Insights and behind the scenes from our palaces
Using Heritage Science to Conserve Queen Caroline's State Bed
13 September 2024
Work on Queen Caroline’s much-loved State bed, which we care for on behalf of the Royal Collection Trust, continues at Hampton Court Palace and our attentions are now drawn to protecting the feet of this priceless historic object.
Medieval and Tudor Poets at the Tower
09 August 2024
What dramatic Tudor event might Sir Thomas Wyatt have drawn on for his poetry? And did you know Geoffrey Chaucer worked at the Tower of London?
Charles II and the Discovery of the 'Princes in the Tower' in 1674
17 July 2024
Tower of London Curator Charles Farris explores one of the most famous discoveries in the Tower’s history – a small chapter in the continuing mystery of the Princes in the Tower.
Queer Lives at the Tower: The LGBT+ Stories that were almost on the tours
07 February 2020
Queer Lives at the Tower, our new LGBT+ tours at the Tower of London are just a couple of weeks away, and the team are rehearsing to deliver a bold and new experience. However, there are some stories that didn’t quite make the cut. I’m going to tell you them here, to see what they tell us about how we work with LGBT+ history.
Excavations at the Tower of London's chapel
21 October 2019
Earlier this year, once-in-a-generation excavation works taking place outside the entrance to the Tower's Chapel of St Peter ad Vincula uncovered amazing finds, which shed new light on the history of the Chapel and what life was like for those who lived at the Tower 500 years ago. Historic Buildings Curator Alfred Hawkins explains the process of archaeological excavations.
A Head in the Bloody Tower
04 December 2018
When I started my job at the Tower of London I fully expected to encounter extraordinary things every day. And true to form I was only onto my second week when a fragment of a wall painting on the upper floor of the Bloody Tower was revealed.
The Peasant's Revolt: The only time the Tower of London was breached
28 September 2017
At the Tower of London, William the Conqueror’s White Tower, and the huge curtain walls of Henry III and Edward I cast a shadow of impregnable royal strength over the City. In reality, the Tower’s fortunes as a defensive castle were somewhat mixed. It depended rather upon the loyalty and efficiency of its garrison, and the stocking of its weapon stores and food larders.
Objects Unwrapped: A 13th-Century Condiment dish
15 December 2015
This small green-glazed ceramic dish was found during excavations near the Middle Tower at the Tower of London in the 1930s. It dates from the late 13th century and was possibly made at a pottery workshop in Kingston, just down the river from Hampton Court Palace.