Time for Some London History - Day 3

It is amazing how much we saw in just two days in London and we still had another whole day of sightseeing around London. We had seen many of the touristy locations except for the Tower of London and Abbey Road. I was excited for Abbey Road and to take a Beatles picture but not as excited for the Tower of London, mainly because I did not know much about it.

We started our day at Abbey Road, which if you had never seen the famous Beatles album then you would not recognize this road or you would think it was literally just a road. It is nothing special except that the Beatles choose to use this road as the picture for the cover of their album, "Abbey Road." When you get off the tube stop for Abbey Road you see tons of Beatles merchandise and once you actually find Abbey Road you see a lot of tourists all trying to be like the Beatles by taking their picture in the middle of the road. When you think about it, it is a little dangerous because cars are indeed driving by and to get the picture just right the photographer has to be standing directly in the middle of the road as the pedestrians walk across. Let's just say it was not an easy task and it took us quite some time to get the picture just right. Not only do you have to be crossing the street but you have to be crossing the street on the opposite side as the one you walk on from the tube stop. Therefore, you cross the street, then your photographer checks for cars and gets in the middle of the road, and then you cross the street again, praying for a good picture. Luckily for us, we had our photographer Danny with us so at least we had four people in the picture. One guy on Abbey Road must have crossed the street at least a dozen times while his wife or girlfriend took his picture.

Michelle, Me, Christine, and Liz crossing Abbey Road.

Abbey Road sign.

After we were done channeling our inner Beatle we headed for London Bridge. Almost every child remembers singing the famous song, "London Bridge" as a child and now that I have actually seen this famous bridge I almost wish that it would fall down. The bridge was not pretty like you would imagine but rather dull looking. Overall, London Bridge was a great disappointment. After seeing the bridge we headed to the Tower of London and to get there we had to cross over another bridge called the Tower Bridge. This bridge was gorgeous and quite the site to see. It was built magnificently with two giant towers in the middle of the bridge with two walking bridges connecting the two towers. Once we crossed Tower Bridge we were finally at the Tower of London.

The "great" London Bridge.

The girls in front of The London Bridge.

The Tower Bridge.

The Biddies in front of the Tower Bridge.

When we got there, I ended up getting pretty excited for the tour and to experience some of the history surrounding London. We bought our tickets (and paid a small fortune) and then waited inside for our beefeater tour guide. The beefeaters are the guards at the Tower of London and one comes to give you some background on the Tower of London once you walk in. They are not with you for the entire time you are at the Tower of London but they do give you some history. The Tower of London was founded at the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest of England. William the Conqueror built The White Tower in 1078 as a resented symbol of oppression inflicted upon London by the new ruling elite. The Tower of London gets its name from The White Tower. The Tower of London was initially used as a royal residence but since at least 1100 it has been used as a prison. The Tower of London is made of several buildings (towers) within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat. In the 16th century, the Tower of London received its reputation as a grim prison because it started to house many prisoners especially religious and political people who went against the monarchy. Between 1540 and 1640 there fore 48 recorded cases of the use of torture. Many people were held and execute at the Tower of London but one of the most famous is Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second wife. She gave Henry VIII a daughter, Elizabeth I of England, but failed to produce a mail heir which angered Henry VIII. Anne Boleyn had three miscarriages and this was the final straw for Henry VIII so he investigated Anne Boleyn for high treason. She was arrested in 1536 and sent to the Tower of London where she was found guilty of high treason in front of a jury of peers. She was beheaded four days later on Tower Green (a lawn). The charges against her were incest and adultery. Once Elizabeth I of England became queen, Anne became a martyr and a heroine of the English Reformation. The Tower of London ended up being really interesting and one of the highlights of my trip, but then again almost everything was a highlight. We saw the monarchy jewels, the torture devices, the various towers, the different kings' armor, and where Anne Boleyn was beheaded.

The Biddies with a beefeater.

The Tower Green where Anne Boleyn was beheaded.

I finally got my picture with a guard.

Me in the tower where they kept prisoners.

Liz, me, and Michelle in front of the Tower of London.

After the Tower of London, we searched for a red telephone box, because when in England you have to go inside one of these. Luckily for us, one was easy to find. We each took turns going inside and taking pictures and pretending to call people. After the telephone box we went to get dinner. After dinner it was time for the Jack the Ripper tour. We knew very little about him except that he was an unidentified serial killer in London in 1888. The name was given after a letter was given to the media calling himself "Jack the Ripper." The murderer was also called "The Whitechapel Murderer" and "Leather Apron." The murderer usually attacked female prostitutes from the slums. When he attacked them he cut their throats and then cut their abdominal regions, mutilating them. He even removed the internal organs of at least three of his victims. The letter that was sent, that gave him his nickname, was mailed with half of a preserved human kidney from one of his victims. Five victims are linked as being killed by Jack the Ripper and these five women are Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly. They have become known as the Canonical five. The tour we went on followed the murders of these five women around the streets of London. The tour was pretty good except it left us with many questions about the deaths and the serial killer himself. There were also other Whitechapel murders and some that do not fall into the Canonical five or the Whitechapel murders. Jack the Ripper is said to have done eleven Whitechapel murders along with various other killings. The eleven murders are known as the Whitechapel murders because they were all done in and around the Whitechapel district of London. Jack the Ripper was never found. The tour was interesting but I wish they had explained more on the tour.

Me in a red telephone box.

Our Jack the Ripper tour guide.