“My prisoner, or my guest?” (from Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale)

The Tower of London has a history that stretches back almost 1,000 years.

This fortress is made up of many buildings, including: The White Tower, the Martin Tower, and the Bloody Tower. Each tower and building has its own story.

We learned why the Tower of London was important to the kings and queens of Shakespeare’s lifetime and those in his plays. For example, Shakespeare’s play, Richard III, may have been inspired by the history of the Bloody Tower. This gruesome tale is explained in our video.

Some people believe the Tower of London is haunted. The most famous ghost sighting is Anne Boleyn, who was executed on the Tower Green.

Clink Prison Museum: Next, we headed to Southwark to learn about crime and punishment at Clink Prison Museum.

The Clink Prison was located next to the Thames River. The building was so low and near the river that water would flood the bottom of prisoners’ cells. This meant some prisoners suffered from foot rot from standing in the dirty water.

Some people think that the Clink Prison got its name because of the sound the prisoners’ chains made when they clinked together.

Our guide, James, told us about punishments for the crimes that threatened England. Then, he showed us some torture devices. We learned that torture was used to get important information from prisoners. Other punishments, like being kept alone, were payment for crimes committed.

Yikes!

Who’s Hungry: Let’s Eat!

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