Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey - An Illustrated Tour

Text by Mireille Galinou and Robert Taylor

Publication supported by Waltham AbbeyTown Council

Softcover: 6"x9", 32 pages, 64+ images

Description

The tour concentrates on the areas concerned with gunpowder and cordite manufacture. Other chemical explosives, nitroglycerine, guncotton and tetryl were manufactured in the northern part of the site which is now the nature reserve. These buildings have not been restored in this phase and cannot yet be visited.

Gunpowder, and the explosives and propellants which followed it, provided a form of energy which changed the world by encouraging trade, exploration, mining, and civil engineering, as well as serving the military purposes of conquest and defence.

The Royal Gunpowder Mills at Waltham Abbey has been involved in the production and development ofexplosives for over 300 years. Gunpowder was the first, and for some centuries the only explosive and propellant. Later the site manufactured guncotton, nitro glycerine, cordite paste and the high explosive tetryl, and after World War II the site became a research establishment for non-nuclear explosives and propellants.

The site contains buildings and structures that were used in all these processes. Many of the buildings have been through a series of uses being converted to make new explosives or carry out new functions. Although it makes the history of the site complex, the continual re-use of the buildings allowed many of the earlier buildings to remain. This is one of the reasons why the Royal Gunpowder Mills is so important today.

As a charity, we rely upon our supporters and donors to help run the site and provide an enjoyable and interesting visitor experience. All proceeds from admissions, sales and visitor donations and those made online assist us greatly to conserve this special and unique site for the benefit of future generations. We are grateful to the many volunteers who give their time to showcase and maintain the buildings and structures, landscape and grounds, and support our mission in so many ways. If you would like to assist this internationally important site, as a volunteer or donor, just get in touch.