6 Famous Prisoners of the Tower of London - History Lists History Lists September 11, 2012 By Evan Andrews Share Get all the facts on London's most iconic landmarks. Share this: 6 Famous Prisoners of the Tower of London Author 6 Famous Prisoners of the Tower of London URL Google The Tower of London has served as everything from a royal residence to a zoo for exotic animals, but it remains best known as a fearsome prison and torture chamber. First constructed in the wake of the Norman Conquest in 1066, the Tower has held some of Great Britain’s most prominent inmates, including disgraced royals, would-be revolutionaries and even Nazi officers. Find out more about six of these famous captives of one of history’s most forbidding prisons. Anne Boleyn The second wife of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn was twice a resident of the Tower of London—once as a queen-in-waiting and once as a condemned prisoner. Boleyn married Henry in 1533 after the English king defied the Roman Catholic Church and annulled his marriage to Catherine of Aragon.

Housed in the Tower of London prior to her coronation in June 1533, Boleyn would reign as queen of England for nearly three years. Coupled with courtly intrigue and accusations of infidelity, Boleyn’s failure to give birth to a male heir ultimately proved to be her undoing. Accused of seducing the king into a cursed marriage, in May 1536 she was arrested on trumped-up charges of adultery, treason and even an alleged incestuous affair with her brother. Boleyn was confined to the Lieutenant’s Lodgings of the Tower of London, where she was tried and found guilty. She was beheaded by a French swordsman on a scaffold at the Tower on May 19, 1536. Catherine Howard, Henry’s fifth wife, would meet a similar fate when she was imprisoned and then executed at the Tower of London in 1542. Sir Walter Raleigh One of the longest-serving prisoners of the Tower of London was the famed Sir Walter Raleigh, who was confined to the citadel for some 13 years.

A soldier and explorer who engineered the ill-fated English colony at Roanoke Island, Raleigh was knighted by Elizabeth I in 1585 and became one of the queen’s favorite courtiers. Despite his influential position, Raleigh was briefly imprisoned in the Tower in 1592 when it was revealed that he had secretly wed Elizabeth Throckmorton, one of the queen’s maids of honor. Raleigh was confined to the Tower a second time in 1603 after he was accused of plotting against King James I. Stripped of most of his wealth, he would spend nearly 13 years detained in a part of the castle known as the Bloody Tower. While he was ostensibly a prisoner, Raleigh’s high social standing ensured that he had comfortable lodgings, and he was even joined in the Tower by his family. During this time he devoted himself to science and writing—composing his “History of the World” in 1614—and also fathered a son. Raleigh was released in 1616 and dispatched to Central America in search of the mythical gold city of El Dorado.

The mission proved unsuccessful, and Raleigh was arrested and executed at the block after his forces attacked a Spanish outpost against the orders of the king. The Princes in the Tower Twelve-year-old Prince Edward V and 10-year-old Prince Richard of Shrewsbury—better known as “the Princes in the Tower”—are among the most famous prisoners to have disappeared within the bowels of the Tower of London. The two boys first arrived at the castle in 1483 after the death of their father, King Edward IV. The princes were originally housed in the Tower on the orders of their uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, but were stripped of their royal titles after the duke invalidated their father’s marriage, declared them illegitimate and claimed the throne for himself as King Richard III. Moved from their opulent royal apartments to the confines of the Garden Tower (later known as the Bloody Tower), the boys effectively became prisoners of the crown. While there were initially sightings of the former princes playing in the Tower courtyard, by mid-1483 they had vanished without a trace. The would-be monarchs’ true fate remains a mystery.

While a Flemish man claiming to be Prince Richard would invade England in 1497 and attempt to take the throne, he was later revealed to be a pretender and was executed at the Tower of London. The only clue would come in 1674, when the skeletons of two children were found during renovations to the Tower. While these were never proven to be the bodies of the Princes in the Tower, the discovery fueled speculation that the boys had been murdered, with their uncle Richard III the most likely culprit. Guy Fawkes Guy Fawkes was a soldier and revolutionary who was imprisoned in the Tower of London for his role in the notorious Gunpowder Plot. A militant Catholic, in 1604 Fawkes became embroiled in an audacious plan to assassinate the Protestant King James I and other members of the British government by blowing up the House of Lords. After renting the storage room beneath Westminster Palace, Fawkes and his accomplices packed the cellar with 35 barrels of gunpowder, which they planned to detonate on November 5, 1605, during the opening of Parliament.

