A view of Byward Tower, Tower of London,
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle located on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the square mile of the City of London by the open space known as Tower Hill. It was founded towards the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest of England. The White Tower, which gives the entire castle its name, was built by William the Conqueror in 1078, and was a resented symbol of oppression, inflicted upon London by the new ruling elite. The castle was used as a prison from 1100 (Ranulf Flambard) until 1952 (Kray twins), although that was not its primary purpose. A grand palace early in its history, it served as a royal residence. As a whole, the Tower is a complex of several buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat. There were several phases of expansion, mainly under Kings Richard the Lionheart, Henry III, and Edward I in the 12th and 13th centuries. The general layout established by the late 13th century remains despite later activity on the site. The Byward Tower, sited at the south-west corner of the Tower of London complex next to the moat, is now used as the main entrance for visitors. The tower is the great gatehouse of the Outer Ward of the Tower of London and was built by King Henry III between 1238 - 1272 to offer additional protection to the central keep. The tower comprised a series of defences to deter intruders including a drawbridge in the causeway, arrow loops in the twin towers and two portcullises. All these defences survive to the present day apart from the drawbridge and the inner portcullis. The chief architect and master builder was Henry de Reyns together with John of Gloucester and Robert of Beverley. It is thought to have been built adjacent to the Warder's Hall and from this siting the tower derived its name ( By the Warders).
Size: 3744px × 4722px
Location: Tower of London, Tower Hamlets, London,
Photo credit: © John Gaffen 2 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: beverley, byward, castle, city, cylindrical, de, defences, gatehouse, gloucester, great, hamlets, henry, historic, john, lawn, london, reyns, robert, tourism, tower, towers, travel
