The Martin Tower


This tower used to be known as the Jewel Tower as the Crown Jewels were displayed here for 200 years. Today, it houses the 'Crowns and Diamonds' exhibition based on the making of the Crown Jewels.
The Martin Tower
Used as the Jewel Tower from 1699, the Keeper of the Regalia and his family lived in the upper storeys, and the Jewels were displayed on the ground floor.  Talbot Edwards was the first Keeper of the Regalia and was unfortunate enough to have been struck on the head and bound by Colonel Blood in 1671 during a failed attempt to steal the Jewels. The Crowns and Diamonds exhibition tells the story of the English royal crowns and some of their most famous stones.  The Jewel House Shop is on the ground floor.

Prisoners at this tower

Implicated in the Gunpowder Plot, Henry, Earl of Northumberland was imprisoned here in 1605 for sixteen years until his release.

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