Royal Beasts
Sat 28 May 2011 to Sat 31 Dec 2011
Tower of London
London
EC3N 4AB
T: 0844 842 7777
E: visitorservices_tol@hrp.org.uk`
Visitor Information
Tue-Sat 9am-4.30pm
Sun-Mon 10am-4.30pm
Founded during the reign of King John in the early 1200s, the Tower Menagerie became a regular feature at the Tower of London for over 600 years. Hundreds of animals were kept at the Tower for the entertainment and curiosity of the Royal Household and its visitors – including a polar bear who fished in the Thames daily for his lunch, the leopard who stole visitors’ umbrellas and; the ostrich that ate nails and many more.
Animal sculptures have been created by artist Kendra Haste and visitors will also find new interactive and sensory displays which tell the story of how these exotic creatures found a home in one of the world's most forbidding and infamous fortresses. The exhibition will also explore the long tradition of kings and queens keeping wild and exotic animals as symbols of power and look at how the animals were often used for cruel sports resulting in neglect and mistreatment.
Royal menageries started in Europe during the early medieval times when strange beasts were offered as royal gifts. Owning rare and impressive animals was a sign of status and power. It would have been the first time people had ever encountered many of these mysterious animals. The increased variety of animals at the Tower reflected European exploration of the world and during its Elizabethan heyday the menagerie became a public attraction. Under a stream of successive monarchs it was home to leopards, tigers, lions, elephants, zebras, alligators, kangaroos and grizzly bears, until the 1830s, when the remaining animals became part of the founding collection of London Zoo.