Insights and behind the scenes from our palaces
Embracing two worlds: Conserving Bi-cultural heritage with a rare Japanese court suit
14 March 2025
Textile Conservator Kaori Motaung shares her experience conserving a rare Japanese court suit from the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection.
Catherine Howard: History and the Use of Adjectives
11 February 2022
On the anniversary of the execution of Catherine Howard, Henry VIII’s fifth wife and Queen, Collections Curator Brett Dolman investigates how difficult it is to reconstruct and understand her life. Bringing the past alive is part of what historians are expected to do, but how far should we go to tell a good story?
Anthony Salvin: the architect who transformed the Tower of London
16 December 2021
Archivist Tom Drysdale introduces Anthony Salvin, the Victorian architect who began the transformation of the Tower of London, and looks at four drawings that shed a light on his work and legacy.
Edward I’s Santa Suit: Christmas in the Medieval Palace
10 December 2021
Curator Charles Farris explores how Edward I and his royal medieval court celebrated Christmas.
The Life of Edward Francis: Black history at the Tower of London
15 November 2021
Misha Ewen, Curator of Inclusive History, reflects upon her research on the life of Edward Francis - an enslaved African man who lived at the Tower of London in the late 17th century.
Phillis Wheatley's Visit to the Tower of London in 1773
22 October 2021
Curator Charles Farris explores the incredible life and career of Phillis Wheatley, an important African American poet, who visited the Tower of London in 1773.
Torture at the Tower: The Case of John Gerard
04 October 2021
On the anniversary of the birth of John Gerard, Curator Alden Gregory reflects on the dark history of the Tower of London and how it resonates today.
Templars at the Tower
12 August 2021
Why is Friday 13th thought of as an unlucky date? One possibility is the arrest of the famous Knights Templar on a different Friday 13th, over 700 years ago. Postdoctoral researcher Rory MacLellan writes about this fascinating story of the imprisonment of the Templars at the Tower.
Caring for the Tower of London through lockdown
11 May 2021
While the Tower of London was closed to the public during the Covid-19 pandemic, much work was underway to protect the fabric of the building and the future of the palace. Assistant Curator Alfred Hawkins reveals one of the important projects that he has been working on behind the scenes.
Walter Hungerford and the Buggery Act: LGBTQ+ History and Punishment at the Tower of London
19 February 2021
As part of LGBT History Month, Olivia Martin examines a darker side of the Tower's history. On 28 July 1540, the first execution under the Buggery Act, the first civil law to criminalise homosexual behaviour, happened on Tower Hill.