This drawing of Charterhouse Cemetery by Faith Vardy depicts the cemetery as it may have appeared in the 14th century during the Black Death plague that swept through London in 1348. In the background of the scene, the church of St. Bartholomew's Priory is visible, as is the spire of medieval St. Paul's. The graveyard was uncovered during digging for the City of London’s ambitious Crossrail railway project in 2013. Prior to this discovery, there was some speculation that an undiscovered plague burial site was located somewhere around Charterhouse. Eleven skeletons were recovered at the phase I site of the cemetery, including the bodies of nine adults, one adolescent, and one child. Each of the bodies were laid in rows with their heads facing south-west. Between each grave was enough room for a person to walk, indicating a level of care on the part of the gravediggers. The site is one of several cemeteries dating from the medieval period to the 1700s that were discovered during excavations for the Crossrail. The Charterhouse itself was a Carthusian Monastery established outside the walls of the City of London in 1371. Some records indicate that the location of the monastery may have been chosen because of the proximity to the plague burial site. The accumulation of land for the monastery occurred piece by piece, over the course of several decades and the last buildings were only completed in 1450. At its founding, there was anxiety among the lay people regarding access to the cemetery that had been created during the plague in 1348. However, the monastery allowed the funerals of lay people to occur in the church and for the laity to visit the cemetery located on the grounds. Unusually, the Charterhouse monks each had their own living quarters; they also gained a reputation for their spiritual and intellectual activities, though like other monastic houses they were dissolved on the eve of the English Reformation in 1538.

This vivid illustration by Terry Ball depicts Wakefield Tower as it may have appeared during the 14th century. Originally known as Blundeville Tower, when it was constructed between 1220 and 1240, Wakefield Tower is located on the side of the compound closest to the Thames, attached to what is known as Traitor’s Gate, by a wall with a portcullis beneath it. The tower was intended to serve as a bedchamber for King Henry III. Following the accession of his son Edward I, the tower was no longer used as a private bedchamber as the king chose to stay in the Tower of St. Thomas. As shown in the reconstruction drawing, the interior of the tower, like many other rooms at the Tower of London, was richly painted in vibrant colors. The screened area at the center of the drawing was a small chapel for use by the king. The throne to the left indicates that the room may have been used as a private reception room, once it was no longer a bedchamber. Like many other sites at the Tower of London, Wakefield Tower is most well-known for a violent altercation. The tower was the site of the murder of king Henry VI, which was ordered by Edward IV. In 1471, Edward’s forces defeated those of Henry VI, who was kept as a prisoner in the Tower of London. In May of the same year, Henry was praying at the small chapel in Wakefield Tower when he was struck in the head and killed. Today, Wakefield Tower is open to visitors at the Tower of London. The current chamber largely resembles the drawing, with the most notable change being the lack of decoration on the walls and ceiling.

Seal of Matilda, widow of Geoffrey le Hurer, on a deed dated c. 1300-1310. The red wax seal is shaped like a pointed oval with a motif of a crescent device.