While she had been innocent, her son, from a safe distance, had publicly argued that the King's marriage to Anne Boleyn was wrong. The King took his vengeance on the mother of his critic. 

Lady Margaret wasn't the only person to have been executed in the Tower of London. Only 6 people of noble birth were dispatched on the innocuous grass square within the inner castle walls, most were killed on Tower Hill or at other sites across London. 

The Tower of London has to be one of the most instantly recognisable buildings in the world. For most of our lives, we had never lived more than two hours from its doors but never visited. But with our good friend, Peter, opening a restaurant a stone's throw away, we finally had an excuse to visit.

Peter & Annette's flat overlooks Tower Bridge and they persuaded us to go on the tour of that first. The exhibition has changed from the 3D videos and scare'em experience (in a mock up of the bridge lift counterweight chamber) that Peter remembered, but it's still interesting to hear its story and see the competing designs that lost out, and how revolutionary the steam powered opening mechanism was at the time. And on a sunny winter morning, the views from the, now enclosed, suicide walkways between the towers are amazing.

From the bridge, we walked to the Tower and arrived just in time for a guided tour by one of the Yeoman Warders aka Beefeaters. Being a natural showman, he was highly entertaining, even if most of his, mainly foreign, audience didn't understand some of his jokes and quips. He thoroughly enjoyed recounting gory stories from the Tower's history. Lady Margaret's was only one, but it was surprisingly common for beheadings to take more than one quick chop because the executioner was inexperienced or drunk like hers. It was amazing to learn that the last person to be executed at the Tower was a German Spy during World War II but rather than a beheading he was shot by a presumably sober  


firing squad. 

The Beefeater led us to Traitors' Gate and through the arch under the Bloody Tower, up past the scaffold site, where the royals were executed, and finally to the Chapel Royal of St Peter ad Vincula where all those imprisoned in the Tower and executed there, or on nearby Tower Hill, were buried in a mass grave. 

After the tour, we took time to explore, walking along the castle wall, climbing the steps of the White Tower, the oldest part of the complex with its fabulous collection of medieval military equipment, and of course the Waterloo Block that houses the Crown Jewels. 

The Closest you can get to Photographing the Crown Jewels

There is speculation that the priceless jewellery collection isn't really on display and that some of the crowns are copies but the heavy security suggests otherwise. Either way, you couldn't help but admire the size and beauty of some of the biggest diamonds, emeralds and rubies in the world. Visiting in November meant there were no queues, which was great, and the travelators, to keep people from spending too long looking at the best pieces, were hardly necessary.

The Ravens started kicking up a hell of a racket at closing time, encouraging us not to overstay our welcome. We'd spent nearly three hours in the Tower and (with the luxury of being able to leave) had loved every minute.

That evening we ate at Peter's restaurant, Salernos. The food was absolutely delicious and Peter completely spoilt us by treating us to the dinner and several bottles of wine and Champagne. 

The Millenium Bridge

The Globe Theatre

The next day we'd planned to do some more sightseeing, including the observation deck in the stunning Shard, which at 306 metres is the tallest building in Europe. But we just about managed a slow walk along the South Bank of the Thames to the London Eye. On the way we passed through a German Christmas market, that had just opened, with lots of tempting food stalls and mulled wine sellers. Tempting if you didn't have a raging hangover and a rather delicate stomach. Our self imposed infirmity didn't put us off a ride on the Eye, which was a fantastic experience. You go much higher than you'd imagine. Towering above London, the views east along the Thames, illuminated by the bright but low winter sunshine, were breathtaking.

Our appetite miraculously restored, we stopped for some popcorn prawns in the Christmas market and then a pub lunch overlooking the Thames. The sun had nearly set by the time we returned to Tower Bridge which, bathed in twilight, looked spectacular next to the Tower of London. It makes you proud to be British.