Главная ⇒ 📕English topics ⇒ The Tower of London


The Tower of London

The Tower of London is one of the most imposing and popular of London’s historical sites. It comprises not one, but 20 towers. The oldest of which, the White Tower, dates back to the 11th century and the times of William the Conqueror. Nowadays a lot of tourists visit the Tower of London, because of the Tower’s evil reputation as a prison. The Tower is famous as home of the Crown Jewels. Today they can be viewed in their new jewel house. They include the Crown of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother which contains the celebrated Indian diamond.

Many stories associated with British history come from the Tower. In 1483 King Edward IV’s two sons were murdered in the so-called Bloody Tower. Over two centuries later the skeletons of two little boys were found buried beneath steps in the White Tower.

Traitor’s Gate has steps leading down to the River Thames. Countless prisoners, including the future Queen Elizabeth I of England, were brought to the Tower by barge and ascended the steps before being imprisoned. For many it was their last moment of freedom before their death. But Elizabeth was released from the Tower and became Queen. The King’s second wife, Anne Boleyn, was brought to trial there in 1536 and beheaded. Six years later her cousin, Catherine, Henry VIII’s fifth wife, suffered the same fate. Sir Thomas More was beheaded there in 1535.

Of course, no visit to the Tower would be complete without seeing the ravens; huge black birds who are an official part of the Tower community. Legend states that if the ravens were to leave the Tower the Crown will fall, and Britain with it. Under the special care of the Raven Master, the ravens are fed a daily diet of raw meat. And there is no danger of them flying away, because their wings are clipped.

1 звезда2 звезды3 звезды4 звезды5 звезд (1 votes, average: 5,00 out of 5)


Related posts:

