Yeoman Gaoler hands over axe after decade at top of Tower
FOR Bob Loughlin, it was a momentous day: the first working day he had not been in uniform for 50 years.
The Tower of London’s Yeoman Gaoler handed over his infamous axe last week. He was in a reflective mood as he looked back on his career at the tower, where he has lived and worked for 12 years.
“It’s the end of an era,” he told The Sunday Telegraph. “I’ve had a great career and I’m grateful.”
The Yeoman Gaoler is the second in command of the Yeoman Body at the Tower, responsible for the management of the 36 other Yeoman Warders, or Beefeaters as they are known.
Historically, it was the gaoler who was in charge of prisoners at the Tower. The infamous axe was used to send a secret signal to colleagues as they approached the Tower on the Thames alongside the prisoners.
If it was pointing backwards, the convict would be serving a prison sentence, if it was pointing forwards they had been condemned and it would be off with their heads.
Mr Loughlin, 65, joined the RAF in 1971 after initially enrolling in the Royal Navy two years earlier aged 15. During his career, he served in Dhofar, Northern Ireland, Kuwait, Belize and Afghanistan, and was awarded a Member of the Order of the British Empire Medal by the Queen in 2001.
He left the RAF in 2007, finishing his military career as warrant officer to the Chief of the Air Staff before applying to become a Yeoman Warder. To qualify for the role applicants must have served at least 22 years in the Armed Forces, hold the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal and have reached the level of warrant officer.
The roles include conducting the Ceremony of the Keys, which has taken place every night at the Tower for at least 700 years.
Mr Loughlin’s successor, Jim Duncan, from Chatham, Kent, said: “It’s going to be a hard act to follow but I’m looking forward to embracing the challenge.”