The plot was foiled after an anonymous letter led authorities to search the cellar, and Fawkes was captured when he was found guarding the door. He was then sent to the Tower of London and confined to the infamous cell known as the “Little Ease,” a cramped room that prevented its occupant from either standing up straight or lying down. Following intense interrogation and torture—most likely on the rack—Fawkes exposed the other men involved in the plot. Found guilty of treason, he was condemned to be hanged, drawn and quartered at the palace yard at Westminster, but he avoided this gruesome punishment by throwing himself from the gallows and breaking his own neck. The Gunpowder Plot would later become the inspiration for Guy Fawkes Day, a British holiday celebrated every November 5. Lady Jane Grey Lady Jane Grey’s meteoric rise and fall saw her go from ruler of England to a prisoner in the Tower of London in little more than a week. The teenage Grey was installed as queen of England in July 1553 after her cousin Edward VI died without a male heir.

Desperate to thwart his Catholic half-sister Mary’s claim to the throne, Edward VI had chosen Grey as his successor in order to ensure the crown remained under Protestant control. The new queen’s reign would last only nine days. After Mary raised a large band of supporters, the royal government abruptly switched their allegiance and declared her the rightful queen of England. Forced to relinquish the crown, Grey was taken prisoner and moved from the Tower’s royal apartments to the Gentleman Gaoler’s lodgings. While she was kept under constant guard, she was allowed occasional walks around the castle grounds and even given a weekly allowance. Grey was tried and found guilty of treason in November 1553, but was quickly pardoned by Queen Mary I. A final twist of fate came in January 1554, when Grey’s father’s participation in a Protestant rebellion led the royal government to proceed with its death sentence. Grey was then beheaded on the Tower Green on February 12, 1554. Rudolf Hess By the 20th century the Tower of London had primarily become a tourist site and storage facility for the Crown Jewels.

But during World War II the castle was briefly restored to its role as a state prison when it held two high profile Nazis captured on British soil. One of these men was Josef Jakobs, a German spy apprehended in rural England. Jakobs became the last man put to death at the Tower of London when he was executed by a firing squad in August 1941. Even more famous was “Deputy to the Führer” Rudolf Hess, who served as Hitler’s second-in-command in the Nazi Party. Hess was captured in May 1941 after he parachuted into Scotland as part of a renegade plan to negotiate peace with the British. Doubtful of Hess’s motives, Prime Minister Winston Churchill had him sent to the Tower, making him the final state prisoner to be held at the castle. Hess would only remain for a few days, but rumors that he was hidden away in the Tower would persist for several months. Hess was later tried at Nuremberg and given a life sentence. He died at Spandau Prison, West Berlin, in 1987.

Tags 6 Famous Prisoners of the Tower of London Introduction Find out about six prominent captives who did time in one of history’s most forbidding prisons. Anne Boleyn The second wife of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn was twice a resident of the Tower of London—once as a queen-in-waiting and once as a condemned prisoner. Boleyn married Henry in 1533 after the English king defied the Roman Catholic Church and annulled his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Housed in the Tower of London prior to her coronation in June 1533, Boleyn would reign as queen of England for nearly three years. Coupled with courtly intrigue and accusations of infidelity, Boleyn’s failure to give birth to a male heir ultimately proved to be her undoing. Accused of seducing the king into a cursed marriage, in May 1536 she was arrested on trumped-up charges of adultery, treason and even an alleged incestuous affair with her brother. Boleyn was confined to the Lieutenant’s Lodgings of the Tower of London, where she was tried and found guilty.

She was beheaded by a French swordsman on a scaffold at the Tower on May 19, 1536. Catherine Howard, Henry’s fifth wife, would meet a similar fate when she was imprisoned and then executed at the Tower of London in 1542. Sir Walter Raleigh One of the longest-serving prisoners of the Tower of London was the famed Sir Walter Raleigh, who was confined to the citadel for some 13 years. A soldier and explorer who engineered the ill-fated English colony at Roanoke Island, Raleigh was knighted by Elizabeth I in 1585 and became one of the queen’s favorite courtiers. Despite his influential position, Raleigh was briefly imprisoned in the Tower in 1592 when it was revealed that he had secretly wed Elizabeth Throckmorton, one of the queen’s maids of honor. Raleigh was confined to the Tower a second time in 1603 after he was accused of plotting against King James I. Stripped of most of his wealth, he would spend nearly 13 years detained in a part of the castle known as the Bloody Tower.

