The Royal Armouries

Leave this room and follow the signs to the exhibition of weapons and armour in the Royal Armouries Museum.

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If you prefer to pass rapidly through this room you can skip over our commentary which deals essentially with the display of armour, and we’ll meet up with you again at the next chapter entitled “The Royal Lineage”. However if you’re interested in armour, this vast room houses a display of full suits of armour. In actual fact, in the 15th century, the castle’s keep was abandoned by the kings who preferred the more comfortable residence of Saint James’ Palace and subsequently Whitehall. The large chambers we’ve visited here were transformed into arms depots which is why they were later transformed into the arms museum. Look at the central display. This is the 16th century mounted suit of armour of Henry the 8th. The 1st exhibit shows both horse and rider covered in their armour. A horse was a precious possession not to be lost on the battlefield and its body had to be protected from blows. As you can see, the armour covered all areas of the horse’s body with the exception of its legs. This obviously was the animal’s weak point and for this reason a unit of soldiers was set up to cut at the horse’s shanks with sickles. Once the horse fell, the rider remained on the ground weighed down by his cumbersome armour. The shank-cutters were followed by armed soldiers who captured or killed the grounded horsemen. With armour, as with everything else, elegance was essential and it was often designed in the form of a cloak. As for the choice of horse, they certainly wouldn’t have been some frisky parade beast but rather solidly built animals. Cavalcades and galloping would have been avoided at all costs so as not to exhaust the horse. The shock sustained at the moment of combat was very violent. Take a look at the lance and how long it is. During tournaments it would have been held by the knight at the thickest part. He would have wedged it under his arm against his armour whilst endeavouring to keep it balanced.

On the opposite wall is a portrait of the 16th century Tudor monarch King Henry the 8th. During his reign, the Tower was used exclusively as a prison and several of his wives were imprisoned and beheaded here. The unrest that followed his decision to take personal supremacy of the Church of England from the Pope meant that the royal jails were soon overflowing. One of the more celebrated prisoners was Thomas More who opposed both the king’s self-appointment as leader of the Church and his divorce from Catherine of Aragon. The Earl of Essex was also imprisoned here, ironically after being entrusted with the renovation of the defences and weaponry of the Tower. Proceed now to the far left of the room where you’ll see a magnificent set of armour offered to the King of England by a Japanese warlord at the beginning of the 17th century. This suit of armour is in fact very different from the others we’ve see as not a single piece of metal is visible. This is a dress suit and is made entirely of silk.

Opposite this piece are 2 wooden busts dating from the 17th century. The one on the left supported by ropes is holding a mug of gin in his hand. His companion on the right is holding a mug of beer - the 2 favourite drinks of soldiers, often consumed without moderation to give them courage. These 2 figures, which originally stood over the entrance of the arms factory in Greenwich, are called “gin” and “beer” and are the troops mascots.

We’ll leave you to wander round the room for a while.

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