The Tower of London,
officially Her
Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a
historic castle located on the north bank of the River Thames in
central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets,
separated from the eastern edge of the square mile of the City of
London by the open space known as Tower Hill. It was founded towards
the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest of England. The White
Tower, which gives the entire castle its name, was built by William the
Conqueror in 1078 and was a resented symbol of oppression, inflicted
upon London by the new ruling elite. The castle was used as a prison
from 1100 (Ranulf Flambard) until 1952 (Kray twins) although that was
not its primary purpose. A grand palace early in its history, it served
as a royal residence. As a whole, the Tower is a complex of several
buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a
moat. There were several phases of expansion, mainly under Kings
Richard I, Henry III, and Edward I in the 12th and 13th centuries. The
general layout established by the late 13th century remains despite
later activity on the site. There is a separate virtual tour of the
Tower of London on the Westminster web page.