Imperial War Museum - London

Arriving at the Imperial War museum in London I was very excited about the day of viewing the weapons that have been developed throughout history and I just couldn’t wait to see the progression of the primitive weapons used in times of old to the latest in advanced warfare.  I thoroughly enjoy looking at uniforms worn by soldiers and generals as well as the knives, guns, cannons, tanks, scale model ships, submarines and aircraft all used in combat, not to mention replica missiles and bombs as well as deactivated mines. 

The museum offered these enticing collections –

Lower Ground floor – World War I and World War II and conflicts since 1945

Ground floor – Modern weapons gallery

First floor – Modern Weapons Gallery

Second floor – Art Gallery

Third floor – Holocaust exhibition

Fourth floor – John Ashcroft gallery

After finishing the brief security checks I walked into the ground floor of the museum where they had some military vehicles, such as tanks and very old submarines as well as an array of cannons.  The very first thing that caught my eye, and I honestly found rather odd, was a vehicle which was used as a roadside bomb in Baghdad in 2005.  It had claimed the lives of two soldiers.  I found it a rather strange beginning to a museum’s collection for some reason but, I just read the blurb, pondered over the remains of the car and only thought it was remarkable that they had managed to make me think highly of a rusty, burned out lump of metal which made me stop and stare.  I then moved on to the rest of the armaments on show and absorbed all the information that was on hand.  I really did enjoy the ground/first floor as it showed the progression in weapons development very well.  I saw a supermarine spitfire fighter plane which fought in the Battle of Britain.  I could not believe that it was so well kept.  It was suspended beautifully for all to see.  It was a plane which saw a successful defence of our land and it was flabbergasting to be able to see something which was part of a significant battle in British history. 

There were several tanks – British, Russian and Nazi German - I have never seen so many Swastikas in one place, for once, not causing any offense! But you were able to see inside of the cramped tanks and they gave some statistics about these devastating war machines, for example, their range (1500m +), their weight (over 22 tonnes, one was 44 tonnes) and their most effective methods for use in battle.  We even saw a bus known as ‘Ole Bill’.  It was used in the battlefield across Europe during WWI to transport troops to trenches.  It was present in Antwerp and it witnessed the horrors of the Somme.  It was enthralling to see this vehicle because it was there – there being those events that you learn about in a history class at school.

I then moved on to the lower ground for the WWI and II exhibitions.  My appetite had been whetted by my friends who had been to this museum and they described this collection as the vastest and most engaging part of the whole museum.  I was not let down.  It had absolutely everything.  It was pretty incredible as there were original helmets and uniforms and tunics on display as well as original, signed documents and diaries kept by soldiers.  The weapons they had on display were mainly rifles, pistols, revolvers and knives.  There were also a plethora of medals on display for valour and bravery.  News paper clippings were also present, a little discoloured, but very well kept. I found it incredibly interesting reading some of the clippings as it was a more intensive account of the events as seen, felt and understood at that time.  It was a more thorough account of an event which was still fresh in the press.  I saw many things from the military aspect and came to understand many things.  In addition to the array of weapons that was on display there were also the home front effort and many propaganda posters put on view.  It was interesting  to see how people responded to the war in those times and how they had to alter their lives so much – rationing, keeping the lights switched off in the night, ideas on how NOT to waste materials available to them.  It really was an effort!  There are far too many things we take for granted and it would have been difficult to survive and subject one’s self to this. 

The WWI exhibition it explained the outbreak of the war and how it digressed into a world war and it, explained how many different machine guns were developed to fire more rounds per minute to halt an attack from the enemy.  It detailed the complicated trench network which was employed by both sides and at the end of the WWI collection you were able to experience a life sized model of a trench and walk through a replica of a trench to further appreciate what it really was like for all the brave men that gave their lives for the protection of their country. 

There were many stand out items on show in the WWII collection.  Once again they displayed the different weapons from different countries as well as different uniforms, even the different uniforms Nazi soldiers had as they had to fight in the harsh cold weather in Russia as well as more temperate areas across Europe.  The scale models of the ships were just astonishing.  The attention to detail was beyond breath-taking and the stories they had to tell were even better, for example, the infamous German U-boats.  There was a model of one U-boat which, in just one summer, sank over 1006 TONNES worth of ships belonging to the allies.  They also had many allied emblems, several British coats of arms, the American eagle but one of the most well kept ones, one that I touched (and had bullet holes) was the Nazi eagle which bares the Swastika in its claws.  It had been ripped the top of a building it still had some remains at its foot.  It was a heavy piece of bronze décor to symbolise a Nazi establishment.  It was on display on its side.  This, for me, symbolised many things.  The fall of Nazism, as it was torn off of a building and it is now found in a museum lying on its side.  Also, the fact that it bore the bullet holes and the damage, the bronze was beginning to corrode – it was fading like Nazism had faded through history.  However, the fact that it exists at all and wasn’t completely disposed of is a reminder that racism and cultural prejudice still exists today.  One would think that we had been taught a valuable lesson from the war, however, it would appear that we will never learn.