While he was ostensibly a prisoner, Raleigh’s high social standing ensured that he had comfortable lodgings, and he was even joined in the Tower by his family. During this time he devoted himself to science and writing—composing his “History of the World” in 1614—and also fathered a son. Raleigh was released in 1616 and dispatched to Central America in search of the mythical gold city of El Dorado. The mission proved unsuccessful, and Raleigh was arrested and executed at the block after his forces attacked a Spanish outpost against the orders of the king. The Princes in the Tower Twelve-year-old Prince Edward V and 10-year-old Prince Richard of Shrewsbury—better known as “the Princes in the Tower”—are among the most famous prisoners to have disappeared within the bowels of the Tower of London. The two boys first arrived at the castle in 1483 after the death of their father, King Edward IV. The princes were originally housed in the Tower on the orders of their uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester, but were stripped of their royal titles after the duke invalidated their father’s marriage, declared them illegitimate and claimed the throne for himself as King Richard III.

Moved from their opulent royal apartments to the confines of the Garden Tower (later known as the Bloody Tower), the boys effectively became prisoners of the crown. While there were initially sightings of the former princes playing in the Tower courtyard, by mid-1483 they had vanished without a trace. The would-be monarchs’ true fate remains a mystery. While a Flemish man claiming to be Prince Richard would invade England in 1497 and attempt to take the throne, he was later revealed to be a pretender and was executed at the Tower of London. The only clue would come in 1674, when the skeletons of two children were found during renovations to the Tower. While these were never proven to be the bodies of the Princes in the Tower, the discovery fueled speculation that the boys had been murdered, with their uncle Richard III the most likely culprit. Guy Fawkes Guy Fawkes was a soldier and revolutionary who was imprisoned in the Tower of London for his role in the notorious Gunpowder Plot.

A militant Catholic, in 1604 Fawkes became embroiled in an audacious plan to assassinate the Protestant King James I and other members of the British government by blowing up the House of Lords. After renting the storage room beneath Westminster Palace, Fawkes and his accomplices packed the cellar with 35 barrels of gunpowder, which they planned to detonate on November 5, 1605, during the opening of Parliament. The plot was foiled after an anonymous letter led authorities to search the cellar, and Fawkes was captured when he was found guarding the door. He was then sent to the Tower of London and confined to the infamous cell known as the “Little Ease,” a cramped room that prevented its occupant from either standing up straight or lying down. Following intense interrogation and torture—most likely on the rack—Fawkes exposed the other men involved in the plot. Found guilty of treason, he was condemned to be hanged, drawn and quartered at the palace yard at Westminster, but he avoided this gruesome punishment by throwing himself from the gallows and breaking his own neck.

The Gunpowder Plot would later become the inspiration for Guy Fawkes Day, a British holiday celebrated every November 5. Lady Jane Grey Lady Jane Grey’s meteoric rise and fall saw her go from ruler of England to a prisoner in the Tower of London in little more than a week. The teenage Grey was installed as queen of England in July 1553 after her cousin Edward VI died without a male heir. Desperate to thwart his Catholic half-sister Mary’s claim to the throne, Edward VI had chosen Grey as his successor in order to ensure the crown remained under Protestant control. The new queen’s reign would last only nine days. After Mary raised a large band of supporters, the royal government abruptly switched their allegiance and declared her the rightful queen of England. Forced to relinquish the crown, Grey was taken prisoner and moved from the Tower’s royal apartments to the Gentleman Gaoler’s lodgings. While she was kept under constant guard, she was allowed occasional walks around the castle grounds and even given a weekly allowance. Grey was tried and found guilty of treason in November 1553, but was quickly pardoned by Queen Mary I.

A final twist of fate came in January 1554, when Grey’s father’s participation in a Protestant rebellion led the royal government to proceed with its death sentence. Grey was then beheaded on the Tower Green on February 12, 1554. Rudolf Hess By the 20th century the Tower of London had primarily become a tourist site and storage facility for the Crown Jewels. But during World War II the castle was briefly restored to its role as a state prison when it held two high profile Nazis captured on British soil. One of these men was Josef Jakobs, a German spy apprehended in rural England. Jakobs became the last man put to death at the Tower of London when he was executed by a firing squad in August 1941. Even more famous was “Deputy to the Führer” Rudolf Hess, who served as Hitler’s second-in-command in the Nazi Party. Hess was captured in May 1941 after he parachuted into Scotland as part of a renegade plan to negotiate peace with the British.

