The development of
the Tower
The Tower of London
was begun in the reign of William the Conqueror (1066-1087) and remained
unchanged for over a century. Then, between 1190 and 1285, the White Tower was
encircled by two towered curtain walls and a great moat. The only important
enlargement of the Tower after that time was the building of the Wharf in the
14th century. Today the medieval defences remain relatively unchanged.
The Normans
WestmCastle
building was an essential part of the Norman Conquest: when Duke William of
Normandy invaded England in 1066 his first action after landing at Pevensey on
28 September had been to improvise a castle, and when he moved to Hastings two
days later he built another. Over the next few years William and his supporters
were engaged in building hundreds more, first to conquer, then subdue and
finally to colonise the whole of England.
By the end of the
Anglo-Saxon period London had become the most powerful city in England, with a
rich port, a nearby royal palace and an important cathedral. It was via London
that King Harold II (1066) and his army sped south to meet William, and to
London which the defeated rabble of the English army returned from the Battle
of Hastings in 1066. Securing the City was therefore of the utmost importance
to William. His contemporary biographer William of Poitiers tells us that after
receiving the submission of the English magnates at Little Berkhampstead,
William sent an advance guard into London to construct a castle and prepare for
his triumphal entry. He also tells us that, after his coronation in inster
Abbey on Christmas Day 1066, the new King withdrew to Barking (in Essex) ‘while
certain fortifications were completed in the city against the restlessness of
the vast and fierce populace for he realised that it was of the first
importance to overawe the Londoners.
These
fortifications may have included Baynard’s Castle built in the south-west angle
of the City (near Blackfriars) and the castle of Monfichet (near Ludgate
Circus) and almost certainly the future Tower of London. Initially the Tower
had consisted of a modest enclosure built into the south-east corner of the
Roman City walls, but by the late 1070s, with the initial completion of the
White Tower, it had become the most fearsome of all. Nothing had been seen like
it in England before. It was built by Norman masons and English (Anglo-Saxon)
labour drafted in from the countryside, perhaps to the design of Gundulf,
Bishop of Rochester. It was intended to protect the river route from Danish
attack, but also and more importantly to dominate the City physically and
visually. It is difficult to appreciate today what an enormous impression the
tower and other Norman buildings, such as St Paul’s Cathedral (as rebuilt after
1086) or the nearby Westminster Hall (rebuilt after 1087) must have made on the
native Londoners.
The White Tower was
protected to the east and south by the old Roman city walls (a full height
fragment can be seen just by Tower Hill Underground station), while the north
and west sides were protected by ditches as much as 7.50m (25ft) wide and 3.40m
(11ft) deep and an earthwork with a wooden wall on top. In the 12th century a
‘fore-building’ (now demolished) was added to the south front of the White
Tower to protect the entrance. The Wardrobe Tower, a fragment of which can be
seen at the south-east corner of the building, was another early addition or
rebuilding. From very early on the enclosure contained a number of timber
buildings for residential and service use. It is not clear whether these
included a royal residence but William the Conqueror’s immediate successors
probably made use of the White Tower itself.
It is important for
us today to remember that the functions of the Tower from the 1070s until the
late 19th century were established by its Norman founders. The Tower was never
primarily intended to protect London from external invasion, although, of
course, it could have done so if necessary. Nor was it ever intended to be the
principal residence of the kings and queens of England, though many did in fact
spend periods of time there. Its primary function was always to provide a base
for royal power in the City of London and a stronghold to which the Royal
Family could retreat in times of civil disorder.
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