The story of the Arsenal is the story of the growth of the largest military-industrial complex in Europe. The story necessarily includes the Dockyard and Ropeyard.

It is not a celebration of warfare, or of the tools of warfare, but one cannot tell the story of a factory by omitting the development of the product.

The Arsenal was never just its buildings. The Arsenal was a tradition of craft and knowledge that passed unbroken from the laying of the first keel to the stamping of the final cartridge. A tradition that spanned some four hundred and fifty years.

The Arsenal shaped the development of Woolwich, Plumstead, Charlton and Eltham. Of national note, and whether good or bad, the Arsenal was also of pivotal importance and at the very heart of the development of the British Empire.

We are telling a story of endeavour, ingenuity, innovation and human industry through the experiences of the ordinary women and men, the military, the craft-masters and the innovators, who together made Woolwich known across the globe.

What follows on these pages is for consultation only. It is not the exhibition, but the draft of a brief to the designer, i.e. what lies behind the exhibition to be constructed. We would ask you to look through and tell us what you think. The actual exhibition will, of course, contain artefacts, models, costumes and interactives. Again, this not the exhibition, but a suggestion of how we might interpret the Arsenal in an exhibition.

One request. Please do not post permanent links to these pages; they are only here temporarily. Please do by all means invite whoever you like to explore the site and give us some feedback. The more the better. In time, we will post a permanent site that reflects the agreed exhibition.