The Imperial War Museum, London

The Imperial War Museum is one of the finest museums globally, showcasing prominent apparatus from World Wars. Its unique concept behind exhibits makes it special. Explore it when booking Europe packages for an enriching experience!

Unlike other museums, IWM isn’t just about the display of artifacts but focuses on the stories behind them. The museum throws light on the time of war and its influence on people. Along with war weapons used in the war, portraits of the time are exhibited reflecting on what the war did to the people living it.

Focus drawn upon the life behind the fight, what the war was like to children of those times, the conflict of realism and much more is displayed at the museum. The museum has five branches across England among which three of them are situated in London. The details of the most prominent branch on Lambeth Road, London is presented here.

The exhibit of the museum is spread across multiple floors in the building, the ground floor displays a collection of objects from World War I and II, along with a few war scene models. You also can find tanks, rockets etc used during the course of war. The first floor has a secret war exhibition where you find strategy material and charts used by the special forces during the war.

While the second and third floor called the horrors of Hollocaust holds personal objects and pictures that speak of the stories of people who fought the war. To brief you about the museum, you can expect to have a historical tour of the war by looking at the war equipment and accessories that are showcased.

• From the first world war to the present, the Imperial war museum records and illustrates all aspects of modern war and the consequences of it.
• The museum has a collection of stories and objects which gives an insight into people’s war experiences, the items being appropriately preserved for future generations.
• The war museum has a massive collection of items related to 20th and 21st-century conflicts and has a purely rich collection of post – 1945 objects.
• The museum is home to a sizable collection of 93,000 items of art, 30,000 documents, 33,000 sound recordings, 200,000 items of film, and 11 million photographs.
• Tourists can access oral history documents, personal papers, films, and interviews of the life and experience of cold warriors both at the museum or from the website.
• The museum showcases the war stories from the different perspectives of protestors, presidents, civilians, and the military.

The distance from the airport to IWM is approximately 14 kms by road. However, there are multiple public and private commute options to choose from to reach your destination.

1. Commute via Train: From the airport board a train to Canning town DLR station which would take about 6mins, make a transfer via the subway to the waterloo station. The museum is a 15 min walk away from Waterloo station.Opting to commute via this route will take you around 36 mins to reach the destination. Tube stations closer to the museum are Waterloo or the Elephant and Castle that you can use.

2. Commute via Line: This is a low price option to opt for. However, it would take around an hour and a half to reach the destination. Board a train to Woolwich Arsenal DLR station and take a transfer from Woolwich arsenal station to Lambeth.

3. Commute via Taxi: Using a taxi, you will take about 18 min to reach your destination using the Lower lea crossing.

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The Imperial War Museum is open from 10 am to 6 pm every day. The best time to visit the museum is from 11 am - 4 pm, to avoid the crowd you could walk in early. It is recommended to spend at least 2 - 3 hrs at the museum to learn about all the exhibits at the IWM.

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History

The war association in 1917 acknowledged Sir Alfred Mond’s idea of opening a National war museum and formally established it in 1920. The first war museum was opened at the Crystal Palace by King George V. After displacing the collection twice due to the constant addition to the war collection the museum was reopened in 1936 on Lambeth road in the south of London.

With events such as the Second World War and the Korean War, the collection of the museum became richer and gained higher prominence. The dominion interest in the museum caused the change of name from the National war museum to the Imperial War Museum.

During the 1970’s and 1980’s the museum expanded with multiple branches and historical experiences for the visitors. IWM Duxford opened in 1976, HMS Belfast in 1978, Churchill War rooms in 1984, and the fifth branch was inaugurated in Trafford, Great Manchester in 2002.

Facilities at the Imperial War Museum

1. Parking: The parking of the museum is located in the Congestion Charge zone. To get a convenient parking spot at the Imperial War Museum use the 'Just park app', as there is a crunch in the parking space you should preferably block a spot 2 days prior to your visit.

2. Accessibility: Easy accessibility for the disabled and baby prams made available. differently-abled friendly washrooms. Easy access to all made possible.

3. Catering: A cafe to cater to all palates is in the vicinity of the museum.

4. Information Desk: Information desks are present across the museum to guide you through the museum.

5. Toddler Changing Rooms: The museum is baby-friendly and also has baby changing rooms in case of need. The museum aisle is pram friendly to make it easy for the baby prams.

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Tips to travel Imperial War Museum

1.  Like other attractions of London, the Imperial war museum is also very crowded. It remains busy from 11.00 am to 4.00 pm. If you want to avoid the crowd, visit the museum early in the morning or after 4 PM.
2. To explore the museum completely, you should take out 3 hours. Most people spend extra time here, but ideally, 3 hours are sufficient.
3.  If you are planning to see everything in the Imperial war museum London, be ready to do lots of reading as every display is packaged with an enormous paragraph of detailed information.
4. Some parts of museum areas lack proper signage, so keep your wits handy while walking through the exhibitions as it will be easy to get lost. .

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