Thursday, April 7, 2011

An Expedition To The Tower Of London


Tower of London is among the exotic place in London which I eager to visit. This tower was build by William The Conquerer at the centre of London fortress in the early of 1080's. 

I don't know why I'm so into the England's royals
Ever wished to be Prince William's Queen? *just forget it* 

Here's some input I have during my visit.

The most mysterious story that driven me here is about the execution of Queen Anne Boleyn, a mother of Elizabeth I and the wife of King Henry VIII.

Henry VIII, a famous heartless king was a spoilt, powerful and pampered man, used to getting whatever he wanted

On January 25th 1533 King Henry VIII married Anne Boleyn and was excommunicated by Pope Clement VII.

But the relationship between Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII quickly deteriorated. His passionate love for her was turning to hate. But Anne once again became pregnant in 1534.

 The pregnancy was short-lived - Anne miscarried a baby boy.

This tragedy sealed the fate of Anne Boleyn.

By this time another lady-in waiting had caught the eye of King Henry VIII. Her name was Jane Seymour.

 Henry blamed Anne Boleyn entirely for  failing to produce a male heir. He also blamed her for the death of his friend Sir Thomas More.

King Henry VIII wanted to killed get rid of Anne Boleyn. 

On 1536 May 2nd 1536 Queen Anne Boleyn arrested and taken to the Tower of London. She was terrified. On May 15th 1536 Anne Boleyn was tried for treason, adultery and incest in the Great Hall of the Tower of London with her brother George Boleyn. 

She was accused by King Henry VIII, her dearly husband.
Anne Boleyn defended herself well but the outcome of the trial was an inevitable. 

The peers of the realm found her guilty and she was sentenced to death by burning or beheading according to the King's wishes (her husband). 

Anne Boleyn was terrified of death by burning and therefore agreed to admit that her marriage was not legal to ensure the more clement form of execution by beheading.

Queen Anne Boleyn wanted to go to her death with some dignity and showed her sense of humour when she talked of her execution and referred to the  comforting fact that she "only had a little neck."

The Beheading of Anne Boleyn took place on May 19th 1536. Anne Boleyn, the Queen of England was going to be deliberately killed by execution.

The executioners often took several blows of the axe before the head was finally severed. Anne Boleyn was therefore granted some clemency and a swordsman was called from France to undertake the execution. 

This expert French swordsman was known to be able to sever the head of Queen Anne Boleyn with one blow. The execution of Queen Boleyn was conducted at the Tower of London and witnessed by members of the court.

Following the execution of Anne Boleyn her severed head was held up by the hair by the executioner, not as many people think to show the crowd the head, but in fact to show the head the crowd and it's own body! 

After beheading Anne Boleyn would have been conscious for at least eight seconds until the lack of oxygen caused her unconsciousness and eventual death. 

The body and severed head of Anne Boleyn were buried in an unmarked grave in the Chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula at the Tower of London. 

The ghost of Anne Boleyn is said to haunt the Tower of London. The ghost of Anne Boleyn  is said to appear in the bodily likeness to her living person.  Anne Boleyn is believed to haunt her former habitat in the Tower of London. 

So, let the tour begin.

Tower of London



Way to the Tower

The crowd of visitors



Bell Tower

Bell Tower


The Entrance

The Entrance



Bloody Tower





The Queen House


Cradle Tower




Tower Bridge

So, be good to your wife. Or else, she'll be haunting you for the rest of your life. 

Note: Anne Boleyn is not the only Henry's wife that were executed by him.

2 comments:

  1. fantastic place to visit, suppose this is the joy of traveling, seeing wonderful place and gaining so much of experiences.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That's true Nava. I really enjoy this visit. Thanks for the your comment. =)

    ReplyDelete

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