Tower of London

The Tower of London stands on the north bank of the Thames at Tower Hill in the City of London, a fortress begun by William the Conqueror around 1078 and expanded by successive monarchs into the concentric castle visitors see today. At the centre rises the White Tower, its Romanesque keep now home to a display of royal armour, including pieces made for Henry VIII, alongside the Royal Armouries' collection of arms. The Waterloo Block houses the Crown Jewels, where a moving walkway carries visitors past the Imperial State Crown, St Edward's Crown, and the Cullinan diamonds set in sceptres and orbs. Beyond the vault, the site's working history unfolds across Tower Green, where three queens were executed, the Bloody Tower, associated with the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower, and the medieval Salt Tower and Wakefield Tower along the inner curtain wall. Resident ravens, kept by tradition since the reign of Charles II, patrol the lawns near the Wakefield Tower. A full visit takes three to four hours and should begin with a free, hour-long tour led by a Yeoman Warder ('Beefeater'), departing every 30 minutes from the main entrance and covering the site's history, executions, and legends before the crowds fill the Jewel House. The battlements walk along the medieval wall gives views over the Thames toward Tower Bridge and is often quieter than the ground-floor route. Queues for the Crown Jewels build steadily through the late morning and peak by early afternoon, particularly in July and August, so arriving at opening on a weekday remains the most reliable way to see the jewels without a long wait.