Royal Armouries

Description

The Royal Armouries is the UK's national collection of arms and armour, originating in 1323 from the working armoury of the English monarch. It is one of the oldest museums in the world, open to the public from 1660, and one of the largest collections of arms and armour. Today the museum operates across four sites: its headquarters in Leeds, its historic home in the Tower of London, its predominantly modern firearms collection at the National Firearms Centre, and its artillery museum at Fort Nelson in Portsmouth.

The museum's collection illustrates the development of arms and armour for military, sporting, presentation and other purposes, with significant examples from across the world. Its material ranges from antiquity to the present day, including the former collections of the Office of Ordnance, and the Ministry of Defence Pattern Room. It features both individually significant pieces, such as armours associated with Henry VII or a Japanese armour gifted to King James VI/I, and large collections of standard issue material, such as the Littlecote collection of English Civil War arms and armour.

The museum is an Independent Research Organisation, whose in-house research-active staff are drawn primarily from the curatorial and conservations team. It has hosted postgraduate research into topics such as infantry tactics of the Second World War and firearms in the early British Cape Colony. It also publishes research, both through its own publishing arm and through its journal Arms & Armour.  The museum seeks to encourage research within the following five themes:

• Society – For projects which explore the social and cultural context of arms and armour.
• Makers and Collectors – For projects which explore primarily human stories behind the design and curation of arms and armour.
• Threat and Response – For projects which explore the use and effect of arms and armour.
• The History of the Royal Armouries Collection and its Public Role – For projects which set the Royal Armouries as an institution in its historical or museological context.
• Enhancing and Preserving the Collection – For projects which seek primarily to establish technical or museological contributions to the display, interpretation, conservation, and care of the collection.

The museum is willing to explore various forms of collaborative research and impact generation. External researchers can also apply to the museum's research budget to support work related to the collection.

Offers funding

Yes, this infrastructure provides funding in the following categories:

Founding year

1323

Contact details

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Categorisation

Type

Partner Universities

University of Leeds

Additional Partnerships

White Rose Consortium of the Arts and Humanities