Doubtful of Hess’s motives, Prime Minister Winston Churchill had him sent to the Tower, making him the final state prisoner to be held at the castle. Hess would only remain for a few days, but rumors that he was hidden away in the Tower would persist for several months. Hess was later tried at Nuremberg and given a life sentence. He died at Spandau Prison, West Berlin, in 1987. Article Details: 6 Famous Prisoners of the Tower of London Author 6 Famous Prisoners of the Tower of London URL The Tower of London Tour | History The Tower of London Book Now History Of Tower Of London The Tower of London has been, at diverse points in its past, a prison, Royal Palace, a mint, and, possibly most unusually, even a zoo. The White Tower was the initial Tower of London. Begun by William the Conqueror around 1080, it would have made a secure and impressive home for the newly crowned Norman invader. Currently, the most extensive collection of armour in Europe is held in The White Tower, including Henry VIII’s personal armoury.

The Tower of London may have been originally intended as a royal residence – however, it had become a prison by 1100. Some incredibly notable figures in UK history have held strong associations with the Tower. Anne Boleyn was beheaded there and Guy Fawkes was questioned. Lady Jane Grey and Thomas More were incarcerated and buried in the Tower after their executions, giving rise to rumours of hauntings by ghosts within. In 1603, Sir Walter Raleigh wrote his History of the World whilst imprisoned in the Tower of London. Subsequent to the unearthing of the bones of two young boys during Charles II’s reign, the Garden Tower was infamously renamed the Bloody Tower. The Tower of London possesses an extremely tumultuous history and it is suffused with relics of its past. Delve into the fascinating past of this astounding landmark. Ghosts in the Tower of London | Our Haunted Spaces Ghosts in the Tower of London richardsenate-ghosthunter : Anne Boleyn is the best known ghost in the Tower of London but she isn’t alone. She is joined by many others.

Guy Fawkes haunts there were he was “questioned” after the gunpowder plot and Sir Walter Raleigh who walks the tower on nights with a full moon. For 900 years it served as a prison and place of execution. Such things leave a “psychic scar” upon a location or building. Any place were men and women have suffered becomes haunted. Knowing a sites history is helpful to any ghost hunter. If it has a bloody past—odds are good that it’s haunted in some way. Sadly, locations like the tower can be found all over the world. Share this: Tower of London - the towers England > London > Tower of London > Tower of London towers Tower of London by Kathy McGillick The Tower of London is a combination of buildings begun during the time of William the Conqueror. Originally built as a fortress, to keep hostile Londoners at bay it was also used to sight approaching enemies on the Thames River. It has been used as a palace, a library, a mint, a treasury, a bank, an arsenal and an observatory. The most famous reputation is that of a prison.

There are several towers within the Tower of London, the oldest part of the building and the most conspicuous being the White Tower [which was named during the 13th-century when Henry III had it whitewashed}. This is the central keep built by William the Conqueror and completed by his sons William Rufus and Henry I. The walls of the White Tower are 15 feet thick and it is 90 feet high. Of interest is that one of the Four Corners (turrets) contained the first royal observatory. The White Tower currently contains the Chapel of St. John, one of the few unchanged areas where the Royal Family and the court worshipped and where the knights of the Order of Bath spent their Vigil the night before the king or queen was crowned. The White tower also contains an exhibition of arms, armor and torture instruments. The Middle Tower was built in the 13th century and the archway, together with Byward Tower and Bloody Tower were defended by portcullises (spiked like gates), two of which are still there. The Bloody Tower was originally known as the Garden Tower.

[The name Bloody Tower, however, is only traced back to 1571] It was here that two little princes Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York, were supposedly murdered in 1483 with orders from Richard Duke of Gloucester, who was subsequently crowned Richard III. Many years later, during the reign of Charles II, two sets of bones of young boys were found under a stairway (the presiding king ordered the bodies buried in Westminster Abbey) and thus the name Bloody Tower came about due to treachery and murder within its walls. In 1603 Sir Walter Raleigh became a prisoner here - the period during which he wrote his History of the World, but he was kept "prisoner" in what was considered "comfortable circumstances". He was released in 1616 and died in 1618 when James I had him beheaded. The Wakefield Tower is where Henry VI (founded Eton and Cambridge University) was brutally murdered. In 1471, during the time of the 'Wars of the Roses' - England's medieval civil war, he was stabbed to death while praying.