Another interesting part of the WWII exhibition was the Far Eastern influence on the war.  The land of the rising sun – Japan – towards the end of the Second World War was a time of great devastation still, even thought the world war was indeed over.  Japan saw two atomic bombs fall on two different cities – Nagasaki and Hiroshima– only 3 days apart.  Due to the intensely high temperature it completely incinerated stones and slates or houses and plastic bottles.  It displayed such items.  It was inconceivably devastating to these cities and it was a ferocious option for the American military to take. 

By the end of viewing the WWII collected works, we were able to experience a simulated air-raid.  We were put in a shelter and then following the ‘air raid’ we got to see what it was like for post air raid and see the destruction and chaos it had caused. 

I chose to view the WWI display first and, even though it was busier than the WWII, I am pleased I did as it gave me a good insight as to how much more extensive the weaponry was for WWII.

The next part of the museum was the conflicts following the world wars.  The Korea war in the 50s, the 6 day Arab – Israel war in the 60s, Vietnam 60s/70s, Iran – Iraq in the early 80s, Iraq, Kuwait in the late 80s early 90s and The Gulf wars (89-91 and 2003- present).  There were a lot of iconic pieces of footage, some which I remember seeing on the news myself, others I had never seen in my life.  It was definitely a worthwhile part of the museum.  It was a reminder that war is, regrettably, more frequent than it should be. 

There was not much to see in the art gallery so I went straight up to the Holocaust exhibition where we were able to get a real account of those who survived the horror of concentration camps.  It began with the rise of Nazism in Germany – it described how, after WWI, Germany was heavily sanctioned and they were not allowed a military and due to the economic strain on the nation, especially after the global depression, unemployment rates were at an all time high.  The country was poverty stricken.  The people turned to the national party.  The Nazis.  Eventually the real Nazi agenda became more and more evident to the rest of the world as their scientific researchers were carrying out very outlandish studies into different racial backgrounds and the publicly condemned the Jewish, Gypsy, black and other communities.  The German population seemed to turn a blind eye as their country was a super power over night, as it appeared.  Terror then struck Poland as all the Jews in Germany were persecuted.  Some who had tried to escape the Nazi regime and fled to Poland were caught up in the terror of the Nazis. 

The more I waded through the Holocaust exhibition, the more and more I discovered about how, absolutely horrific it was.  I know it is a stupid thing to say because it has always been known to be such an incredibly terrible, low period in our history but, to see the things that were on display really had a profound effect on me.  To see the shoes worn by the victims of concentration camps piled up one on top of the other, like their lifeless bodies would have been piled up one on top of the other, was a more vivid explanation of the real horrors that occurred than any history lesson I have had.  To learn how their bodies were desecrated – the ashes of their bodies used to fertilise lands, things of value were either stolen of used in the Nazi war machine, their hair used in tapestry – left me feeling perturbed and overwhelmed. 

I left the museum after seeing the John Ashcroft gallery.  This was just a room with a display many different medals that have been awarded for many different things throughout history.  It was a nice way to finish the tour of the museum but nothing had such a reflective consequence in my mindset as the Holocaust exhibition did.  I left the museum. 

As I left the museum through the same doors that welcomed me, I saw that car bomb from Baghdad that was detonated in 2005.  I remembered seeing it only a few hours before and thinking it was an odd addition to the museum.  I no longer thought this as I realised it was the perfect addition to this particular museum.  I thought this because, for a long time, I was very excited to see this museum and journey through the history of weapons, war and famous battles throughout our history.  I lost sight of the true devastation, destruction, chaos and pain that war causes.  It was an ideal introduction as it allows one to be under no illusion of what war is.  Yes, there are great weapons on display – forget not, however, what exactly those weapons are used for. 

I left having enjoyed my day – a free trip to a museum in London on a good day where I learnt about the many different eras of war and appreciated the number of lives lost for something people passionately believed in.  However, what I did not expect to happen was to be as blown away as I was in the sense of realising mankind’s capacity for great things like love, generosity, selflessness and inventions for the greater good.  However, man’s capacity for war, hate, death, obliteration and anguish has and, in my opinion, will always overshadow the great things. 

The science of improving on and making more advanced weapon technology is a science that should not be invested in nearly as much as it is, if at all!  It is disheartening that as more and more wars occur, there was always a progression in weapons which were more efficient at taking the lives of our fellow man. 

Much love,

Jackson L.