Storage of Weapons and armour has always been part of the function of the Tower. Originally located in the White Tower the armouries were later moved to specialised buildings within the Tower complex. In 1667 it was recorded that 10,000 barrels of gunpowder were stored in the White Tower.
The New Armouries building was built in 1683 and now serves as a restaurant. The Grand storehouse which stood on the North side of the White Tower was burnt down in 1841 and replaced by the Waterloo Block which now houses the Crown Jewels.
New ArmouriesWaterloo Block
The Armouries has a fine collection of guns from across British History.
Turkish Cannon c1530 -captured at Aden 1839British Mortar 1808 -probably used as a saluting gunBronze 6 pounders captured at Battle of Waterloo 1815Chinese Cannon – Captured from Canyon fort during 2nd Chinese war 1856-61
I am semi-retired after a career in medical sciences. I now work from home doing independent research and consultancy amongst other things. One advantage of this is that I do have time to indulge my interests including birdwatching, natural history, steam trains and history particularly ancient history.
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