Tower of London Timeline | Tower of London Timeline Events
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Tower of London Ancient Timeline |
43AD | The Romans built a fort, in the walled city they called Londinium, on the site of present day London on the North Bank of the River Thames |
| c.530AD | Celtic Legend tells King Bran Hen of Bryneich was killed in battle and requested that his head was buried, as a talisman against invasion, on Gwynfryn (the 'White Mount') where the Tower of London now stands. 'Bran' is the Celtic word for 'raven' - origin of the Tower of London ravens legend |
885AD | King Alfred the Great rebuilds part of the old Londinium Roman Wall |
Tower of London Timeline Dates - 1000's |
| 1066 - 1087 | William the Conqueror |
| 1066 | The Normans invade England in September 1066 and commence their strategy of building castles |
| 1066/67 | The Normans start to build a timber tower in their Motte and Bailey Castles style using the old Roman city walls to the east and south massive ditches to the West and the North as protection. A palisade was built along the north and west sides of the Tower |
| January 1067 | William the Conqueror is crowned King of England in Westminster Abbey in London |
| 1078 | A stone built, fortified, Tower was commissioned by William the Conqueror replacing the timber tower - it was called the Great Tower ( White Tower ) |
| 1078 | The name of the Norman Master Builder of the Tower of London was Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester |
| 1086 | The Doomsday Book is completed in England |
| 9th September 1087 | William the Conqueror dies at Saint-Gervais near Rouen, France |
| 1078 - 1097 | The White Tower was built by Norman masons but the labourers were English (Anglo-Saxon). |
| 1087 - 1100 | William Rufus (son of William) |
| 1091 | A great storm damaged the timber outworks - the minor fortifications constructed beyond the main defensive position ( the Tower ) requiring repairs |
| 1097 | Work on the White Tower was completed and the inner ward of the Tower was enclosed |
Tower of London Timeline Events and Dates - 1100's |
| 1100 - 1135 | Henry I (William Rufus' brother) |
| | No records of additional work during this period |
| 1100 | The first recorded state prisoner was Ranulf Flambard, Bishop of Durham Tower of London Prisoners |
| 1101 | Bishop Ranulf Flambard escapes from the Tower of London |
| 1135 - 1154 | Stephen (nephew of Henry I) |
| | No records of additional work during this period |
| 1154 - 1189 | Henry II (grandson of Henry I) |
| | No records of additional work during this period |
| 1189 - 1199 | Richard I (third son of Henry II) |
| 1190 | Work started to surround the White Tower with two towered curtain walls and a great ditch as additional defences. |
| | Richard the Lionheart embarked on the Crusades. William Longchamp, the Bishop of Ely was appointed his regent - Justiciar of all England and Constable of the Tower of London. Residing in the fortress he seized land from the city and of St. Katharine's Hospital and expanded the Tower as follows:- The Roman wall was extended as a curtain wall westwards along the waterfront
- The Wardrobe Tower was built where the monarch’s clothing, armour and equipment were stored
- Work on the construction of the Bell Tower commenced
- A Northern wall created the Outer Ward and a second curtain wall
- Deep ditch dug outside of the walls
- Efforts to flood the ditch from the River Thames failed
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| 1191 | The first siege at the Tower of London |
| 1191 | Prince John opposes the powerful Bishop Longchamp and lays siege to the Tower of London. After only three days, lack of provisions forced Bishop Longchamp to surrender |
Tower of London Timeline Events and Dates - 1200's |
| 1199 - 1216 | John (fifth son of Henry II) |
| 1204 | A Royal Menagerie was established at the Tower |
| 1210 | The church of St. Peter was completed |
| 1210 | The Bell Tower was completed during the reign of King John |
| 1210 | King John took up residence in the Tower |
| 1211 / 1213 | A moat was dug outside the City of London wall. The City ditch drained into the Tower moat causing a foul smell in the Tower and causing friction between John and the Londoners |
