Westley Richards retired from the active management of the business in the same year, while remaining chairman, and the management increasingly fell under the control of the Deeley family in the late nineteenth century.īy the First World War, the company had lost its more lucrative military contracts to the Royal Ordnance factories. Finally, he superintended its transition to a limited liability company in 1872, when he became chairman. Westley Richards (1814-1897) continued his father's reputation for technical innovation as his partner between 18 and then head of the firm from 1865 to 1872. Increasingly, it specialised in two areas: sporting guns, which continue to be the mainstay of the gunmaking part of the business, and the production of military weapons, beginning with the Enfield musket of 1853. The expansion of the firm in the nineteenth century was based on a continuous stream of technical improvements and innovations. Westley Richards & Co Ltd was established in 1812 by the celebrated Birmingham gunmaker, William Westley Richards (1790-1865), He challenged the pre-eminence of the London gunmakers and his appointment as gunmaker to the Prince Consort in 1840 gave tangible expression to his success. All enquiries about access should be directed in writing to
In private possession (reference: GB-800819-Westley)Īccess to the records in the following report is restricted and may be difficult to arrange.
Of Westley Richards & Co Ltd, gunmakers, Birmingham
Westley Richards & Co Ltd, gunmakers, Birmingham: records Historical Manuscripts Commission Summary report on the records