Big Ben

The Tower of London is known for another thing, it is the location where England’s Crown Jewels are kept and safeguarded. And therein lies a tale. Click here to read the first part of the visit.

The building in which the Crown Jewels of England are kept.

It is an imposing looking building, with a fascinating history, and some diamonds and more. The Tower of London is located on the banks of the Thames, which I went boating on in a previous post.

A Raven stands guard at the Tower of London.

But it takes more than a Raven to guard the tower.

Royal Guards marching to their post.

Now where are these troops marching to?

Ravens have had a home at the Tower for centuries.

No, these Ravens are not the guards. But they patrol the grounds too.

Getting ready to change the guard.

They change the guards on duty around the main tower building regularly. Their precision in step and changing posts is fascinating to watch.

Guards on duty have a place to stand, but they do not have to stand still.

The guns the guards carry appear to be quite real and quite lethal, unlike the ancient cannons posted here.

At times, the guards pace, at times, between the two guard shacks, one of them only at a time. The other maintains a vigilant watch.

Armor for guards and knights from the past on display.

If this was a movie, the old armor would come to life if called upon.

Really cool armor.

Can you imagine having to wear this while fighting or on guard?

Looks quite masculine.

The armor is just as impressive up close, and a man had to be in really great shape to wear it, much less fight while wearing it.

An armored knight and his armored steed.

Well not quite. The steed is a really cool statue. All of this is on one of the floors of this Tower of London building.

Another kind of armored knight and steed.

Really impressive in size up close.

More of the tower’s old defenses.

Lots of older cannons that used to be placed in different eras around the tower, or used in conflicts.

A really cool golden statue.

The lion is a big symbol in England.

The Crown Jewels.

These are just part of the displays of Crown Jewels safeguarded and on display at the Tower of London. This is a borrowed photo as no photos were allowed to be taken inside the vault where the jewels are housed and displayed. And yes, the crown was actually worn by the monarch. In a previous post, I visited Westminster Abbey, where many monarchs were crowned.

The rack.

In the old days, people who tried to steal the jewels, or do other deeds that ran counter to the crown, would be put on this torture device, or worse.

A way to hang people very uncomfortably.

Some criminals or political prisoners could find themselves being hung out on this thing and tortured.

A nasty torture device.

This looks really bad. All the torture devices were on display in the area where they were used. You guessed it, the dungeon of the Tower of London.

Ravens on guard.

Of course, over the centuries, the Ravens have seen a lot of history at the Tower of London.

The head Raven.

This guy was yelling at me to not get to close. But he did pose for this wonderful photo.

The Tower Bridge.

I would visit the Tower Bridge the same day as the Tower of London visit. That’s in the next post.

The family and I took a trip to Europe recently, visiting both London, Paris and, of course, Disneyland Paris.

We rented a flat in London, it was just north of Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. It was a nice flat with a kitchen, three bathrooms, four bedrooms and a living room. Enough to fit the 10 of us plus a grandkid. The only drawback? It was on the top floor, a total of 83 steps by my wife’s count, and no lift (elevator to us Americans).

Our view from the living room of our London flat. Wouldn’t it be cool if there were chimney sweeps dancing across those rooftops?

Since we arrived in the evening, we didn’t really do much but settle in and explore around the area a bit that first night.

Westminster Abbey. This side of the church faces the Thames. Notice the construction fence and the scaffolding – lots of work happening on the exterior of the ancient structure.

The next day, our first stop was Westminster Abbey.

Gray clouds everywhere in London, just like I’ve heard it is. Cold, yes. But inside, warmer.

The weather for London met every cliche in the book. Gray, foggy and wet. Not really rain, just wet, at times.

All the stone work makes one wonder how this magnificent gothic church was built way back in the olden days.

Look at the archways, wow!

A lot of the stone and statues were carved by hand – no 3D printing here.

Reaching to God. No this is not Big Ben.

Multi-stories and stone steps to get to the top.

Little statues with some meaning to the church. None are exactly alike.

Figurines by the dozens above the massive main entrance doors.

I suppose this held a lit torch back in the day. Look at the detail on the bottom.

This was also by the front door.

This is not a Catholic Church, but a lot of the same symbolism.

Mary and son Jesus as depicted by this statue between the two front doors of the main church building.

Don’t hide your eyes, that’s me about to enter Westminster Abbey.

Okay, time for me to enter the church. No photos allowed inside. So the next bunch of photos are from the outside courtyard and an area that has something to do with war units.

Construction of this church began in 1245, and was started by King Henry III. It is absolutely gorgeous, awe-inspiring and more inside the church. It has many sections. A place for a choir. A massive organ and more. It is also a functioning church and conducts regular services. It is also a site where there are many famous and not so well known personages buried in the crypts of the church. Of the United Kingdom monarchs, 17 of them are buried there.

An outside corridor. Look at the wear on the stone pavers.

This is a corridor outside the church after exiting the tour. By the way, you can go with a group, or they give you audio devices that you can play as you choose in each section. The audio guides were excellent.

I’d hate to have to clean those windows.

The stained glass throughout has a lot of detail. I believe these panes represent different United Kingdom military groups. But then my memory ain’t what it used to be. Again, this is not in the main church.

The only noise here is that of the fountain.

The church is a great place for quiet meditation as is this courtyard.

A biographical mural about St. John the Divine.

An ancient mural depicting the life of St. John the Divine. He figures high in the church’s history.

It took several hours to tour the church and the courtyard, plan at least three hours. Five is probably better if you want to be thorough. There is a cafe for food.

The door is not very tall. People were a lot shorter back then, or always had their heads bowed.

Another unique feature, the United Kingdom’s oldest door. Inside the Abbey. I don’t think it is actively used these days.

What a smart man.

Look at all his achievements. He’s here somewhere.

Well, time to go back outside and wait for the family.

Those twin towers were likely built by hand. Wow.

Intricate details everywhere, and each statue is different.

Gold leaf too, I guess Walt Disney learned about how long it lasts from structures like this when creating the small world facade.

Big Ben is inside that Clock Tower.

Okay, lesson time. The official name of the tower in which Big Ben is located was originally the Clock Tower, but it was renamed Elizabeth Tower in 2012 to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. Big Ben is the name of the bell you can hear when it rings. As you can see, the tower was surrounded by scaffolding as they work on refurbishment of the structure and Parliament. Kinda like attractions at Disneyland.

And the skies are still gray.

Another view. Parliament is on the other side. It, too, was surrounded by scaffolding.

The pigeons don’t care who they sit on and do their “duty.”

There are statues of famous people in United Kingdom history in a nearby plaza such as Gandhi.

The man who watched over England and London during WWII.

No visit to London would be complete without seeing the statue of Winston Churchill.

If you get to London, be sure to see Westminster Abbey, and afterwards, find a neighborhood pub to enjoy a pint or two.

Here’s a story about a trip on the River Thames.

And here’s the first part of a visit to the Tower of London.

The Power of the Tower Part 2 – The Crown Jewels and torture

A visit to London’s Westminster Abbey and Big Ben