The Ancient Ceremony of the Keys - Tower of London, England

 I love strolling the London waterfront at night, everything is bright and sparkly and the glittery reflections in the Thames are sublime. It is well worth a trip into central London purely to see how pretty and different the city looks by night and to, maybe, enjoy a drink at a riverside bar while watching the passing boats. But lovely and all as the night views are, my son, two daughters in law and I were excited to be at the Tower of London to witness the Ceremony of the Keys.  

 

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This is not some sort of  'tourism' performance, this is a serious ceremony to ensure the security of the tower which holds many precious artifacts including the priceless crown jewels. It has taken place every night for around 700 years, never missing a night and  being late on only one occasion which was during the London Blitz when two warders were blown off their feet but nevertheless got up and proceeded with the ceremony.

The Tower of London

Photo: TurnipNet

We were amongst a group of 40-50 visitors admitted to the tower at 9.30pm precisely and were escorted to stand silently beside Water Lane leading up from the entry gate.    The Chief Yeoman Warder, dressed in a bright red Tudor uniform, gave us a talk on the history of the ceremony and what we could expect to see.  He was very entertaining and amusing nevertheless giving serious instructions we were required to follow, it is a serious ceremony after all. He than made his way down to the Byward Tower and emerged at exactly 7 minutes to 10 carrying a lantern lit by a single candle in one hand, and the kings keys in the other hand. He marched to the archway of the Bloody Tower where an escort was waiting. He handed his lantern to the bugler and he and the escort marched down to the tower gates, the keys being saluted by all guards and sentries on duty as they passed. Watched by the escort the Chief Yeoman Warder locked both the inner and outer gates and then, with the escort, returned back up along Water Lane to the Wakefield Tower. At this point a sentry appeared out of the darkness to challenge him with:

"Halt, who goes there"  The Yeoman Warder replied: "The Keys"  The sentry then asked "Whose keys?" the Yeoman Warder replied "King Charles' keys" the sentry then replied, "Pass then, all is well"

They then marched back under the Bloody Tower into the inner courtyard where members of the Tower Guard were waiting. We were summoned to follow. At this point the Chief Yeoman Warder raised his Tudor bonnet high into the air proclaiming  "God preserve King Charles".  The guard replied "Amen" exactly as the clock struck 10pm and then the bugler played the Last Post.  The Chief Yeoman Warder took the keys back to the kings representative at the tower for overnight safe keeping and the guard was dismissed. At this point visitors were escorted from the tower at 10.05pm.

I found this to be a spine tingling experience, a real step back in time and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Standing in the dark of Water Lane and witnessing a ceremony pretty much unchanged for 700 years was eerie and unforgettable. Photography and videoing is not permitted which makes the ceremony all the more special.  There is no clicking and jostling and everyone stands in respectful silence absorbed in what is happening before them. Silently observing my surroundings before the ceremony started and pondering the fate of some who were imprisoned within the tower was sobering. I thought especially of the princes in the tower, King Edward V and his younger brother, Richard, Duke of York, who were imprisoned by their uncle at the ages of 12 and 9 and were never seen again.  Their uncle wanted to be rid of them so he could claim the throne and did so becoming Richard III. I imagined the little princes peering out on to Water Lane where we were standing and I prayed that terrible deeds, such as their suspected murder, wouldn't happen again. As an aside, when I was at high school the school held an evening where famous paintings were presented by the students as tableau.  I was one of the princes in the tower as portrayed in the famous painting by Millais. This led me to be interested in their history so standing opposite the tower in silence thinking of them was a moving experience.

Tickets are issued to only between 40 and 50 people per night and are hard to come by.  You must book weeks in advance which, thanks to my London based son he had done. No late comers are admitted.  If you are visiting London, really want to feel a part of British history and to experience a unique ceremony I highly recommend this.  I have visited London many times and had never experienced this before but am very glad I did.  The ceremony lasts just a few minutes and visitors are only within the tower for half an hour but it is so well worth while.

For tickets go to : www.hrp.org.uk 

They go on sale on the first of the month for the following month but sell out very quickly.  They are a nominal 5 pounds.