Tower, by Nigel Jones

When I travelled to London to work on my Master’s thesis, one of the major tourist activities I wanted to do was a visit to the Tower of London.  I was so gung-ho about it, that my plan was to land at Heathrow, go to my hotel and drop off my stuff (since I would be hours early for check-in), then head to the Tower.  I figured this would be a great plan to cross something of my ‘must-see’ list and avoid jet-lag.  Things didn’t quite work like that….  On the flight from Canada to the UK, I took a combination of OTC meds that were guaranteed to knock me out so I could sleep; but the usual effectiveness was ruined by taking them at 6pm my time, flight attendants, seat mates, and the white noise of the plane (which I find really loud and not at all soothing).  I landed in London, cleared customs, and then took the Tube into town, dragging behind me a massive suite-case stuffed with an office supply store (I was going to work for a full week in the archives), while making a couple of line transfers.  All while suffering the nausea brought on by the OTCs, too little sleep, and the anxiety of travelling alone in a new place.

By the time I got to my hotel, I was almost in tears I was so anxious.  I dropped my bags as planned, washed my face and brushed my teeth in the lobby bathroom, then sat down with my guidebook to see about visiting the Tower.  And promptly nodded in and out of sleep for the next three hours.  I must have looked really sketchy to the guest that were coming and going… but it sure did encourage management to get my room ready as quickly as possible.  Checked in, I headed to my room, took a shower, and had a nap.  Any plans for a visit to the Tower were put on hold.  I realized my initial thoughts of hitting the ground running were ambitious, and I little naïve – I lesson I tried imparting to my dad the next year during out trip to Germany, with very little success.  

All that to say, I have a special place in my history-nerd heart for the Tower of London.  As a British historian, the Tower is a symbol of the continuity of England, Britain and Empire; it’s stood for centuries and was the load-stone for much of the power-base and decision makers over the centuries.  So, while doing my usual peruse through the History section at the local Chapters, my latest read, Tower: An Epic History of the Tower of London by Nigel Jones caught my attention.  At 400 pages, the book certainly did seem epic, so I was excited to pick it up and get into the nitty-gritty of the Tower’s existence.  

The Tower of London got its official start after the Norman invasion of 1066.  The iconic White Tower that we all associate with the Tower of London is of Norman design, and was built in order to intimidate the local populace into accepting the foreign rule of William the Conqueror.  Since the 11^th century, the Tower has been expanded upon, redesigned, rebuilt, and revitalized in its multiple roles, multiple times; since its foundation, the Tower has acted as fort, royal palace, religious centre, mint, munitions store, zoo, prison, torture centre, execution site, and home for thousands.  While it is commonly know as the Tower of London, the site is actually a large complex of multiple towers, fortress-like walls, and support buildings.  Originally at the east end of London (and now at its heart), the Tower was an important piece of the daily life of Londoners, Englishmen and women, and Britons since its foundations were set.

My main problem with this book is that the Tower is presented almost as a background player to the events that Jones lays out.  For a book that I was expecting to the ‘an epic history of the Tower of London,’ Jones has a bad habit of going on and on for pages without mentioning the complex.  Rather, Jones’ book is a study of England and Britain’s political history, of which the Tower was a key player by necessity, as one of the most secure royal palaces and prisons in the capital city.  However, to call this book a history of the Tower is flawed.

For the most part, Jones’ study is organized chronologically; he begins with the Normans and goes on from there.  Of the 17 chapters, only four are presented thematically – the first is on the role of the Tower as mint and zoo, the second on escapees, the third on the more colourfull prisoners, and the fourth on the role of the Tower in the two World Wars.  These are by far the most interesting chapters, but they are few and far between, and they are surrounded by a plain-ol’ political history of England.  More, it’s a political history of England that’s heavy on the Tudors and the Roundheads.  While I understand that the Tower was more in use in those periods than in others, it seems like Jones used the Tower as a convenient excuse to get his foot in the door to write about what he really wanted to write about – the sexier bits of English/British political history.  You’re able to tell where Jones’ personal interest in British history is, because these sections are the longest; he manages to cover 1066 until Henry VIII (1509) in about 150 pages, then the Restoration (1660) to present day in about 100 pages; 100 pages to cover almost 400 years?  I felt cheated after the detailed assessment the Tudors and Cavaliers got in the other 150 pages of the book (that’s about 150 years for those keeping count).

Jones himself (according to the bio on the back of the book) is a “historian, journalist, and biographer…”  The journalist bit it easy enough to identify while reading this book.  For all its flaws, it is an interesting and engaging read; Jones took what can be very dry topic mater in the wrong hands, and even though I felt like the book was a bait and switch, got me to keep reading and finish it based on its readability.  

But the other way the journalist in Jones came through in the reading was almost unforgivable.  In writing about the Gun Power Plot (1605), Jones describes it as “… an inhumanely audacious act of random mass terror like 9/11.” (pg. 279)  Just like that.  No context to that comment before or after; he just throws it out there.  I will give Jones that the Gun Power Plot was audacious, maybe even inhumane (but that implies a disregard for human life, and Jones himself notes that the plot was foiled because several of the conspirators’ consciences got in the way), but the planned act was neither random nor ‘mass’ on the scale of 9/11.  In the 2011 terrorist attacks on America, the goal was a high body count of as many people as possible – it was indiscriminate.  Guy Fox and his cronies were aiming to blow up the Houses of Parliament during its opening session; they new approximately how many victims their act would impact, and it was targeted at the ruling elite, not the average citizen.  Jones’ inflammatory comment really threw a huge hurdle down in my reading about the Plot, and showed his journalism background in his efforts (I assume) to sell copy.

So, final verdict?  I would say if you’re a history buff, this is a book for you, but don’t expect Jones to deliver on the promise of the title.  If, however, your interest is only in the history of the Tower, take a pass.  Jones’ work is far from an ‘epic history of the Tower,’ and is more a well-written history of English and British politics.  Which is a shame, because his research and writing styles make me think he would have nailed a true history of the Tower.  As for me, I did finally get to visit the Tower while in London.  It was a highlight of my trip, and I recommend everyone put it on their Bucket List.  (For more on my visit to the Tower, see an older blog of mine here.)