The Wakefield Tower housed the Crown Jewels from 1879-1967 but it is now an empty tower. Important prisoners were kept in Beauchamp Tower, where the inside walls are still covered with graffiti and inscriptions carved by the prisoners. The most elaborate is a memorial to the five Dudley brothers, one of whom was Lord Guilford Dudley, husband of Lady Jane Grey - the pair was executed in 1554. The Tower Green is where two of Henry III's queens and several other people at his request were beheaded. It was a rare honor to be beheaded inside the tower; most people were executed outside on Tower Hill, so the crowds who enjoyed such events could get a better view. The Traitor's Gate was originally known as Water Gate but the name was changed when it began to be used as a landing place for traitors. This is where the prisoner boats arrived, many hoping they would be ransomed or pardoned. In more modern times, German spies were executed in the courtyards during the two World Wars, and in 1941, Hitler's deputy - Rudolph Hess, was actually imprisoned in the Tower.

The Jewel House is where you'll find the Crown Jewels, a collection of gold, silver, precious stones and other royal regalia. The Chapel Royal and St. Peter ad Vincula is the oldest chapel royal in England. It is in this chapel that most of those who died on Tower Hill and six of the seven executed on Tower Green were laid to rest under flagstones without ceremony. Between the Chapel and Tower Green is a small paved area where a scaffold was erected for beheadings. The six people beheaded on the site were three queens of England: Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard, and Lady Jane Grey. The Queens House built around 1530, probably by the second queen of England and mother of Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn . She lived there only 18 days as a prisoner while awaiting execution and was beheaded on Tower Green for alleged infidelity. It is used now as the Council Chamber and it is here that Guy Fawkes was interrogated before being tortured on the rack in the White Tower and signing a confession incriminating his fellow conspirators. Adjoining the Council Chamber is a room in which William Penn (who founded Pennsylvania) was once a prisoner.

The Martin Tower was built by Henry III and is famous as the scene of Colonel Thomas Blood's attempt to steal the crown jewels. King Edward's son returning from abroad interrupted him and his accomplices. The Salt Tower is another tower built by Henry III about 1235. Later it was used as a prison for Jesuits. It also contains a number of inscriptions, the most notable one being a complicated diagram for casting horoscopes cut into the stone wall . In several places on the walls a pierced heart, hand and foot have been carved signifying the wounds of Christ- with a cross and H the sign of the Jesuits. The Bell Tower was built in the 13th century. In the past when the bell at its top was rung in alarm, drawbridges were raised, the portcullises were dropped and gates were shut. The only time the bell is now rung is in the evening to warn visitors that it is time to leave. Prisoners were kept in the tower. One of the most famous was Sir Thomas Moore, who was at one time a close friend of Henry VIII.

More refused to acknowledge the validity of Henry's divorce from Catherine of Aragon or acknowledge him as supreme head of the Church, and in consequence he was imprisoned there in 1534. He was executed in July 1535 and buried in St. Peters Chapel. Later, one of Henry's own children was imprisoned there - princess Elizabeth (later Elizabeth I) In 1554 Elizabeth was held by her half sister Mary I on suspicion of being concerned in a plot against the throne. Final Destination - Death At The Tower | Culture24 Final Destination - Death At The Tower By Richard Moss Article The Tower of London © Jon Pratty/24 Hour Museum 1000 years of the nation's history has been played out within the walls of the Tower of London. Built by William the Conqueror, the fortress has borne silent witness to the execution of Queen Anne Boleyn, the interrogation of Guy Fawkes, the incarceration of Walter Raleigh and the murder of the Princes in the Tower. But it has an even darker, more recent history - spies were executed in the Tower during World Wars I and II.

Between 1914 and 1916, eleven German spies were imprisoned to await their death. By firing squad, either in the 'shed of death' (the miniature rifle range - since demolished), or strapped to the 'killing chair' and despatched in the castle moat. Despite the Tower's fearsome reputation, German spies were actually the first people to be executed here since the late Tudor period and the first without 'Royal connections.' © Jon Pratty/24 Hour Museum A little known fact is that during the First World War, the Tower of London remained open to visitors. The firing squads usually despatched the condemned with a volley at 7am. They were the first executions at the tower since that of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, beheaded for treason in 1601. Government held the belief that executions in the Tower of London would have more impact, both at home and in Germany, than those in HM Prisons. © Jon Pratty/24 Hour Museum Josef Jakobs was the last person executed at the tower.