| 1215 | Signing of the Magna Charta between King John and the Barons |
| 1215 / 1216 | The whole Tower was held in pledge for the completion of Magna Charta |
| 1216 | Legend has it that King John lost the Crown Jewels, which were kept in Westminster Abbey, in quicksand |
| | Work continued on the additional Tower of London defences |
| 1216 - 1272 | Henry III (son of John) |
| | King Henry III was only ten years old when he was crowned but he immediately started on a strategy to reinforce all of the royal castles, including the Tower of London. At first the fortifications were strengthened and a new wall was built enclosing the west side of the Inmost Ward |
| 1220 - 1230's | Royal accommodation was extended in the White Tower which was substantially rebuilt with a new Great Hall and kitchens |
| 1236 | There was opposition to his ruler and Henry took refuge in the Tower from the Barons |
| 1238 | Once again, Henry took refuge in the Tower from the Barons |
| 1238 - 1272 | Henry, appreciating the strength of the Tower, initiated further building plans with his chief architect Henry de Reyns together with John of Gloucester and Robert of Beverley:- The Wakefield Tower was added as the Kings Lodgings ( the second largest tower)
- The Lanthorn Tower was added as the Queens Lodgings
- A new entrance to the Tower of London, with a drawbridge was added called the Byward Tower
- The Byward Tower was the great Gatehouse of the Outer Ward and is in part the work of Henry III, and in part that of Richard II
- A great new curtain wall was constructed round the north, east, and west sides of the castle
- The new curtain wall doubled the area covered by the Tower complex, enclosing the neighboring church of St Peter ad Vincula
- The King paid for the new land which the owners had been forced to sell
- The moat was extended and successfully flooded with water from the River Thames by a Flemish engineer called John Le Fosser
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| 1241 - 1244 | The Welsh Prince Gruffydd was imprisoned and fell to his death in a bid to escape |
| 1263 - 1267 | The Barons War. The barons led by Simon de Montfort force the king to submit to government by council leading to the formation of the English Parliament |
| 1264 | The Royal Menagerie was moved to the Bulwark (outer defence), which was duly renamed the Lion Tower |
| 1255 | King Louis of France gave Henry III the first elephant seen in England |
| 1238 - 1272 | Ten additional towers were built added including: A massive £21,000 was spent on these improvements |
| 1272 - 1307 | Edward I (son of Henry III) also referred to as Longshanks |
| 1272 - 1307 | King Edward I continued the castle building initiated by his father Henry III and, with his chief architect and builder Master James of St George, built massive Concentric Castles in England, Scotland and Wales. The White Tower was strengthened with two towered curtain walls and great ditch defences |
| 1275 - 1279 | St Thomas's Tower was built ( named after Thomas a Becket ) with new Royal lodgings and the River Thames entrance known as Traitor's Gate |
| 1275 - 1279 | The Well Tower was built ( two water shafts from the tower ran underground ) |
| 1275 - 1281 | The Beauchamp Tower, started in 1275, and the moat was completed |
| 1282 | A new postern ( small entrance ) to the Tower of London was added called the Develin Tower |
| 1303 | The Crown Jewels were moved from Westminster Abbey to the Tower which served as a treasury |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1300's |
| 1307 - 1327 | Edward II (son of Edward I) |
| 1307 - 1327 | The Tower of London played a crucial role during the dangerous reign of King Edward II and was used a royal refuge and to maintain royal authority. |
| 1307 - 1327 | Improvements were made to the Tower of London defences including the curtain walls |
| 1307 - 1327 | The Tower was used for the storage of official papers by the King’s Wardrobe |
| 1324 | Roger Mortimer, the first Earl of March, leads the barons in a rebellion against King Edward II. He was incarcerated in the Tower but managed to escape to France, followed by his lover, Isabella of France, wife of Edward II and Queen of England! |
| 1327 | The king was forced to abdicate in favour of his young son, Edward III. England was ruled by Mortimer and Isabella who are believed to have arranged the murder of Edward II at Berkeley Castle |
