History
Research into the development of torpedoes first occurred during the end of the 19th century. Initially this took place at the Royal Gun Factory, Woolwich. Further research work was then undertaken at the Royal Naval Torpedo Factory, Greenock, Scotland with additional torpedo experimentation being undertaken by a private contractor, the Whitehead Torpedo Works based in Weymouth, Dorset.[2]
In 1937, the Admiralty acquired another factory at Alexandria, Scotland to boost production. With the advent of World War Two, the Whitehead Torpedo Works barely maintained the production outputs required of them and so, in 1943, the Admiralty decided to set up an additional department at the Alexandria site. Collectively these centres of research and development became known as the Torpedo Experimental Establishment. It continued to operate until 1959 when it was closed. Its work was continued by the newly created Admiralty Underwater Weapons Establishment (AUWE) based at Portland, Dorset, England.[3][4]
The establishment was administered the Superintendent, Torpedo Experiment and Design.[5]
