This site formed part of the Tower Liberty, an area of land originally kept open for the defence of the Tower of London. In 1687 a charter was granted giving privileged status to those living within its confines, amongst them the freedom from the jurisdiction of the City of London. Although the last vestiges of these privileges were finally dissolved in 1894, the tradition of the beating of the bounds takes place every third year on Ascension Day.
{A relief plan showing the Tower, the river, All Hallows, Tower Hill tube station, etc. with 31 numbered points. Written in a circle around the plan:}
These numbered stones mark the Liberty boundary.
William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, was born in the Liberty in 1644 and baptised in the nearby church of All Hallows, Barking.
We normally rotate our memorial pictures as necessary to make sure the statues are standing upright and the plaques can be read without feeling queasy but this one is all askew in a way we can't fix, but do like.
Site: Tower Liberty (1 memorial)
EC3, Tower Hill, Wakefield Gardens
