Synopses & Reviews
A substantial overview of the gunpowder and explosives industry from the earliest surviving physical remains of the 17th century through the transformation of the industry in the 18th century and the growth of the chemical explosives industry in the 19th century and the urgent, large-scale demands of the 20th century. The aim of this highly accessible and well-presented volume is to aid the identification of buildings associated with the industry, to help their conservation and to promote understanding amongst archaeologists, historians and the general public. Cocroft examines key factories, notably the Royal Gunpowder Factory at Waltham Abbey, many of which have been cloaked in secrecy until recently, parallels in North America and on the Continent and the distinctive design of buildings created for the First and Second World Wars. Includes a gazetteer and a glossary.
Synopsis
This book comprises a national study of the explosives industry and provides a framework for identification of its industrial archaeology and social history. It ranges from gunpowder manufacture in the late Middle Ages through to 20th-century explosives.
Synopsis
This book comprises a national study of the explosives industry and provides a framework for identification of its industrial archaeology and social history.
Few monuments of gunpowder manufacture survive in Britain from the Middle Ages, although its existence is documented. Late 17th-century water-powered works are identifiable but sparse. In the later 18th century, however, the industry was transformed by state acquisition of key factories, notably at Faversham and at Waltham Abbey.In the mid-19th century developments in Britain paralleled those in continental Europe and in America, namely a shift to production on an industrial scale related to advances in armaments technology.
The urgency and large-scale demands of the two world wars brought state-directed or state-led solutions to explosives production in the 20th century. Yhe book's concluding section looks at planning, preservation, conservation and presentation in relation to prospective future uses of these sites.