I’m so glad that you all enjoyed my recent post on Anne Boleyn’s Execution Site and the scaffold memorial. Thanks for all your comments and emails and I’m pleased that I’ve been able to help those of you planning a visit to the Tower.
It suddenly struck me that some of you visiting the Tower of London may miss out on seeing the scaffold site on Tower Hill because this is actually outside the Tower of London, so I just wanted to remind you to visit that before or after you have a look around the Tower.
The Tower Hill scaffold site is where a permanent scaffold was located. This permanent scaffold was erected in 1485 for public executions and was the scaffold on which the likes of Edward Stafford (Duke of Buckingham), Thomas More, John Fisher, Thomas Cromwell, Edward Seymour, Sir Thomas Wyatt the Younger, Thomas Howard (4th Duke of Norfolk) and the Duke of Monmouth were executed. It is now a cobbled square area which has plaques listing some of those who died on that spot. It also has a plaque which reads:-
“To commemorate the tragic history and in many cases the martyrdom of those who for the sake of their faith, country or ideals staked their lives and lost. On this site more than 125 were put to death, the names of some of whom are recorded here.”
It is sobering to read through the names and to stand on a spot of such violence and tragedy. Please make sure you visit it and pay your respects. Here are my photos of the plaques:-
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You can see the location of the Tower Hill scaffold memorial at http://wikimapia.org/9272387/Tower-Hill-scaffold-site.
Note: Do remember that Anne Boleyn, Catherine Howard, Jane Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey, Margaret Pole and Robert Devereux (the Earl of Essex) were not killed on this spot, but were given private executions within the Tower grounds.
