Photo: Lanford Beard
The British royal family has received plenty of gifts over the years, and they once pooled some of them together to create their own private zoo!
According toHistoric Royal Places, the Tower of London was home to a collection of exotic wild animals, including lions and polar bears gifted to British royalty, from the 13th century until just before the reign of Queen Victoria.
“#OTD in 1835, the Tower Menagerie opened to the public one last time before closing for good,” the Tower of Londontweetedon Monday. “Founded in the early 1200s to keep wild animals gifted to monarchs, some of the Menagerie’s exotic inhabitants were eventually moved to @zsllondonzoo.”
Can’t get enough ofPEOPLE’s Royals coverage?Sign up for our free Royals newsletterto get the latest updates onKate Middleton,Meghan Markleand more!
Robert Alexander/Getty
Photo 12/Universal Images Group/getty
Even though the modern royals no longer have their own menagerie, Britain’s reigning monarchQueen Elizabeth, 95, has beenassociated with the London Zoofor decades.
She inaugurated an elephant tracking program in central Kenya in 1990, in addition to opening the Millennium Conservation center in 1999. The latePrince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, also opened the zoo’s Gorilla Kingdom in 2007, as well as the Tiger Territory in 2013.
source: people.com
