22:
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177:"Please accept my sincere sympathy with you all in the misfortune that has overtaken your fine Factory and in the loss of valuable lives, those who have perished have died at their stations on the field of duty and those who have lost their dear ones should fortify themselves with this thought, the courage and spirit shown by all concerned both men and women command our admiration, and the decision to which you have all come to carry on without a break is worthy of the spirit which animates our soldiers in the field. I trust the injured are receiving every care."
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and to have gone as far as naming the culprit. However, the more likely explanation is lax safety standards as the workforce competed to meet increasingly challenging production targets, coupled with the instability of the TNT compound on an unseasonably warm day.
301:
Unveiled on 30 June 1968 by MT James Boyden MP Parliamentary
Undersecretary of State for the Army on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the explosion at Chilwell the V.C. Factory in recognition of the bravery and fortitude of the employees
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321:
On the centenary of the explosion in 2018, the mass grave at
Attenborough Church was renovated to a design by members of the Royal Engineers based at Chetwynd Barracks. The new memorial takes the form of a simplified celtic cross in
123:, who served as his chief engineer. The Chilwell site was apparently selected as it was close to a railway line from which a siding connection could be constructed, and sheltered from surrounding areas by hills.
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on 21 January 1919 for his heroism following the explosion. (When the Edward Medal was discontinued in 1971, living recipients of the award were invited to return the medal, and were issued with the
206:. Whilst this award does not appear to have been made, the site was subsequently known as "The V.C. Factory". The works manager, Lieutenant Arthur Hilary Bristowe, was subsequently awarded the
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351:
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Total shells filled 19,359,000 representing 50.8% of the total output of high-explosive shell both lyddite and amatol 60pd to 15inch produced in Great
Britain during the war
130:
factories in the nearby towns. Owing to their exposure to the explosives, many women's skin turned yellow, and they were known as the "Chilwell
Canaries" or "Canary Girls".
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326:
with a superimposed sword in stainless steel. This memorial echoes the original wooden cross on the grave that was lost to vandalism. The grave was rededicated by the
262:
154:
of TNT on 1 July 1918. In all 134 people were killed, of whom only 32 could be positively identified, and a further 250 were injured. The unidentified bodies are in a
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above a massive pyramidal base. There is an inscribed stone, with a curiously statistical approach to commemorating the factory's achievements as well as the dead:
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to the
Ministry of Munitions speculated that, as the French had apparently given an honour to the Citadel of Verdun, perhaps the factory should be awarded the
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21:
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The factory returned to work for the war effort the next day, and within one month of the disaster reportedly achieved its highest weekly production.
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From the start, women were employed. This may have been another reason for the choice of location, as there was a tradition of women working in local
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108:
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Erected to the memory of those men and women who lost their lives by explosions at the
National Shell Filling Factory Chilwell 1916–1918
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On the fiftieth anniversary of the explosion, the memorial was restored and plaques were added with the following text:
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At the time it was only reported in the wartime newspapers as – "60 feared dead in
Midlands factory explosion."
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247:, the prime minister, and they then played a further selection of items outside the Ministry of Munitions.
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111:, was given the task of designing, building and superintending the running of a factory to fill large-
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At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them their name liveth for evermore
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The canary girls of
Chilwell: the story of No. 6 Shell Filling Factory, Chilwell, Nottinghamshire
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was called in to investigate. Lord
Chetwynd is alleged to have told them he was convinced it was
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555:"Thanksgiving For Victory. The King And Queen at Albert Hall., Brotherhood in Peace". News.
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Dangerous energy : the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture
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National
Register of War Memorials -Memorial: National Shell Filling Factory Explosion
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A memorial to those who had died in all explosions at the site was unveiled by the
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To the glory of God and in memory of those who gave their lives in two World Wars
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Historic England: Memorial to workers of National Filling Factory No.6, Chilwell
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On 16 November 1918 the works band, founded by Lord Chetwynd, himself playing
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A substantial part of the National Shell Filling Factory was destroyed in an
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467:"The Decoration, Facts and Statistics and Information about the Exchanges"
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Number of shells filled within one year of cutting the first sod 1,260,000
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Arms and the Wizard: Lloyd George and the Ministry of Munitions 1915–1916
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96:(TNT) was adopted. TNT was expensive to make and was in short supply, so
53:
433:"V.C. For A Factory. Honour Suggested For Heroism at Explosion". News.
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57:
508:"Edward Medal For Works Manager". Official Appointments and Notices.
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559:. No. 41950. London. 18 November 1918. col E, p. 10.
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512:. No. 42004. London. 22 January 1919. col C, p. 5.
239:. They then marched to Downing Street and played outside
88:. At the beginning of World War I shells were filled with
437:. No. 41837. London. 9 July 1918. col E, p. 3.
525:"When corpses fell from the Nottinghamshire sky in WWI"
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Demolished buildings and structures in Nottinghamshire
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Industrial fires and explosions in the United Kingdom
352:
List of the largest artificial non-nuclear explosions
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shells with Amatol. He requisitioned the services of
162:. The blast was reportedly heard twenty miles away.
