Royal Military Academy, Woolwich

Royal Military Academy, Woolwich
The New Royal Military Academy, in use 1806 to 1939
Active	1741–1939
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Training
Role	Officer Training
Garrison/HQ	Woolwich, London

The Royal Military Academy (RMA) at Woolwich, in south-east London, was a British Army military academy for the training of commissioned officers of the Royal Artillery and Royal Engineers. It later also trained officers of the Royal Corps of Signals and other technical corps.

History

The Old Royal Military Academy, in use 1741-1806

The Royal Military Academy Woolwich was founded in 1741: it was intended to provide an education and produce "good officers of Artillery and perfect Engineers".^[1] RMA Woolwich was commonly known as "The Shop" because its first building was a converted workshop of the Woolwich Arsenal.^[2]

A larger building was specially designed for the Royal Military Academy by James Wyatt, built between 1796 and 1805 and opened for use the following year.^[3]

The Royal Military Academy Woolwich closed in 1939 and in 1947 the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst was formed on the site of the former Royal Military College, Sandhurst, which had previously only trained officers for the Infantry and Cavalry, with the objective of providing officer training for all arms and services.^[4]

Durkan Group bought the Woolwich site by public tender in 2006.^[3] The Woolwich buildings have since been converted and extended into 334 houses and apartments, including 150 for a housing association.^[3]

Commandants

Commandants have included:^[5]

• 1846-1851 Major-General John Boteler Parker, CB (Lieutenant-Governor)^[6]
• ?-1901 Major-General F. T. Lloyd, CB (Governor and Commandant)^[7]
• 1901-? Major-General R. H. Jelf, CMG (Governor and Commandant)^[7]
• 1912–1914 Brigadier-General Arthur Holland
• 1914–1918 Major-General William Cleeve
• 1918–1920 Major-General Geoffrey White
• 1920–1924 Major-General Webb Gillman
• 1924–1926 Major-General Ronald Charles
• 1926–1930 Major-General Hugo de Pree
• 1930–1934 Major-General Cyril Wagstaff
• 1934–1938 Major-General Arthur Goschen
• 1938–1939 Major-General Philip Neame

Notable teachers

Notable teachers at Woolwich include:

• Sir Frederick Abel, appointed lecturer in chemistry in 1852^[8]
• Peter Barlow, appointed assistant mathematics master in 1801^[9][10] and who retained this post until 1847^[11]
• Francis Bashforth, professor of applied mathematics^[12]
• Samuel Hunter Christie was mathematical assistant in 1806 and professor of mathematics, 1838-1854^[13]
• Morgan Crofton, an Irish mathematician, was professor of mathematics from 1870 to 1884^[14]
• Michael Faraday, professor in chemistry 1829-52^[15]
• Sir George Greenhill was professor of mathematics from 1876 to 1908^[16]
• Olinthus Gregory, mathematics master from 1802, professor of mathematics 1807-1838.^[17][18]
• Charles Hutton, professor of mathematics from 1773 to 1807.^[19][20]
• Thomas Simpson, assistant to the chief master of mathematics from 1743 to 1761.^[21]
• Paul Sandby was chief drawing master from 1768 to 1799^[22]
• Henry Young Darracott Scott, assistant instructor in Field Works, 1848-1851, senior instructor, 1851-1855^[23]

• 

  Main Gate on Academy Road

• 

  View from the southwest

• 

  Residential development

• 

  Renovation main building, 2015

See also

• Category:Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich

References

1. "Royal Engineers Museum – Articles – Royal Military Academy, Woolwich". Retrieved 2008-12-24.
2. History of the Royal Military Academy
3. Binney, Marcus (2008-03-21). "Royal Military Academy in Woolwich is turned into luxury apartments". The Times (London). Retrieved 15 April 2011.
4. Facilities in Sandhurst – 1937
5. Army Commands
6. List of Officers of the Royal Regiment of Artillery from the Year 1716 to 1899 Accessed: 23 May 2014
7. The London Gazette: no. 27359. p. 6295. 27 September 1901.
8. Encyclopædia Britannica Online: Sir Frederick Augustus Abel
9. Encyclopædia Britannica Online: Peter Barlow
10. MacTutor Biography: Peter Barlow
11. Lance Day and Ian McNeil, Biographical dictionary of the history of technology, Routledge, 1995, page 42.
12. Ingalls, James M. (1886), Exterior Ballistics in the Plane of Fire, New York: D. van Nostrand, p. 18
13. "Christie, Samuel Hunter (CHRY800SH)". A Cambridge Alumni Database. University of Cambridge.
14. Morgan William Crofton Biography, School of Mathematics and Statistics, St Andrew's University. Accessed 10 September 2014.
15. Engineering Timelines, Michael Faraday. Accessed 10 September 2014.
16. School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of St Andrews, Scotland. Alfred George Greenhill (October 2003). http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Greenhill.html
17. Grace's Guide, Olinthus Gilbert Gregory. Accessed 10 September 2014.
18. Olinthus Gilbert Gregory Biography, School of Mathematics and Statistics, St Andrew's University. Accessed 10 September 2014.
19. Bicentenary of Dr. Charles Hutton, F.R.S., Nature 140, p269 (14 August 1937), doi:10.1038/140269a0. Accessed 10 September 2014.
20. mentioned in Grace's Guide entry for Charles Hutton Gregory. Accessed 10 September 2014.
21. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Update September 2015.
22. British Museum collection: Royal Military Academy and Prince Rupert's Tower, Woolwich Academy - curator's note
23. South East History Boards, Henry Young Darracott Scott. Accessed 10 September 2014

Coordinates: 51°28′30″N 0°3′27″E / 51.47500°N 0.05750°E