Located in the heart of London, this curious collection of exotic beasts brought fear and excitement to the capital for centuries
Words PETER PRICE
Royal Gallery
c.1700
The Menagerie at Versailles
King Louis XIV also had a menagerie – two, in fact, with each one serving a different purpose. The menagerie at the Palace of Versailles was filled with graceful animals, and the tranquillity of this menagerie was intended to emphasise the glory of the Sun King’s reign. The second menagerie at Vincennes, however, was much more vulgar and featured many arranged fights between animals for entertainment.
The Tower of London has a dark and infamous history. Following William the Conqueror’s construction of the White Tower, it became one of the most infamous prisons in all of Europe. Murder, execution and political intrigue are highlights of its sordid past, but the screams of hapless victims may have mingled with an altogether different sound. The roar of lions, trumpeting of elephants and cackling of hyenas might not make up the background hubbub of the city anymore, but for close to 600 years the Tower was home to a rather unique menagerie.
Today visitors flock to the Tower to see the Crown Jewels and soak up some history, but as recently as just over 180 years ago a very different attraction drew in curious Londoners. The royal menagerie, started in the 13th century, makes the Tower one of the world’s oldest zoos and remains a fascinating story and curiosity.
Although there is plenty of documentary and archaeological evidence to prove the existence of the menagerie, finding physical evidence has proved more challenging. This means that for much of the menagerie’s life span we can only take educated guesses as to its exact location within the Tower grounds. By the 16th century it was definitely in what was known as the Lion Tower, but as this was demolished in the 1850s, we cannot look for the physical clues themselves. Before then the mention of the creation of a lock and key “towards the lions and leopard” and the big cat skulls found in the moat indicate that the Lion Tower was a possible site for the menagerie prior to the 16th century as well.
It was the exotic tastes of the English kings that saw the first animals being brought over to Britain, with Henry I’s love of animals leading to the arrival of the first lions in England. William of Malmesbury observes that Henry “was extremely fond of the wonders of distant countries, begging with delight from foreign kings, lions, leopards, lynxes, or camels, animals which England does not produce. He had a park called Woodstock in which he used to place the favourites of this kind.” Unfortunately, Henry’s zoo at Woodstock is no more.
Records of the first lion keepers at the Tower date from between 1210 and 1212, with the first beasts thought to have arrived from
