The Queen's House and the Memorial to the Executed...Day 5r

                                 View of the Queen's House from the White Tower...

 


The Queen's House, built by Henry VIII for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, then refurbished for his second wife, Anne Boleyn, who enjoyed it in the days prior to her coronation and not so much in the days after her arrest. Lady Jane Grey was also held here, after her short nine day reign as Queen of England.

The Tower Green, in front of the Queen's House, was reserved for the executions of the most high profile cases, such as members of royalty or of the nobility. Only seven people were beheaded here within the walls of the Tower of London, including three queens: Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard and Lady Jane Grey. The other executions took place in various locations through out London such as Tower Hill (which was actually outside the walls of the castle complex) Tyburn, Smithfield, Charing Cross, and Westminster.

The method of execution by beheading was thought to be more humane than the other methods of the time and were generally reserved for people of noble or royal birth. Generally, the axe was the instrument used for the beheading. Very rarely, a sword was used, as in the execution of Anne Boleyn. Henry was thoughtful enough to bring in a skilled swordsman from France. Quite big of him.


 



Another view of the Tower Green...from the opposite direction...The Jewel House is in the center while the chapel is the building to the left.

                      Memorial on the site of the execution...Tower Green...Tower of London

Inscribed on the memorial:

"Gentle visitor pause a while, where you stand death cut away the light of many days.  Here jewelled names were broken from the vivid thread of life.  May they rest in peace while we walk the generations around their strife and courage under these restless skies."
~ Brian Catling, who was also the artist responsible for the memorial

 Those people beheaded on or near this site were:
William Hastings
Anne Boleyn
Margaret Pole
Catherine Howard
Jane Boleyn
Jane Grey
Robert Devereux







Chapel Royal of St. Peter ad Vincula where the remains of those beheaded on the Tower Green were interred.