| 1327 - 1377 | Edward III (son of Edward II) |
| 1330 | When the young king came of age he incarcerated Roger Mortimer in the Tower. He was condemned without trial and hanged at Tyburn on 29 November, 1330 |
| 1338 -1342 | Edward III pawned the Crown Jewels in order to pay his troops at the start of the Hundred Years War - the practice was forbidden after his reign |
| 1348 - 1349 | The terrible Black Death ravaged England killing nearly one third of the population - in London it was much worse and the population almost halved to 30,000. Pricess Joan, one of the Kings daughters, was killed by the Black Death. The moat was drained as it was feared an additional health hazard. Modern excavation have revealed Plague Pits just outside the Tower of London |
| 1360 - 1377 | Henry Yeverley, Master Mason was employed by the King as his chief Architect. More fortifications and a new gatehouse between the Lanthorn Tower and the Salt Tower was added together with smaller entrances behind the Byward and Develin Tower. The upper parts of the Bloody Tower were also re-built |
| 1360 - 1377 | The Cradle Tower was added |
| 1360 - 1377 | The Tower Wharf was extended eastwards as far as St Thomas’s Tower |
| 1327 - 1377 | The 'Great Tower' began to assume its modern name, as "La Blanche Tour" - the White Tower after yet another coating of whitewash |
| 1377 - 1399 | Richard II (grandson of Edward III, son of the Black Prince) |
| 1378 | The extension of the Tower Wharf and the Byward Tower improvements were completed |
1381
The Tower under Siege
The Peasants Revolt | The Tower of London was under siege by English peasants. The Peasant's Revolt was instigated by a new poll tax and peasants marched on London led by Wat Tyler and John Bull. Richard II and many of his family and household were forced to shelter in the Tower while over 10,000 rebels plundered and burned London for two days. |
| June 14th 1381 | Part of the Tower was occupied, and the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Treasurer was captured and brutally beheaded. The fourteen year old King Richard pacified the peasants in Blackheath. |
| June 15th 1381 | Wat Tyler was later killed by Mayor Walworth and his men. John Ball met an even more horrific fate and was hung, drawn and quartered. |
| 1387 | The King and his Queen took refuge in the Tower again when the barons clashed with Robert de Vere, the Earl of Oxford |
| 1399 | John of Gaunt died and King Richard seized his lands. Gaunt's son, Henry Bolingbroke invaded England, whilst Richard was on campaign in Ireland, usurping the throne from the king |
| 1 October 1399 | King Richard II was condemned as a tyrant. He renounced the crown in his chamber in the White Tower and Henry IV was proclaimed King the next day. |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1400's |
| 1399 - 1413 | Henry IV (grandson of Edward III, son of John of Gaunt) |
| 1399 | Henry invaded England while Richard was on campaign in Ireland, usurping the throne from the king |
| 1413 | The leader of the Lollards, Sir John Oldcastle arrested the friend of the King was arrested and sent to the Tower of London |
| 1413 | Henry IV died suffering from leprosy and epilepsy |
| 1413 - 1422 | Henry V (son of Henry IV) |
1419
The Royal Witch | The notorious Dowager Queen of England, Joan of Navarre, was accused by her stepson Henry V of witchcraft and necromancy - she was acquitted |
| 1413 - 1422 | The wars waged during his reign left England deeply in debt |
| 1422 - 1461 & 1470 - 1471 | Henry VI (son of Henry V) |
| 1465 - 1470 | The mentally unstable and pious Lancastrian King Henry VI and his headstrong and ambitious wife Margaret of Anjou were imprisoned in the Tower of London from 1465 until 1470. Henry was briefly restored to power in 1470 |
| 22nd May 1471 | The last Lancastrian king was murdered in the Wakefield Tower, whilst he was at prayer, the following day. He was probably murdered on the orders of Edward IV |
| | England entered the period of civil disorder and political instability known as the Wars of the Roses. |
| 1461 - 1483 | Edward IV ( youngest son of Edward III ) |
| 1461 - 1483 | Edward IV maintained and improved the Tower defences |
