The Tower of London.

Last summer I went to Scotland and England with my mom and some friends. While we were in London we did some sightseeing and one of the places that we saw was the Tower of London. I didn't explore the entire palace, but I did get to see the building where the Crown Jewels were kept. I was hoping to buy this book at the Tower gift shop but didn't see it there. This book definitely adds to my experience of seeing some of the sights in England that I have wanted to see for a long time. I just started reading the book and I will enjoy learning about the history of the Tower.

I bought another book by Parnell about the Tower (The Tower of Londong Past & Present) that basically consisted of the past 150 years of photographs of the Tower. I was a little disappointed by that book because I wanted juicy history. As a result, I was a little hesitant to order this book without really knowing anything. Let me tell you- this book is FABULOUS. It is a thorough history of the Tower chock-full of photographs of the Tower and its archaelogical finds, paintings representing the history of the Tower, diagrams, writings, you name it. There's even a picture of the head of Simon of Sudbury. The book is broken down into two parts. The first part is "The Tower in the Middle Ages" which is largely architectural information about the start and development of the castles, covering the years AD 43 to 1485. Of course, the architectural info only makes sense in light of the political and social realities that dictated the Tower's structure, and there is plenty of that info as well. The second section continues telling the story of the physical history of the Tower, but talks more about its functions (royal lodgings, arsenal, prison, etc.). "The Tower and its Institutions" covers the years 1485 through 2000 and really covers the role of the Tower in the history of England. The history provided about the Tower is incredibly thorough and detailed. If you are planning a trip to England, I highly recommend reading this book before you meander through the Tower- it will really let you know what you are seeing so you could appreciate it better. If you've read a lot of British history and just want to see the places where some of that history took place, you'll really appreciate this book. I'm so excited about this book I can't stand it.A small caveat- this is a history of the Tower, and not a story about the history of England that took place in the Tower. For example, this book does not discuss the fact that Henry the VI was likely killed in the Wakefield Tower in the Tower of London, even though there is a picture of the oratory where tradition says his murder occured (at least, if it's in there, I missed it).But this is a small complaint- there is plenty of information about the beginnings, growth, development, political role, and all kinds of other good stuff. I've looked a while for a good book on the Tower and so far this is the best one!

I was a little disappointed in this book mostly because I didn't read the description carefully enough. A book that shows the history of the Tower of London in photographs can really only show, say, the last 150 years of changes. Given the thousand years of Tower history, the information this book provides is from a somewhat narrow time frame. I recommend it as long as you know what you are getting into because the changes to the Tower really are fascinating- but if you want to "experience" the eras of Anne Boelyn or the Princes in the Tower, look elsewhere.