Our first historical stop was the Tower of London, which is literally right where we are staying! We started off by going to see the Crown Jewels. The history here is very deep and quite impressive (and expensive). We got to see all of the crowns that the royalty has worn throughout the years. All were very extravagant.
There was one exhibit that I found quite interesting. It was about the beasts of the tower. It was created in the 1200s. That was a long time ago. There were lions, elephants, polar bears, and monkeys. It was a very sad exhibit. It talked about how because these animals were so foreign, they weren’t correctly cared for. And the animals would also periodically harm humans, because humans didn’t know the boundaries of these animals.
There were several famous people held in the Tower of London Prison. One of which was Lady Jane Grey. She was known as the Nine Days Queen. She was only 17 years old when she became queen and then executed. She was executed because she was seen as a threat to Queen Mary I’s Catholic regime. I knew about her before coming on the trip because of a painting that depicts her execution.
Here are some pictures from the trip, including Lady Jane Grey’s painting:
Picture one is the building where they keep the Crown Jewels. Second is me with the tower Ravens. They clip their wings so they can’t fly away. It is an old tradition. It is said that if the ravens ever leave, the walls of London will fall. The third picture is an old toilet in the White Tower where the armory was. There was also a small chapel in the White Tower, which can be seen in the fourth picture. The fifth picture is a piece of armory for the face. I found it funny because it shows the mustache of the man who wore it. I guess he really wanted to protect his mustache. It is quite impressive. The sixth image is a dragon made out of armor and swords and other things. It is tradition to create trophies or structures out of weapons to showcase their military strength. This one is named Keeper the dragon. And the lastly, the painting of Jane Grey’s execution. It’s a painting that I have always admired for how haunting, sad, and beautiful it is. The story has always stuck with me.
Till my next blog, toodle doo!
-Trevi 🙂
Theatre in London U of A 