Caught and accused of spying for Germany after he broke his leg during a parachute drop, he was executed on the rifle range on 15 August 1941. Another fourteen German spies were hanged, either at London's Pentonville or Wandsworth prisons, during the Second World War. Three British nationals were also executed during the war for spying or treachery. Close this window to return to the narrative All tags BBC News | ENGLAND | Tower of London ghosts hunted Thursday, 25 October, 2001, 15:39 GMT 16:39 UK Tower of London ghosts hunted The ghost hunters are using high-tech equipment The spectral presence of Sir Walter Raleigh is among a host of celebrated phantoms being sought by ghost hunters at the Tower of London in the run up to Halloween. It is supposedly one of the most haunted collection of buildings in Britain. Using high-tech equipment, the paranormal investigators hope to capture an image of the English explorer and adventurer who was famed for once placing his cloak in the mud allowing Queen Elizabeth I to cross.

Ghosts at Tower of London Thomas a Becket Lady Jane Grey Guy Fawkes Any ghostly goings on at the Tower will be filmed and relayed out to the world via the internet, enabling members of the public to watch from the comfort of their own homes. To kick off the event, actor Paul Darrow, from Blake's 7 and Claudia Christian, from Babylon 5, will present a one-hour live broadcast from the Tower at midnight on October 26 on UK Horizons. Ross Hemsworth, 44, and Andy Matthews, 36, are set to head the first ever hunt of its kind for the ghostly apparitions of former Tower residents. The idea of headless ghosts and clanking chains is old hat to us Andy Matthews The pair, from Bedfordshire-based Galaxy Productions, a TV production company, are working in conjunction with BBC Worldwide. They will be using temperature gauges, "black cameras" which turn night-time into day and infra-red light, to try to capture any haunted happenings.

Their equipment will be trained on four of the Tower's most infamous locations, including Sir Walter Raleigh's study in the Bloody Tower, the Bell Tower, the Chapel of St Peter Ad Vincula and the Beauchamp Tower. Scientific approach Mr Matthews said: "We try to take a scientific and logical point of view rather than sit in a dark room with a candle hoping something will turn up. "The idea of headless ghosts and clanking chains is old hat to us. What we've discovered is that these phenomena are a lot more subtle than that." He added that in earlier projects they had captured a number of "wonderful" images including strange orbs of light. Ross Hemsworth and Andy Matthews go ghost hunting Mr Hemsworth said they disproved about 90% of the phenomena they filmed, but there was still about 10% they couldn't explain. He said: "I'm a lot less sceptical than when I started and if there were such a thing as a physical apparition then I would really like to see Sir Walter Raleigh." Most haunted buildings The earliest known sighting of a ghost at the Tower was that of St Thomas a Becket in the 13th century.

Since then the spectres of the Little Princes, Queen Anne Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey and Guy Fawkes have been seen. The pre-Halloween ghost watch at the Tower was prompted by the success of a similar event at Hampton Court Palace last year. Filming in the Tower will continue until Sunday, with any findings going out on a live web cast at Visitors to the Tower will not be able to join in the overnight escapades, but they can see the cameras and hear spooky stories from Beefeaters at the Tower between 4pm and 6pm over the weekend. See also: In Search Of London's Execution Sites | Londonist In Search Of London's Execution Sites By M@ Last edited 60 months ago M@ In Search Of London's Execution Sites The Southbank Centre's Festival of Death starts later this month. Not to be outdone in the morbid department, we thought we'd put together a guide to London's many execution sites. The Tower and Tower Hill Little known fact: very few people have lost their heads inside the Tower complex. Public executions took place on nearby Tower Hill, until the final beheading in 1747.

Here were dispatched various dukes, earls, knights and nobles, including Sir Thomas More and his nemesis Thomas Cromwell. 125 unfortunates are recorded on a plaque in the nearby memorial garden . The adjacent Hung, Drawn and Quartered pub recalls the grisly history. The Tower itself was historically reserved for the super-celebs. Only seven executions are recorded on Tower Green, within the complex. These include the termination of three queens: Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and Jane Grey. The historic palace was last used as a place of execution within living memory, when German spy Josef Jakobs was killed by firing squad on 15 August 1941. Tyburn Probably London's most overworked place of execution, Tyburn gallows operated between 1196 and 1783. The site, close to Marble Arch, is of ancient significance: the junction where Edgware Road meets Bayswater Road dates to Roman times. The notorious Tyburn Tree – a three-sided gallows that once accommodated 24 felons simultaneously – was erected in 1571. It became a landmark of such notoriety that it even appeared on maps .

