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#Tower of london tour free#

To see them, you go through an exhibit that shows Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation on the screen, and then proceed into the Crown Jewels room which has two moving walkways on either side. These are the real, authentic, actually-have-been-on-the-Kings-and-Queens heads crowns, jewelry, and other precious Royal Family heirlooms. The Tower of London is very much an entire day’s event if you are truly interested in seeing every nook and cranny, but if you don’t have that much time, you should start by lining up to see the Crown Jewels. Once you gain access into the Tower over the moat, you’ll have a ton of history, artifacts and displays at your fingertips. If you want a more personalized experience with a smaller group than a standard Beefeater tour, you can also book onto a small group Beefeater tour with more opportunity to ask questions.Īnd, of course, if the Tower of London is even more important to you than that, you can take an exclusive pre-opening tour without the crowds and get to enjoy the opening ceremony, which is a truly special London experience.

#Tower of london tour free#

The regular beefeater tours are free with entry, you just need to get the daily guide that tells you the times and then meet at the starting point for the next tour.Īs I mentioned, you can also get an audio guide to help you around the tower, particularly if you learn better listening to things rather than reading informational plaques. Officially, they are “defenders of the tower,” but in reality they spend their time giving tours and educating visitors about the importance of what has and does go on at the Tower of London. However, there are regular “beefeater” tours run by the yeoman warders throughout the day which are fantastic and worth doing. But in 1381, protestors walked in through the gates during the Peasant Rebellion.The Tower of London is, for the most part, a self-guided experience as you wander your away around the tower and the surrounding buildings to see what life was like for London residents (and prisoners) back in the day.

Such are the high levels of security, the Tower was once regarded as impossible to enter illegally.

They are known as Beefeaters because the king permitted them to eat as much beef from his table as they could manage. They were once the monarch’s official bodyguards, known as the Yeoman of the Guard or Yeoman Warders.

The Beefeaters who guard the Tower wear an easily recognisable red uniform.

England’s kings and queens lived here but also kept their treasures and money here knowing this fortified palace was the safest place in Britain.

Two English queens, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, were executed here on the orders of Henry VIII who constantly sought to replace his wives and remarry.

The enemies of both the monarchy and state were imprisoned and executed here.It is one of the few remaining 11th-century European fortress palaces.

At first, it consisted of just the White Tower, but Henry III (1216-72) and Edward I (1272-1307) added substantial new structures.1070, a few years after his warriors from Normandy, France conquered Britain. The Tower of London was built by William the Conqueror around A.D.