| February 1478 | George, Duke of Clarence, the brother of Edward IV was executed for treason in the Tower of London |
| 1480 | A new brick bulwark (outer defence) was built beyond the western entrance |
| 1461 - 1483 | Edward IV was a notorious womaniser - his affairs led to claims of illegitimacy and ultimately led to the murder of his sons |
| 1483 | Edward V (eldest son of King Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville) |
| 1483 | The boy king was on his way to his coronation in London but was intercepted by his uncle, and Protector ( who would become Richard III ). Edward was escorted to London and then to the Tower. On the 16th June 1483 he was joined by his brother Prince Richard. The coronation was cancelled. |
| 1483 | The thirteen year old King and his ten year old brother mysteriously disappeared in the Tower after being declared illegitimate. They were believed to have been murdered and are referred to as the Little Princes in the Tower |
| 1483 - 1485 | Richard III (uncle of Edward V) |
| June 25 1483 | Parliament declared the two little princes illegitimate and, as next in line to the throne, their uncle and Protector, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was declared the true King. The two little princes were never seen again |
| August 22nd 1485 | A Lancastrian rebellion rose against the Yorkist Richard and on he fell in the Battle of Bosworth Field to Henry Tudor |
| 1485 - 1509 | Henry VII (grandson of Henry V) |
| 1485-1509 | Henry VII cemented his succession and settled the friction between the Yorkists and Lancastrians by marrying the Yorkist heir, Elizabeth of York |
| | Henry VII built the last permanent royal residential buildings at the Tower of London:- He extended the Royal lodgings around the Lanthorn Tower
- Added a new private chamber
- Built a library
- Added a long gallery
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| 1487 | Lambert Simnel (1475–1525) imposter and pretender to the English throne was defeated at the battle of Stoke, taken prisoner but pardoned and supposedly was employed as a scullion in the royal kitchen |
| 1499 | Perkin Warbeck, who also claimed to be one of the Princes in the Tower (Richard) was interrogated and executed at the Tower of London |
| | Edmund de la Pole, earl of Suffolk, had a strong Yorkist claim to the throne as a descendent of Edward III, was imprisoned for years and finally executed by Henry VIII without trial in 1513 |
| 1502 | A papal dispensation was obtained to enable his second son Henry to marry the wife (Katherine of Aragon) of his first son Arthur who had died |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1500's |
| 1509 - 1547 | Henry VIII (Henry VII's second son, Arthur married Katherine of Aragon but died at the age of 15) |
| 1509 | King Henry VIII marries Katherine of Aragon |
| 1512 | The original chapel of St Peter Ad Vincula was burned down |
| 1515 | The chapel of St Peter Ad Vincula re-built |
| 1515 - 1547 | Gun emplacements were improvised during the reign of Henry VIII. The roof of the White Tower needed to be strengthened to take the weight of cannon |
| 1513 | Edmund de la Pole - a threat to the Tudor throne - executed without trial |
| 1530 | Extensive building and repairs work to the Royal Lodgings was conducted under the orders of Henry VIII in preparation of the coronation of Anne Boleyn. The work was supervised by Thomas Cromwell. This included the repair and decoration of the magnificent Great Hall and new chamber for the Queen. |
| 1530 | The White Tower's most famous features – the onion-shaped domes on the turrets, complete with weather vanes |
| 1533 | Henry divorced his first wife, Katherine of Aragon |
| 1534 | Henry VIII broke with the Church in Rome with the Act of Supremacy, which made the king head of the Church of England. The Tower expands the role of prison for a large number of religious and political prisoners and its bloody history |
| 1535 | Sir Thomas Moore and Bishop Fisher of Rochester were executed for refusing to acknowledge Henry VIII as head of the English Church |
| January 25th 1533 | Henry married Anne Boleyn |
| May 23rd 1533 | Anne lead a procession from the Tower of London to Westminster Abbey for her coronation |
| May 2nd 1536 | Anne Boleyn arrested and taken to the Tower which she entered by Traitor's Gate |
