Liberties of the Tower of London

Liberties of the Tower of London Tower Liberty
Liberty
The Tower of London
Area
• Coordinates	51°30′29″N 0°04′34″W / 51.5080°N 0.0762°W / 51.5080; -0.0762
Population
• 1831	4,190
Government	Tower Liberty Quarter Sessions
• Type	Quarter sessions court
• HQ	Court House, Wellclose Square
Subdivisions
• Type	Places
• Units	Tower Within Old Tower Without Great Tower Hill Little Minories (1686–1894) Old Artillery Ground (1686–1894) Wellclose (1686–1894)

The Liberties of the Tower, or the Tower Liberty was a liberty in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, Central London, which includes both Tower Hill and the Tower of London. The area was defined sometime after 1200 to provide an open area around the Tower to ensure its defensibility. The liberty was an independent administrative unit from then until it was formally abolished on 25 June 1894. The district maintains a ceremonial existence, with its custom of beating the bounds being a particularly well known example of the tradition.