The History of the Imperial War Museum, 1917-1918 Q31269

Charles John ffoulkes (1868–1947) was a British

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

, and

curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

of the

Royal Armouries The Royal Armouries is the United Kingdom's national collection of arms and armour. Originally an important part of England's military organization, it became the United Kingdom's oldest museum, originally housed in the Tower of London from ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He was a younger son of the Reverend Edmund ffoulkes. He wrote extensively on

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

arms and armour. ffoulkes was selected as the Curator of the Armouries by his predecessor, Harold Arthur Lee-Dillon, and assumed the office on 1 January 1913. He played an important role in the British Arts and Crafts movement, and was an acquaintance of

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

. He was subsequently first curator and secretary of the newly formed Imperial War Museum in London. His wife Maude Mary Chester ffoulkes née Craven (1871-1949) was a ghostwriter.

Published works

* (1909) ''Armour and Weapons'', Oxford: Clarendon Press; republished by Westholme Publishing, 2005 * (1912) ''The Armourer and His Craft'', London: Methuen; republished by Dover, 1988 * (1930) ''The 'Dardanelles' Gun at the Tower''

References

External links

* *
Royal Armouries biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ffoulkes, Charles British historians British curators 1868 births 1947 deaths Historians of weapons