| May 15th 1536 | Anne Boleyn tried for treason, adultery and incest in the Great Hall of the Tower of London |
| May 19th 1536 | Anne Boleyn executed on Tower Hill. Anne's body and head were buried in an unmarked grave in the Chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula. Within 24 hours of Anne Boleyn's execution, Jane Seymour and Henry VIII were formally betrothed. On the 30th of May 1536 they were married but Jane dies a premature death after giving birth to Henry's son. |
| 1540 | Henry VIII marries Anne of Cleves but the marriage is annulled. Thomas Cromwell is blamed, imprisoned in the Tower, then executed on Tower Hill |
| July 28th 1540 | 49 year old Henry married 19 year old Catherine Howard |
| 1541 | Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, is executed in the Tower |
| 13th February 1542 | Catherine Howard executed for adultery |
| 12th July 1543 | Henry marries Katherine Parr who had a near brush with death she was linked with 'heretical' religious reformers including the tragic Anne Askew who was tortured on the rack in the tower |
| 1547 - 1553 | Edward V (Henry's son by Jane Seymour) |
| 1548 | Thomas Seymour is imprisoned in the Tower, then beheaded on Tower Hill |
| 1552 | The young King's protector, the Duke of Somerset, and his confederates met their death at the Tower |
| 1553 | Edward died of tuberculosis and he left the throne to 'the Lady Jane and her heirs male.' |
| Monday 10 July - 1553 | Lady Jane Grey (Queen for just Nine Days) |
| Monday 10th July 1553 | Proclaimed Queen of England. Lady Jane Grey and her husband Guildford Dudley were taken in full state from Syon House to the Royal Apartments in the Tower of London |
| 19th July 1553 | Queen Jane was deposed as Queen |
| 1553 - 1558 | Mary (Henry's daughter by Queen Katherine of Aragon) |
| 1553 - 1558 | The eldest daughter of Henry VIII is referred to as 'Bloody Mary' for her persecution of Protestants and political rivals |
| 12th February 1553 | Lady Jane Grey and her husband Guildford Dudley were executed at the Tower of London |
| 1554 | Princess Elizabeth was imprisoned in the Tower for eight weeks |
| 1555 | The men-at-arms were formally incorporated as yeoman warders. 21 warders were appointed and were joined by 17 'skilful gunners' |
| 1556 | Archbishop Cranmer, Bishops Ridley and Latimer, who were condemned to death for heresy, were imprisoned in the Tower before being burned at the stake at Oxford in 1556 |
| 1558 - 1603 | Elizabeth I (Henry's daughter by Anne Boleyn) |
| 1563 | When the Black Death ( Bubonic Plague ) broke out in London in 1563, Queen Elizabeth I moved her court to Windsor Castle where she erected gallows and ordered that anyone coming from London was to be hanged |
| 1583 | Relatives of William Shakespeare sent to the Tower. In 1583 Edward Arden, the head of the Catholic Arden Family was executed for his Catholic beliefs and for plotting against the life of the Queen. Edward Arden's son-in-law, John Somerville, was also arrested, tortured on the rack and died in the Tower of London for being supporters of the Catholic Mary Queen of Scots |
| 1585 | Henry Percy, 8th Earl of Northumberland, died in mysterious circumstances in the Tower by three bullet holes in the chest |
| 1599 | The Jesuit priest John Gerard escaped from the Cradle Tower |
| 25th February 1601 | Robert Devereux (1566-1601), Earl of Essex executed on Tower Green |
| 1601 - 1603 | The Royal Mint was extended and new storehouses were built for royal military supplies |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1600's |
| 1603 - 1625 | James I of England James VI of Scotland (great-great-grandson of Henry VII) |
| 1603 | James I arrived at the Tower on the day of his arrival in London from Edinburgh and stayed there for several nights |
| 1613 | Sir Thomas Overbury, poet and courtier, was poisoned in the Tower |
| 1618 | Sir Walter Raleigh was held in the Wardrobe Tower and the Brick Tower before he was beheaded in Old Palace Yard |
| | The Lieutenant’s house - built in the 1540s and now called the Queen’s House - was extended and modified. |
| 1625 - 1649 | Charles I (second son of James) |
| 1629 | The King's chief opponent in Parliament was Sir John Eliot, who was imprisoned in the Tower of London until his death in 1632 |