  1. The Weather in England — Погода в Англии (2) The weather in England is very changeable. A fine morning can change into a wet afternoon and evening. And a nasty morning can change into a fine afternoon. That is...
  2. Wolfgang Mozart Wolfgang Mozart is a famous Austrian composer. Mozart was born in 1756 in Saltsburg, Austria. His father, a violinist and a composer, noticed wonderful talent of his son and taught...
  3. English Language — Английский язык (1) Every language has different kinds of variants: geographical or territorial, perhaps the most obvious; stylistic variation reflects the differences between the written and the spoken form of the standard national...
  4. American Symbols The American flag is often called «The Stars and Stripes», it is also called «Old Glory». It represents the growth of the nation. It has 13 horizontal stripes,7 red and...
  5. English in the Future — Английский язык в будущем Two English teachers Lynne and Greg are talking about learning English in future. Question : Lynne, I’d like to ask you first, at what age do people start learning English...
  6. Hobbies in the UK and the USA — Хобби в Соединенном Королевстве и США Hobbies are a great British and American tradition. A hobby is a special interest or activity that you do in your time off. A «hobby» is usually something that a...
  7. Martin Luther King Martin Luther King was a clergyman and one of the most prominent members of the civil rights movement. He was born of January 15, 1929. He became famous in the...
  8. Halloween Halloween, name applied to the evening of October 31, preceding the Christian feast of Hallowmas, Allhallows, or All Saints’ Day. The observances connected with Halloween are thought to have originated...
  9. Ice Hockey Ice hockey is one of the most action-paced of sports, demanding skillful skating, expert stick-handling, and masterly puck control. The game developed in the frozen expanses of North America, and...
  10. British Literature Great Britain gave the world a lot of talented people. Many famous writers and poets were born and lived in Great Britain. One of the best known English playwrights was...
  11. Television in Our life — Телевидение в нашей жизни Television now plays an important role in our life. It is difficult to say if it is good or bad for us. It is clear, that television has advantages and...
  12. Animals and plants in Ukraine — Животные и растения Украины Ukraine has mostly coniferous and deciduous trees, such as pine, oak, fir, beech and birch. The wealth of the forest includes not only timber, but also berries, mushrooms and medical...
  13. Books and Reading Books can fit almost every need, temper, or interest. Bookscan be read when you are in the mood; you don’t need to do it all the time. Books are both...
  14. Sport in Australia A lot of Australians think you shouldn’t worry too much about life. But some things in life are really important, and to many Australian men, one of these things is...
  15. Computers When Charles Babbage, a professor of Mathematics at Cambridge university, invented the first calculating machine in 1812 he couldn’t even imagine the consequences of this discovery. Nearly everything we do...
  16. Bird Flu — Птичий Грип Bird flu is an infectious disease due to a type of influenza virus that is hosted by birds, but may infect several species of mammals. It was first identified in...
  17. James Aldridge — Джеймс Олдридж James Aldridge was born in 1918, in the town of Swanhill, in Australia. His father was a journalist and writer. His parents came to Australia from England only a few...
  18. Youth problems (2) What are the main youth problems? Everyone knows and at the same time noone knows. As sand through fingers — youth problems are always changing. Thirty years ago Johnny Rotten...
  19. Average Age — Средний возраст 10 Ten is the year of the closest friendships — though not with the opposite sex. It is also the year when relationships with particular people or groups is strongest....
  20. How I spent the summer — Как я провел лето In summer I usually visit my grandma, who lives in a village, go to the mountains with my uncle, or spend a week or two by the sea with my...
  21. Laos Somewhat smaller than Oregon, Laos is a mountainous Southeast Asia country ruled by communists. The population of this little country is about 3 and a half million people. One of...
  22. Teenagers The age between 14 & 17 is considered to be one of the best periods in people’s life. Grown-ups remember it with excitement & tenderness. But most teens wouldn’t agree...
  23. British Isles The British Isles haven’t always been a separate part of Europe. Long time ago Britain was a part of the European continent. Then about ten thousand years ago during the...
  24. Gerald Rudolph Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. (born July 14, 1913) (born Leslie Lynch King, Jr., renamed after adoption) was the fortieth (1973-1974) Vice President and the thirty-eighth (1974-1977) President of the United...
  25. Peter Tchaikovsky — Петр Ильич Чайковский Almost everybody knows «The Nutcracker Suite» with its «Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy» and «Waltz of the Flowers» «The Nutcracker Suite» was written as a ballet, but many more...
  26. English Halloween Customs — Английские традиции Хэллоуина The celebration of All Saints Day or just Halloween takes place on October 31st. The tradition of Halloween began in the fifth century B. C. This day the Irish Celts...
  27. Sport in Great Britain — Спорт в Великобритании (1) Sport plays such a large part in British life that many idioms in the English language have come from the world of sport. For example, «that’s not cricket» means «that’s...
  28. My Household Duties — Мои обязанности по дому (2) I live with my mother and father. I like to help them. Every Sunday I clean my room. I take the vacuum — cleaner and clean the carpets. I sweep...
  29. Alfred Nobel Alfred Nobel, the great Swedish inventor and industrialist, was a man on many contrasts. He made a fortune but lived a simple life, he was cheerful in company but said...
  30. Workaholism For many people, fact about workaholism are not clear. What is workaholism, exactly? When should a person seek help about his problem related to his job. Workaholism is the same...
  31. Presidents’ Day — День президентов Until the mid — 1970s, the February 22, the birthday of George Washington, the hero of the Revolutionary War and the first president of the United States, was a national...
  32. Education in Great Britain: Schools — Образование в Великобритании: Школы (3) In Britain it is compulsory for everyone between the ages of 5 and 16 years to receive some officially recognized form of schooling, though most secondary schools continue to provide...
  33. In the theatre You can not imagine our Life without theatre and cinema. When you watch a film or come to the theatre and enjoy a theatrical become a part of advanture. You...
  34. Fashion in Russia In my country, there are always trends and so teenagers wear a variety of clothes. A lot of teenagers are influenced by American TV and they try look like some...
  35. Shopping — Покупки (Шоппинг) Nowadays shopping as a way of spending time has become quite a popular thing. However, the meaning of this word does not simply imply browsing around the shops. It also...
  36. The USA (8) The United States of America is the fourth largest country in the world (after Russia, Canada and Chine). It occupies the southern part of North America and stretches from the...
  37. My Favourite Singer (Michael Jackson) My favourite singer is Michael Jackson. I like his songs very much because they are full of energy and very melodic. I also like the way he dances. There were...
  38. American Homes American homes are some of the biggest and best in the world. Many have a garage for one or two cars, a big modern kitchen, a living room, and a...
  39. My Summer Holidays (3) I spent my summer holidays near the sea. I went to Crimea in July. I stayed there for three weeks. I travelled there by train and by bus. We stayed...
  40. Russia — Россия The first thing I am going to tell my foreign visitor about is the geography and climate of Russia, as the geographical position and climate of a country influence the...
Сейчас вы читаете: The Tower of London

« 
 »