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Geoffrey Parnell

Dr. Geoffrey Parnell is Keeper of Tower History at the Royal Armouries Museum HM Tower of London.

Biography

Between 1974 and 1984 he worked as an archaeological consultant, primarily for the Ancient Monuments Branch of the Department of the Environment, undertaking investigations at the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace and Windsor Castle.

In 1985 he joined English Heritage as an Inspector of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings, working with a multi-disciplined group of historians, architects and building conservators to advise on the care and presentation of the historic London government buildings and the metropolitan royal palaces.

During this period he worked on a number of prominent projects, including the restoration of the Queen’s House and Old Royal Observatory at Greenwich and the aftermath of the catastrophic fire at Windsor Castle.

In 1993 he joined the Royal Armouries to organise the re-presentation of the museum’s permanent displays at the Tower of London and to mount a series of temporary exhibitions.

His doctoral thesis, awarded in 1996, was on The Buildings and Works of the Office of Ordnance at the Tower of London, 1660-1722. He has written extensively on aspects of post-medieval military history in England and North America and on the archaeology of the Tower of London and the history of its buildings and institutions.

Dr. Parnell is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London.

Recent publications:

• PARNELL, G (2001b), ‘The Lady Vanishes’, BBC History Magazine, Vol. 2, No. 9, September 2001, pp.12-5.
• PARNELL,G (2001a), ‘Diary of a Death at Daybreak’, BBC History Magazine, Vol. 2, No. 2, February 2001, pp. 12-8.
• LAPPER, I & PARNELL, G (2000b), The Tower of London: A 2000-Year History, Osprey Publishing.
• IMPEY, E & PARNELL, G (2000a), The Tower of London: The Official Illustrated History, Merrell Publishers.
• PARNELL, G (1999b), ‘Guns and Guidance: The Late Stuart Ordnance Office and its North American Connection’ in Old and New Worlds, Oxford.
• PARNELL, G (1999a), The Royal Menagerie at the Tower of London, Royal Armouries.

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