| 1642 | Civil war broke out between King and parliament. |
| 1643 | The Tower was seized from the King by parliamentarians and remained in their hands throughout the Civil War (1642-49) during which time a permanent garrison was installed |
| 30th January 1649 | Charles was beheaded on a scaffold outside the Banqueting House in Whitehall, London. |
| 1649 - 1659 | The Commonwealth under the Cromwells |
| 7 February 1649 | The office of King was formally abolished |
| 1649 | The Crown Jewels were ordered to be broken up as being symbolic of the 'detestable rule of kings'. Many precious stones were sold separately but some ancient pieces were sold intact and subsequently returned to the crown |
| 1660 - 1685 | Charles II (oldest son of Charles) Royal House of Stuart Restored |
| 1660 - 1685 | Major improvements to the Tower's defences were made and batteries of guns were set in place along the walls and the arsenal was expanded. The garrison was used to quell any disturbances in the City of London. |
| 1660 - 1685 | The Stone Kitchen and Golden Chain taverns, used by the inhabitants of the casements and other tower employees, were believed to have been built at this time |
| 1660 - 1685 | The function of the Tower declined as a state prison declined and the Office of Ordnance took over responsibility for most of the castle. |
| 1660 | Replacements for the lost Crown Jewels were purchased at a cost of nearly £13,000 |
| 1660 | The first sightseers were admitted to the Tower of London which included viewing of the Crown Jewels |
| 1671 | Colonel Thomas Blood and his men tried to steal the Crown Jewels from the Martin Tower in 1671 |
| 1666 | The Tower narrowly escaped destruction from the Great Fire of London |
| 1667 | Records show that 9,677 barrels of gunpowder were stored in the White Tower |
| 1663 - 1664 | The New Armouries were built as a storehouse for small arms by the Board of Ordinance |
| 1685 - 1688 | James II (brother of Charles II) |
| 1685 | James had to crush a rebellion of Protestants who rallied around his nephew James, Duke of Monmouth, the son of Charles II the son of Charles II and his mistress, Lucy Walter. Monmouth was captured and beheaded on Tower Hill |
| 1688 | Hanging Judge Jeffreys sentenced many to death acted on the orders of the King |
| 1688 | The building of the Grand Storehouse begun to house arms and army and navy munitions |
| 1688 | The Catholic James was deposed and replaced by by his Protestant daughter and son-in-law, Mary II and William III, who became joint Sovereigns. |
| 1689 - 1694 | William and Mary - William of Orange (grandson of Charles I) and Mary (daughter of James II) |
| 1689 | Hanging Judge Jeffreys died in the Tower - he had sentenced 320 at the 'Bloody Assizes' to be executed or transported to the Penal colonies |
1690
Battle of Boyne | The deposed James made one attempt to regain the crown, but his French and Irish forces were soundly defeated at the Battle of Boyne |
| 1694 - 1702 | William of Orange ruled alone after Mary's death |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1700's |
| 1702 - 1714 | Anne (sister of Mary) |
| | The Monarchy no longer used the Tower as State apartments so showed little interest in the castle |
| 1714 - 1727 | George I (great-grandson of James I) |
| | The Monarchy no longer used the Tower as State apartments so showed little interest in the castle |
| 1727 - 1760 | George II (son of George I) |
| | The Monarchy no longer used the Tower as State apartments so showed little interest in the castle |
| 1760 - 1820 | George III (grandson of George II) |
| 1780 | The Tower held its only American prisoner, former President of the Continental Congress, Henry Laurens |
| 1804 | The menagerie was opened to the Public |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1800's |
| 1820 - 1830 | George IV (son of George III) |
| | As the Prince of Wales George IV was impressed by the work of the architect, John Nash. He commissioned him to design Regent's Park and its environs of curved terraces. He also arranged for Nash to create Buckingham Palace and the rebuilding of the Royal Pavilion at Brighton |
| 1830 - 1837 | William IV (brother of George IV) |
