Gundulf built the White Tower, really

[Francis A. Miniter]

No this is not a misplaced post for the Tolkien newsgroup.

I was reading Paul Doherty's _The Field of Blood_ , and
mention is made (repeatedly) of the builder of the original
structure of the Tower of London, namely Gundulf of
Rochester. Not that Gundulf was from Rochester. He was in
fact a monk from Normandy who followed William the Conqueror
to England. William made him Bishop of Rochester (hence his
moniker), but Gundulf was more a mathematician and engineer
than a withdrawn ecclesiastical. In 1078, on commission
from William, he built the White Tower in what is now the
Tower of London complex. He did so well that William
commissioned him to build a number of other towers around
the country. And indeed, he did so well that more than a
1,000 years later, the White Tower is still in excellent
shape.

Now about Tolkien. While there is a Gandalf Alfrgeirsson,,
a legendary Old Norse king, on whom Tolkien may have drawn
in part and while Gandalf the Wanderer owes some debt to the
figure of Odin der Wanderer of Norse legend and Wagnerian
opera, none the less, the White Tower of Minas Tirith is the
central structure of Gondor and the last retreat in the
battle for the city. And Gandalf is certainly deeply
involved with both of the towers in The Two Towers. I
cannot think that Tolkien had not come across this
historical fact, liked the coincidence of ideas of a Nordic
named monk building the White Tower and unconsciously - or
consciously - mixed this into the blend of myth that
comprises The Lord of the Rings.

Oh, and yes, I enjoyed Doherty's book. Not deep, but a
driving read.

--
Francis A. Miniter

Mesure is Medicine þauh þou muche ȝeor[n]e.
Al nis not good to þe gost þat þe bodi lykeþ,
Ne lyflode to þe licam þat leof is to þe soule.

William Langland, The Vision of Piers Plowman
Passus I, lines 33 - 35