Across the road from the Palace of Westminster stands the nearly 700-year-old Jewel Tower. However, despite its name, you won't see any jewels here. Today, this is a place where visitors are told about the history of Parliament and its building. And all the valuable treasures have been kept in the Tower of London for many centuries already.
This tower was erected in 1365 as a storage place for the personal belongings of King Edward III. Sometimes this building was even called the Private Royal Wardrobe. But since the main part of the monarch's accumulated wealth consisted of precious stones, the name Jewel Tower became attached to the tower.
After the London fire in 1834, when almost the entire Palace of Westminster was destroyed, the tower remained unharmed. Despite the fact that this structure was part of the fortress wall, it was located away from the Palace complex - in the corner of the royal garden and was protected by high walls and a moat.
Since then and to this day, Jewel Tower has been excellently preserved and certainly deserves a visit, at least out of respect for and interest in the age of this structure.
