How To Train Your Raven The feathered friends at The Tower Of London
The Tower of London’s Ravenmaster, Chris Skaife, iintroduces d us to his little flock of entertaining black-feathered friends
Shouldtheravens leave,theTower ofLondonwill crumbleinto dustandgreatharmwill befallthekingdom…
This familiar legend is referred to in an account of the time King Charles II visited the Tower to inspect some restoration work. Ravens had roosted in the turrets of its famous White Tower, much to the annoyance of the first Astronomer Royal.
“The ravens would fly around and interrupt his calculations. He complained to King Charles, who agreed to get rid of them,” explains the Tower Ravenmaster, Chris Skaife.
“The King agreed but then someone mentioned the old legend. Charles’ father had been executed and there had been a plague in London followed by the Great Fire in 1666, so he decided not to tempt fate and to keep six ravens here by royal decree.”
Reassuringly, six main ravens, plus one spare, still call the Tower of London home today. The most recent is Poppy, now six months old.
“Raven Poppy is settling in very well indeed,” says Chris, as she playfully tugs at the hem of his uniform. “She is enjoying being out and about now with the public and is learning her Tower skills from m the other ravens.
“I keep all the ravens here e as wild as I can, although I have made Poppy a little bit friendlier, so I can use her for r educational purposes.”
Chris originally served with the Queen’s Regiment. He completed the minimum of 22 years at the rank of warrant officer or above and was awarded his long service e
and good conduct medals, all three requirements making him eligible to apply to become a Yeoman Warder.
As Raven master for more than six years, Chris wears a unique raven badge on his right sleeve and he cares for the birds around his other official duties, as he details in his book The Raven master: My Life with the Raven sat the Tower of London.
“The book follows me on my day, from first light to last light, and within that day as I go about my routine as Raven master. I talk about everything I do to look after the ravens and also about the myths, the legends, the culture behind ravens worldwide and I also include some of the things I’ve gotten up to for the preservation of the birds and the safety of the kingdom.
“I was receiving daily questions from the many people visiting the Tower and my followers on social media, asking about the lives of the Tower ravens. I thought it would be a good idea to put it all down in book form. I am very excited about the book; it will be lovely for people to understand why the ravens are here and how I care for them.
“I see my role as educational and I am in a unique position as Raven master here to talk about ravens, not just about those at the Tower of London but also about where they are in the world in the wild and how intelligent they are.
“The more we educate people the better. I want to shed light on these beautiful, intelligent birds rather than the dark connotations that they have had in the past.”
Readers of Chris’ book will enjoy the tales of some of the more mischievous Tower ravens. Their primary flight feathers are carefully trimmed to hamper their ability to elevate, but great escapes do occasionally happen; the late Raven Munin once enjoyed an unscheduled holiday in Greenwich Park. And Raven Merlina likes to tease the Tower visitors.
“Sometimes when she isn’t getting enough attention she will lie on the green on her back with her legs sticking up and just play dead. She’ll stay there for about five minutes, absolutely still, until all the tourists are shouting, ‘Oh no! That raven has died!’ We’ll say, ‘Just watch her.’ Then all of a sudden, she’ll jump up.
“She is naughty. She has recently made friends with a magpie pair we’ve called Ronnie and Reggie and now hangs around with them.”
The nation can be assured that while Merlina, Poppy and their cohorts are safeguarding the kingdom, they themselves are under the wing of their dedicated Ravenmaster.
“I look after the ravens,” says Chris, “and the ravens look after us.”
“Poppy, the youngest, is learning her Tower skills from the other ravens”