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306:At the end of the war, in 1919, the site became a
842:Demolished manufacturing buildings and structures
92:, but this needed imported raw materials, and so
72:. During the Great War it filled some 19 million
397:. Beeston & District Local History Society.
310:(RAOC) storage depot. It is now the location of
265:on 13 March 1919. It takes the form of a small
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414:
100:, a mixture of various proportions of TNT and
473:. Chameleon HH Publishing Ltd. Archived from
142:Mass Grave in St. Mary's Church, Attenborough
8:
699:: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
287:Total weight of filled shell 1,100,000 tons
285:Total tonnage of explosive used 121,360 tons
847:Buildings and structures demolished in 1919
777:Buildings and structures in Nottinghamshire
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446:
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84:The factory was created as a result of the
275:Principal historical facts of the factory
16:United Kingdom explosives filling factory
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35:National Shell Filling Factory, Chilwell
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109:Godfrey Chetwynd, 8th Viscount Chetwynd
80:Foundation of the Shell Filling Factory
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667:Haslam, M. J. (Captain, RAOC) (1982).
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420:
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669:The Chilwell story, 1915-1982 :
7:
807:1918 disasters in the United Kingdom
716:"National Filling Factory, Chilwell"
346:National Filling Factory, Georgetown
342:(woman working in a filling factory)
782:Royal Ordnance Factories in England
277:First sod turned 13 September 1915
465:Marion Hebblethwaite (2005–2010).
328:Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham
279:First shell filled 8 January 1916
14:
857:1919 disestablishments in England
812:1910s fires in the United Kingdom
536:from the original on 18 June 2022
256:Chilwell Filling Factory Memorial
497:. 21 January 1919. p. 1072.
160:St. Mary's Church, Attenborough
852:1915 establishments in England
235:, played in the quadrangle of
181:A telegram was also sent from
50:National Filling Factory No. 6
1:
832:United Kingdom in World War I
652:. Swindon: English Heritage.
29:shells at Chilwell, July 1917
633:. London: Cassell & Co.
873:
827:History of Nottinghamshire
673:Factory and Ordnance Depot
648:Cocroft, Wayne D. (2000).
243:and were congratulated by
46:explosives filling factory
797:1918 industrial disasters
612:, accessed 28 August 2020
575:, accessed 28 August 2020
471:The George Cross Database
308:Royal Army Ordnance Corps
185:, on behalf of the King.
391:Maureen Rushton (2008).
314:. The memorial became a
188:In a speech reported in
348:(NFF No 4, in Scotland)
200:Parliamentary Secretary
104:, was adopted instead.
48:. Its formal title was
610:historicengland.org.uk
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76:with high explosives.
64:on the main road from
52:. It was located near
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787:Explosions in England
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194:, on 9 July 1918, Mr
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171:Minister of Munitions
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254:The Grade II listed
86:Shell Crisis of 1915
744: /
173:, sent a telegram:
25:Women workers with
792:Explosions in 1918
748:52.9118°N 1.2450°W
588:. Picture the past
494:The London Gazette
259:
245:David Lloyd George
196:F. G. Kellaway, MP
144:
134:The 1918 explosion
107:On 20 August 1915
31:
772:Filling factories
573:www.ukniwm.org.uk
404:978-0-9541485-1-5
312:Chetwynd Barracks
237:Buckingham Palace
183:Buckingham Palace
167:Winston Churchill
70:Ashby de la Zouch
56:, at that time a
44:Government-owned
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753:52.9118; -1.2450
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724:English Heritage
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675:. Chilwell: The
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586:"Chilwell Depot"
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330:on 1 July 2018.
263:Duke of Portland
102:Ammonium nitrate
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94:trinitrotoluene
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27:6-inch howitzer
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214:in exchange.)
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475:the original
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340:Munitionette
324:Corten steel
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208:Edward Medal
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751: /
489:"No. 31136"
453:Haslam 1982
421:Haslam 1982
380:Haslam 1982
117:Albert Hall
39:World War I
817:1918 fires
766:Categories
736:52°54′42″N
358:References
156:mass grave
66:Nottingham
739:1°14′42″W
720:Pastscape
695:cite book
557:The Times
510:The Times
435:The Times
318:in 1988.
191:The Times
150:of eight
148:explosion
629:(1978).
592:20 April
534:Archived
334:See also
222:sabotage
121:Ferranti
54:Chilwell
37:, was a
619:Sources
267:obelisk
169:, then
128:textile
113:calibre
90:Lyddite
58:village
683:
656:
637:
540:28 May
401:
233:cornet
98:Amatol
74:shells
363:Notes
241:No 10
60:, in
701:link
681:ISBN
677:RAOC
654:ISBN
635:ISBN
594:2014
542:2018
399:ISBN
152:tons
33:The
718:on
158:in
119:of
68:to
768::
722:,
697:}}
693:{{
671:VC
528:.
491:.
469:.
443:^
413:^
370:^
198:,
726:.
703:)
689:.
662:.
643:.
596:.
544:.
407:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
