Royal Armouries

Royal Armouries
Non-departmental public body overview
Formed1983 (41 years ago)
JurisdictionUnited Kingdom
HeadquartersLeeds
Non-departmental public body executives
Parent departmentDepartment for Culture, Media and Sport
Websiteroyalarmouries.org

The Hall of Steel in the Royal Armouries in Leeds
Gothic plate armour, Royal Armouries in Leeds
Part of the display at the Tower of London

The Royal Armouries is the United Kingdom's national collection of arms and armour. Once an important part of England's military organization, it became the United Kingdom's oldest museum, and one of the oldest museums in the world.[1][2] It is also one of the largest collections of arms and armour in the world, comprising the UK's National Collection of Arms and Armour, National Artillery Collection, and National Firearms Collection. Originally housed in the Tower of London from the 15th century, today the collection is split across three sites: the Tower, the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds, and Fort Nelson near Portsmouth.[3]

From 2004 to 2015, a limited selection of items was also on display in Louisville, Kentucky, in the United States, in cooperation with the Frazier History Museum.[4]

  1. ^ "Government invests in Leeds' Royal Armouries Museum acquiring catering and events arm to unify operations at major Yorkshire tourist attraction". Royal Armouries. 22 January 2018. Archived from the original on 22 February 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  2. ^ "RA Venues wins four-year contract for Royal Armouries museum". The Caterer. 11 February 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  3. ^ "Royal Armouries official website - About Us". Retrieved 8 October 2009.
  4. ^ "Frazier Museum returns British armor". The Courier-Journal. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2017.