ceremony of the keys...

An hour after getting home from Blackpool we went back into the city to the Tower of London - after dark - after closing! We went to see the Ceremony of the Keys, which is a nightly tradition of locking up the Tower, and basically therefore the Crown Jewels.

We had a Beefeater (Yeomen Warder!) talk us through why they still do it (tradition and the Jewels). Basically a beefeater locks two sets of gates, and is then escorted through the grounds by guards - who also carries his lantern. He is halted by another guard who asks them to state their business, they says they have the keys - who's keys - Queen Elizabeths keys, and they are allowed to pass.

It was all rather theatrical, with lots of stomping boots on the cobblestones, but mind blowing to watch something that has been done every night without fail (even through the Blitz) since the 14th century....

The pics are the White Tower inside the castle (we weren't allowed to take pics of the ceremony), and the outside of the castle.