exposé dnl The London Tower

« The Tower of London What is the history of this place ? The famous Tower of London is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London.

It’s situated next ti the the famous Tower Bridge.

Its construction began towards the end of the year 1066 as part of the Norman conquest of England.In the 1070s, William the Conqueror, fresh from his victory but nervous of rebellion, began to build a massive stone fortress in London to defend and proclaim his royal power.

Nothing like it had ever been seen in England before. William intended his mighty castle keep not only to dominate the skyline, but also the hearts and minds of the defeated Londoners. The Tower took around 20 years to build.

Masons arrived from Normandy, bringing with them stone from Caen in France.

Most of the actual labour was provided by Englishmen. Throughout history, the Tower has been adapted and developed to defend and control the nation.

Henry III (1216-72) and Edward I (1272-1307) expanded William’s fortress, adding huge ‘curtain’ (defensive) walls with a series of smaller towers, and enlarging the moat.Kings and queens used the Tower in times of trouble to protect their possessions and themselves.

Arms and armour were made, tested and stored here until the 1800s. The Tower also controlled the supply of the nation’s money.

All coins of the realm were made at the Tower Mint from the reign of Edward I until 1810.

Kings and queens also locked away their valuables and jewels at the Tower and even today, the Crown Jewels are protected by a garrison of soldiers. The Tower of London’s role as a prison evolved to make it the preferred incarceration site for anyone.

As cruel as the place was known to be, not all prisoners suffered terrible conditions.

Wealthy inmates, for example, were allowed to live relatively luxuriously, with some even allowed to leave to go on hunting trips. Although the site became notorious as a site of torture but records suggest that relatively few inmates were tortured.

Torture was used to have information from political prisoners, primarily in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The torture used to have informations from inmates was called « rack ». These prisoners were forced to lie down on the rack, with their hands and feet bound.

Ropes attached to these bindings were slowly pulled to inflict pain.

Torture may have been fairly rare, but executions were relatively common at the Tower of London.

Scores of prisoners were executed at the site, by beheading, firing squad or hanging. Sir Thomas More was beheaded in the Tower after refusing to recognize King Henry VIII as the head of the Church of England in 1535.

A year later, Henry VIII famously ordered the beheading of his wife, Anne Boleyn. The Tower of London has been a tourist attraction in the city since the late 19th century, but while Simon Fraser was the last person executed by beheading at the prison, in 1745, for his role in the Scottish Jacobite Rebellion, the facility retained its role in crime and punishment well into the 20th century.During World War II, the Tower complex suffered of significant damage during multiple bombings, with several buildings destroyed.

The Tower of London still fulfilled its role as a prison in that conflict, with Hitler’s second in command, Rudolf Hess, incarcerated there in 1941, after he was captured in Scotland.

Another Nazi, German spy Josef Jakobs, was the last person executed at the Tower.

He was shot in August 1941. The Tower now attracts over three million visitors a year.

Now nearly 1000 years later, the Tower still has the capacity to fascinate and horrify. How was it built ? The White Tower, which is the tower in the centre of the fortress, is the oldest structure in the Tower of London complex.

The White Tower was built by William the Conqueror in 1078 and was completed in 1The White 100, during the rule of King William II. The Tower of London is one of the world’s oldest and most famous prisons used from 1100 until 1952. Tower, which is the tower in the centre of the fortress, is the oldest structure in the Tower of London complex.

The White Tower was built by William the Conqueror in 1078 and was completed in 1The White 100, during the rule of King William II. The Tower of London is one of the world’s oldest and most famous prisons used from 1100 until 1952. Subsequent monarchs took steps to fortify and expand the complex.

The construction of the Bell Tower commenced in 1190 and was completed in 1210.

The bell at the top of the.... »