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| visiting around and about, wandering here and there... |
“All the time she dwelt in the Tower, if any were sick she made (the prisoners) broths and restoratives with her own hands, visited and took care of them, and provided them all necessaries; if any were afflicted she comforted them, so that they felt not the inconvenience of a prison who were in that place.”
Memoirs of the Life of Colonel Hutchinson
Lucy Hutchinson, 1620-1681
(Recounting the life of her mother, Lucy St.John)
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| The View of Tower Green from Lucy’s Parlour |
Gazing from the parlour window of the Queen’s House within the walls of the Tower of London, I could see the chapel of St. Peter, the iconic White Tower…and the site of the executioner’s block. I was looking out at a view that my ancestress, Lucy St.John, had seen daily four hundred years ago.
Lucy lived in the Tower from 1617 to 1630; not as a prisoner, but as the Keeper’s wife. I stumbled upon the above-quoted biographical fragment from Lucy Hutchinson’s notebook in Nottingham Castle, and I knew I must find out more about her mother. The Memoirs give tantalizing glimpses of Lucy St.John’s life, and further research on the position of Lieutenant of the Tower, Lucy’s husband, Sir Allen Apsley, revealed much more. A story was taking shape.
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| The Lieutenant’s Lodgings (The Queen’s House) Tower of London |
When I decided that Lucy would be the subject of my novel, The Lady of the Tower, I contacted Her Majesty’s Royal Palaces (HRP) and asked if I could possibly visit some of the private locations within the Tower. The Queen’s House is the family home of the Governor, just as it was for Lucy when she moved there in 1617. They readily gave their permission and kindly offered a Yeoman Warder as a guide.
I was excited to arrive early one winter’s morning, before the crowds, and walk along the old quay by Traitor’s Gate. Peeking over the massive stone walls were the gabled roofs of Lucy’s home – a curious juxtaposition of domesticity and fortress. I used that view and sensation to set the opening scene of my novel, for I could only imagine Lucy’s trepidation upon entering the Tower, and seeing her future home.
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| The Queen’s House from the River Thames, with the White Tower in the background. |
As I met my Beefeater, we quickly found a common love of history, and together we entered the Queen’s House. What I didn’t anticipate was the visceral reaction of walking through Lucy’s home, standing in her kitchen, looking through her parlour window – just as she had done. The emotional response to treading in her footsteps inspired so much of my work within The Lady of the Tower, and so many small details found their way into my writing.
The house was used for administrative offices too, and as I explored the warren of rooms I came across a small corridor. Just a few feet from Lucy’s front hall, great blocks of stone took over from the domesticity of plaster, and in another pace or two, I was standing within the twelfth century Bell Tower. The ambiance was mournful, and it was not at all difficult to think of Thomas More or the young Princess Elizabeth imprisoned in this bleak chamber. Their view from the narrow slit windows was the same as Lucy’s– the execution block.
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The interior of the Bell Tower |
Traces of Lucy’s life continued as I walked outside. She was an herbalist and her medicinals no doubt eased the lives of many of the prisoners she nursed. In another part of the memoirs, her daughter refers to Lucy’s generosity with her hen-house – she allowed Sir Walter Raleigh to make free use of it to conduct his alchemy experiments when he was under her care and lodging in the Bloody Tower. Raleigh was also a great gardener and Lucy paid for his medicinal research so that she might learn from him. The Victorians built over Lucy’s garden, but it is still easy to see the old levels of where her gardens were, and how she would access them from her home.
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| A Yeoman Warder in the recently re-created vignette of Lucy’s garden |
In Lucy’s time, the Liberty of the Tower housed over a thousand families, all of which came under her husband’s jurisdiction. It really was its own small city, for it lay outside of the laws of the City of London (which caused some friction on many occasions). I like to think of Lucy ministering to the citizens of the Tower as well as the prisoners, walking not just only in the areas where her aristocratic prisoners were lodged, but among the houses and gardens of the residents who all had a home within the Tower of London.
about Elizabeth:
Elizabeth St.John spends her time between England, California, and the past. She has tracked down family papers and residences from Nottingham Castle, Lydiard Park, to Castle Fonmon and The Tower of London to inspire her writing. Although her ancestors sold a few mansions and country homes along the way (it's hard to keep a good castle going these days), Elizabeth’s family still occupy them - in the form of portraits, memoirs, and gardens that carry their imprint. And the occasional ghost…but that’s a different story.
The Lady of the Tower, Elizabeth’s debut best-selling novel, is a Discovered Diamond and is on sale online and at bookstores. Including the one within The Tower of London.
Universal Buy Links:
Social Media:
Amazon: www.tinyurl.com/AmazonElizStJohn
Twitter: @ElizStJohn
Thanks for inviting to spend time with you Helen...and of course, not all those who wander are lost..
ReplyDeleteI visited the Tower long ago (when I was about 16!) - and must admit I was a bit bored by it because I didn't know what I was looking at! If I ever get a chance to go there again I'll read your book first, as your novels bring places and people of the past to life
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