| 1834 - 1835 | The Royal Menagerie left the Lion Tower in 1834 to become the London Zoo. Most of the Lion Tower was demolished soon after, although the Lion Gate still remains |
| 1837 - 1901 | Victoria (niece of William IV) |
| 1841 | The first official guidebook to the Tower was published |
| 1841 | The Grand Storehouse burned down during a great fire at the Tower and many weapons were destroyed The moat, which had
been drained and filled in 1843, |
| 1843 | The moat was drained and filled |
| 1848 | Revolution swept across Europe and in London the Chartist movement delivered a petition to Parliament asserting the rights of ordinary people. Fear that a revolutionary mob might storm the Tower prompted a final refortification of the Tower |
| 1850 | The documents of state stored in the Record Office moved to Chancery Lane |
| 1851 | Anthony Salvin, a Victorian architect, was appointed in 1851 to 'restore' the Tower to a pseudo-medieval form so it could be opened to the public. The Salt Tower, White Tower, St Thomas's Tower and the Bloody Tower were all 'restored' |
| 1851 | The restoration of the Tower included the demolition of the two taverns, the Stone Kitchen and the Golden Chain which was used by tower employees |
| 1855 | The War Office assumed responsibility for the manufacture and storage of weapons |
| 1842-1862 | Waterloo Barracks were built - the Brick, Flint and Bowyer were altered to provide additional accomodation. The barracks were able to house 1,000 soldiers and new loop-holes and gun emplacements were built. The Royal Fusilier's Museum, built as the Officer's Mess, was also erected |
| 1870 | John Taylor took over the restoration of the Tower of London which included the Cradle and Develin towers |
| 1876-1877 | Chapel of St Peter Ad Vincula - bones were exhumed, including those of Anne Boleyn, as part of the chapel's restoration |
Tower of London Timeline Events & Dates - 1900's |
| 1901 - 1910 | Edward VII (son of Victoria and Albert) |
| 1910 - 1936 | George V (second son of Edward VII) |
| 1914 - 1918 | The First World War - a bomb fell in the moat of the tower |
| 1914 - 1916 | 11 German spies were shot in the tower |
| 1930's | Excavation of the moat adjacent to the former Royal menagerie site at the Tower of London. Many animal skulls, including lions and leopard, were found dating back to the 1200's |
| 1936 | Edward VIII (son of George V) |
| | The abdication of King Edward VIII following his affair with Wallis Simpson |
| 1936 - 1952 | George VI (second son of George V) |
| 1933 - 1937 | Army officer, and Traitor, Norman Baillie-Stewart was the last British citizen held for any length of time in the Tower of London |
| 1939 - 1945 | The Second World War - Bomb damage to the Tower severely damaged or destroyed many buildings |
| 5 October 1940 | The North Bastion received a direct hit |
| 1940 | The Hospital Block which was partly destroyed during an air raid |
| | Bombs also destroyed the Main Guard, to the south west of the White Tower. |
| 14 Aug 1941 | The last prisoner of the Tower of London, Corporal Josef Jakobs, a German spy, is executed. |
| 1942 | Hitler's Deputy Fuhrer of Nazi Germany, Rudolf Hess, was imprisoned in the Kings's House for 4 days. |
| 1945 | The Crown Jewels had been moved to a secret location at the start of the war, for safe keeping. The collection was returned to the Tower at the end of the war |
| 1940's - 1950's | Waterloo Barracks used as a base for the 1st Battalion Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) |
| 1952 | The Kray twins were held in the Tower for 4 days for failing to report for national service, making them amongst the last prisoners of the Tower of London; was the traitorous Army officer Norman Baillie-Stewart from 1933-1937. |
| 1952 - | Elizabeth II (daughter of George VI) |
| 1950's | Waterloo Barracks became the location of the Crown Jewels |
| 1967 | An underground Jewel House was built but the display could not cope with the visitors which numbered up to 15,000 a day |
| 1968 | The Mint was moved to Cardiff |
| 1994 | The Crown Jewels were transferred to the Jewel House at the Tower of London which was opened by Queen Elizabeth I |
| 1995-1999 | Archaeological Excavations of the Tower of London Moat unearthed parts of the Tower's 13th century defences including the Beauchamp Tower which collapsed during the initial building program |
