If you have visited London, you have probably visited the Tower of London. It dominated the London skyline for centuries, and still has a visible place now. There is the Bloody Tower where some murders might have taken place. And of course, the Chapel of St. Peter Ad Vincula where several beheaded royals and nobles rest permanently. However, there are several parts of the Tower complex that always seem to get ignored for their historically flashier counterparts. So, today I’m focusing on a building that you will without a doubt have seen if you have visited the Tower of London- the Byward Tower!
Where is the Byward Tower?
The Byward Tower is in the South-East corner of the Tower of London “complex”, and it is the entrance that all visitors pass through. (Henceforth, if you have visited the Tower, you have seen it…) Slightly misnamed, the Byward Tower is actually two cylindrical towers with a square building in the middle. Being that it served as a gatehouse after being built in the thirteenth century, it makes sense that it can be closed with a portcullis to prevent anyone coming through. The Byward Tower’s twin is the Middle Tower, outside of the now-drained moat.
The Paintings in the Byward Tower
While the Byward Tower clearly served a military purpose, it now holds a historic purpose. Sadly it is not accessible to the public, but there is a surviving medieval painting in the Byward Tower. It was discovered in the 1950s by art restorers, and dates to the 1390s (during King Richard II’s reign). According to Historic Royal Palaces,
The medieval painting depicts a damaged Crucifixion (the Crucifix was destroyed by the chimney-breast) with the Virgin Mary and St John the Evangelist. They are flanked by Saint John the Baptist and St Michael the Archangel. The green and gold background is painted to look like a fabulous cloth-of-gold silk hanging, something which only the richest patrons could afford in reality. The gold pattern is formed from collared parakeets, with alternating fleurs-de-lis or Plantagenet lions at their centre.
I wonder if HRP ever includes this on private tours or members’ events!
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Have you ever noticed the Byward Tower at the Tower of London?
Cheers,
The Historian
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