Famous stretch-necks include pretender to the throne Perkin Warbeck, Georgian n'er-do-wells Jack Sheppard and Jonathan Wild, and the exhumed corpse of Oliver Cromwell. A simple plaque now marks the site. Lincoln’s Inn Fields Today, this haunt of lawyers, surgeons and cancer researchers is as tranquil a space as you'll find in central London. If you could step back to Tudor times, however, you might witness some of the most gruesome executions the city has ever seen . Would-be regicide Anthony Babington met his protracted end here. Brutally. "...There to be hanged and cut down alive, and your body shall be opened, your heart and bowels plucked out, and your privy members cut off and thrown into the fire before your eyes. Then your head to be stricken off from your body, and your body shall be divided into 4 quarters, to be disposed of at (the Queen's) pleasure." Rumour has it that the unenviable Babington was still conscious as his 'privy members' hit the flames.

100 years later, the condemned Lord William Russell received little better under the axe of Jack Ketch, whose first blow missed the neck and cleaved off much of the vexed peer's shoulder. There's no monument, but some say the site of the executions is now marked by the bandstand. Newgate Prison Following the closure of the Tyburn gallows in 1783, the area outside Newgate Prison became the main site of capital punishment, eliminating at a stroke the raucous parades that often accompanied the condemned person on his or her final journey. The sight of a dangling corpse became rarer , but was still a popular spectacle. The final public execution took place in 1868, after which hangings were carried out within the prison and away from the populace. The prison was demolished in 1902 and the site is now covered by the Old Bailey. View London Execution Sites in a larger map Execution Dock Malefactors of a more nautical persuasion were sentenced to hang at Wapping's Execution Dock . Pirates, smugglers, mutineers and their ilk were hanged over the water from a shortened noose, ensuring a slow death from asphyxiation.

By tradition, their bodies were then left until at least three tides had washed over them. Captain Kidd is the most famous example. His body was later displayed at Tilbury for over 20 years. The location of Execution Dock is a matter of debate, but what is now Wapping station is one leading contender. A commemorative noose dangles from the rear of the Prospect of Whitby pub. Smithfield The age-old meat market on the north-western fringes of the City is a site of butchery in more ways than one. Revolting peasant Wat Tyler was famously put to the sword by the Lord Mayor hereabouts, although that was more of a politically motivated murder than a planned execution. The area came to be known as something of a health hazard for anyone who disagreed with the monarch. William Wallace met his end here in 1305, via the now-familiar hanged-drawn-quartered technique. A memorial to the shouty Scot is still visited by flower-laying patriots to this day. A couple of centuries later, Smithfield was also the scene of religious executions, when Bloody Mary I condemned at least 50 Protestants to death by burning (also commemorated with a plaque ).

Swindlers and confidence tricksters were occasionally boiled to death in oil. Nice place, Smithfield. Stratford-le-Bow More Marian burnings took place in Stratford, or nearby Bow...accounts differ, although a leading theory cites Fairfield Road north of Bow church. In any case, "Eleven men and two women, later known as the Stratford Martyrs, were brought from Newgate and burnt at the stake on a single fire for their 'protestant beliefs'." A memorial outside St John's church lists 18 people killed in Stratford (plus two more at Smithfield and one at Ware). Foxe's Book of Martyrs includes a related burning out in Uxbridge, for which another memorial exists. St Paul's Churchyard Perhaps the most unlikely site in our list, St Paul's Cathedral has nevertheless been the site of several executions. Following the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, four conspirators were dispatched in the churchyard by hanging and disembowelment. A Jesuit priest, Henry Garnet , was also implicated in the plot and executed at the cathedral at a later date. The exact site is uncertain.

Old Palace Yard Four of the remaining Gunpowder Plotters, including Guy Fawkes himself, were executed the day after the St Paul's hangings. The chosen site was Old Palace Yard , just outside Westminster Hall. The malefactors were again hanged, drawn and quartered. Sir Walter Raleigh also met his end here in 1618. Banqueting Hall balcony One of the most famous executions in London's history took place a few hundred metres from the Gunpowder hangings. Testy monarch Charles I — son of James I, the target of the Gunpowder plotters — was beheaded on a specially prepared scaffold outside the Banqueting House on Whitehall. The building exists to this day, and a small memorial bust of the king can be found outside. The eagle-eyed will spy a more subtle memorial to Charles across the road. The clock of the Horseguards building carries a black mark next to the number 2, the hour of the royal execution. You'll also find an equestrian statue of the king at the northern end of Whitehall, looking towards Banqueting House.

