The Clink Prison Museum
Tourist Attractions in London on Southbank
The Clink Prison was
attached to Winchester House Palace and was the home of the Bishops of Winchester from the
12th century until 1626.
The museum is on a tiny cobbled street on
Southbank close to the
Globe Theatre and
Borough Market.
This was a notorious 'red light' district full of taverns, brothels and Bear baiting.
The Globe Theatre was close to the prison and Shakespeare visited a friend there.
Since the 15th
century the prison was owned by the Bishops of Winchester and the area was known as 'The
Liberty of the Clink'.
Until 1780 it was used as a prison for crimes ranging from debt, practicing the wrong faith,
theft, prostitution and murder.
When Mary 1 came to the throne in 1553 she used the prison to incarcerate
Protestants. If they didn't starve to death they were later executed. Elizabeth 1
practiced the same religious persecution but this time it was the turn of the Catholics and
Protestant Puritans.
The name of the prison is said to have derived from the sound of the chains clinking which
bound the prisoners to the walls and which were fitted to prevent sleeping.
Other horrendous tortures included forcing prisoners to stand in water until their feet rotted,
the rack and breaking on the wheel. On the orders of Henry V111 women who murdered their
husbands were boiled in oil.

As you near the
entrance to the prison you are met with the sound of Gregorian chanting.
Peering into the darkness you see an image of a waxwork prisoner bound and
suspended in the air. He moans and sends a shiver down your spine.
Address: 1 Clink Street, London SE1
9DG
Tel: 020 7403 0900
Tube: London Bridge
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat & Sun, 10am-9pm
Admission Adult £5 - Children (under16) £3.50 - Senior Citizens (over 60)
£3.50
Student (need I.D.) £3.50 - Family £12.00 (2 adults, 2 children)
Related Pages...
Southbank
Southbank Restaurants
Southbank Hotels
London Attractions
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