Saturday 9^th August marks the launch of Royal William Yard's interactive history trail

Plymouth's Royal William Yard is inviting visitors to step into the past with the launch of its new History Trail this Saturday as the popular destination becomes a free open-air museum, where visitors can explore two centuries of remarkable history. The unveiling of the trail will be marked by a day of celebrations and heritage crafts with a twist.

The free, self-guided, interactive discovery trail will connect visitors to a wealth of fascinating facts, images and audio. It will take guests of all ages on a journey through the archives, sharing plans, pictures and stories that bring 200 years of remarkable history alive in a unique way.

With construction starting in 1825 on the iconic site, Royal William Yard was once described as "the grandest of all royal victualling yards." It served as the beating heart of the Royal Navy's food and drink supply chain for over a century, keeping sailors fed, watered and clothed while at sea and stationed across the globe. It stands as one of England's most magnificent industrial monuments and Europe's largest collection of Grade I Listed military buildings.

A journey through time

Visitors can pick up a map from The Green on Saturday from 10am-3pm and explore the hidden histories around the Yard. The History Trail showcases everything from drawings by engineering legend Sir John Rennie, to historical insights uncovered during the Yard's restoration and little-know discoveries.

A map guides visitors round each of the 11 numbered stops, where they will find History Trail plaques on the walls of designated buildings, each with a unique QR code that unlocks captivating stories and first-hand accounts. The trail includes recordings of oral histories from people who worked on and at the Yard over the years – putting visitors in their shoes, as they stand in the same spot.

The trail opens on Saturday 9^th August and then stays open all day, every day, indefinitely. For those wanting to try the trail after Saturday, maps will be available from the Yard’s Welcome Suite and online. Find out more at: www.royalwilliamyard.com/history-trail

Classic crafts with a modern twist

To mark the launch of the History Trail, Saturday will feature a day of heritage crafts and themed activities – a nod to the Yard's past, but with a modern twist. The activities will be held in the new Arcade building.

This was a place that made gargantuan quantities of baked goods, stored crockery for Naval fleets, created handmade uniforms, and built a vast volume of barrels and filled with rum. To mark the moment, the event will invite people experience these origins of the Yard for themselves in a novel way.

• Clay Tile Making with Tweeny from Ocean Studio’s pottery – explore the amazing architecture of the Yard through clay, with the opportunity to recreate the iconic landscape through creating relief tiles (sessions at 10am, 11:30am, and 2pm – booking required. This is an activity for adults, tickets can be booked at: https://buytickets.at/royalwilliamyard/1803026)

• Stitch & Celebrate with Lizzy from Make Fabric Boutique and Abbi from Mukta-Undone – join a stitching session to decorate a traditional wool military garment using upcycled fabrics and creative embellishments. The garment will reflect themes of sustainability, community, and "make do and mend". There will be 30-minute creative sewing slots (first-come, first-served if busy) open to all ages and skill levels.

• Ships Biscuit Making is a free activity for children of all ages creating authentic ships biscuits, just like those produced in the Yard's massive bakery 200 years ago. While these historic treats were once notorious for being infested with insects, assured that all biscuits made this weekend will be bug-free! (sessions at 11.30am and 12.45pm – booking advised as places are limited. Booking is free at: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/royalwilliamyard/1802780)

• Additional launch day attractions hark back to the Yard’s Naval past, with a rum tasting and rum cocktails (including non-alcoholic rum) at The Hook & Line pop-up on The Green, a discount on microbrewery Steel Brew’s beer taster boards – plus pop-up portraits, and various stands and stalls in Arcade.

Hidden histories – a sneak peek:

The History Trail uncovers extraordinary stories from the Yard's past, including:

• The brewery that never brewed: The impressive Brewhouse was designed to supply beer for the Royal Navy. Yet in the very year it was finished, beer was removed as the Navy's daily ration and replaced by rum – meaning this grand building never fulfilled its original purpose.

• Industrial baking powerhouse: The Mills Bakery was an industrial marvel that could transform 1,000 massive sacks of flour into ship's biscuits in just one week. Two 40-horsepower steam engines powered the millstones – but this wasn’t without danger and Mills Bakery twice went ablaze.

• Underwater royal ceremony: During construction, the Duke of Clarence (later King William IV) laid the coping stone of the main sea wall underwater using a cast-iron diving bell – an innovative engineering feat for 1827.

• The Makaton connection: The Makaton sign for biscuit – tapping your elbow – mimics the real-life motion of sailors cracking open ship's biscuits in the crook of their arms to shake out the weevils.

• Rising from the sea: The Yard stands on dramatically reshaped peninsula landscape – around 370,000 tons of limestone and rubble were quarried to create land that simply didn’t exist there before.

Looking ahead

The History Trail forms part of Royal William Yard's bicentennial celebrations throughout 2025. A 200 Exhibition will be held from 13th-28th September, showcasing original artifacts, historical documents, images and art sourced from The National Archives, Devonport Naval Heritage Centre, Plymouth Proprietary Library, local historians including Chris Robinson, and the outstanding response to the 200 Stories campaign that received submissions from the public.

The two-week long exhibition will explore the Yard’s origins, newly revealed insights and tales, and the regeneration journey from disrepair into Urban Splash's award-winning thriving mixed-use destination. See, read, touch and discover an astounding part of Plymouth’s past.

For more information about the bicentennial celebrations, visit www.royalwilliamyard.com/200