Charing Cross With the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660, the newly instated Charles II showed little leniency to those who'd eliminated his father Charles I. In October of that year, eight regicides were hanged, drawn and quartered at a specially erected gibbet in Charing Cross. Kennington Common A popular choice for executions south of the river until 1800, Kennington Common (now Kennington Park) most famously saw the deaths of 17 Jacobite rebels following the 1745 uprising. A grisly account of their hanging and disembowelment can be found here . Pentonville prison Capitalpunishment.co.uk notes that 120 men were executed at the north London prison between 1902 and 1961, all by hanging, and mostly for murder, although two were for treason and six for spying. Pentonville carried out more 20th Century executions than any other prison in England and Wales. Notable customers include Dr Crippen and John Reginald Christie. Holloway prison Following the closure of Newgate in 1902, Holloway took on responsibility for imprisonment and execution of female felons.

Five women were executed here between 1903 and 1955, a third of all executions in England and Wales during that period, concluding with the death of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain. Horsemonger Lane Gaol South London's principal execution site was the Horsemonger Lane Gaol , near what is now Newington Causeway. Between 1800 and 1877, 135 people were put to death here. Wandsworth prison The other major execution prison was at Wandsworth . Between 1878 and 1961, 134 men and women were executed on the gallows, including 10 spies and 2 traitors. The most high-profile was perhaps William Joyce , the WWII Nazi propagandist known as Lord Haw-Haw. Fetter Lane A little-known execution site existed on the corner of Fetter Lane and Fleet Street. Catholic priest and accused traitor Christopher Bales was hanged here in 1590, while alleged colluder Alexander Blake met his end in Gray's Inn Lane. With many thanks to London Remembers for the initial idea and plenty of information.

Please let us know below if you think we've missed anywhere. Last Updated 11 January 2012 Click for Comments (16 so far) Johnboyy There is a popular rumour in this part of South East London that highway men (when caught) were hung at the crossroads on Shooters Hill, by the old Police Station. Martin There were executions during the 18th Century outside the Salmon and Ball pub (which still stands) in Bethnal Green outside where the tube now sits (corner of Cambridge Heath Rd and Bethnal Green Road). Apparently those hung were trialled for 'cutting' which was related to the weaving industry which grew up in the area prior to Bethnal Green becoming a slum in the 19th Century.. Chris There is also an execution site at St Thomas a Waterings, now the junction of the Old Kent Road and Albany Road. A number of protestant martyrs were executed here in Mary's reign. LoveLondonMuseums I believe there is also a place in Narrow Street behind the pubs on the river Thames. David Brown Three priests on Clerkenwell Green.

And as it was quite common to execute people near the scene of the crime, many other places around the City were used for executions. One other place was the standard in the middle of Cheapside - often used for less severe punishments like cutting off ears and hands, but I believe some executions as well. LovesLondon Londonpeculiar ....what about St Giles and Hounslow Heath. Roques map shows a gibbet in Shepherds bush , Cricklewood and on Hampstead Heath Tim Hitchcock It was a relative commonplace in the eighteenth-century and before, to condem criminals to be executed at the site of the crime. As a result many streets in London were 'execution' sites. I would particularly recommend Matthew White's new article on the executions following the Gordon Riots, which deals with this issue in some detail. It should be out in the next month or so, in a volume edited by John Seed and Ian Hayward and published by CUP - Molly H Shame they couldn't use the right sort of rope at 'Execution Dock'. We've not used a western knot for judicial executions in this country since the middle ages.

Wendy Anyone who has studied ancient mythology will know that regicide and human sacrifice - often the virginal maiden (Lady Jane Gray) - including cutting the body to pieces, was a barbaric practice supposedly to ensure the fertility of the land. This purpose seems to have got obscured into finding criminals or non-favourite royals to fill the post. Gradually, it became the favoured means to keep society 'civilised' as part of the judicial system. It is quite amazing that we have only been free of the death sentence for 57 years, although we still tolerate a degree of torture, it seems. Very interesting article. London Remembers Great article, Matt. Now with the Tower of London added we have researched over 60 executees so we have created a special London Remembers category for them. Without these poor sods London history would be a duller topic. Incidentally there are some memorials to martyrs, not at their place of execution, such as the Carthusian Martyrs at Charterhouse Square, . Another highwayman's gallows is reported on WP at Winchmore Hill, outside the Green Dragon pub.

Rahere And anther one nearby, Church Hill Southgate was originally named Gallows Hill, the gallows being near Grovelands Park

Question: Where were Walter Raleigh, Anne Boleyn, and Guy Fawkes imprisoned?
Answer: Tower of London