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| HER Number | MWB16506 |
|---|
| Record Type | Monument |
|---|
| Name | Site of Nuclear Reactor, Aldermaston Court |
|---|
Summary
Former location of the Merlin nuclear reactor, opened in 1959 but demolished when Portland House was built as the headquarters of Blue Circle Cement
Associated Legal Designations or Protected Status
- Registered Park or Garden (II) 1000530: Aldermaston Court
Monument Type(s):
Full Description
The Merlin nuclear reactor was one of the first research reactors, developed by AEI (Associated Electrical Industries) in the grounds of Aldermaston Court. It was a swimming pool type reactor, which first started operation in July 1959, although The Duke of Edinburgh officially opened it. A Pathe newsreel of 06/11/1959 shows the Duke visiting the site wearing a white coat and overshoes, and then sitting at a control desk <2>. The building was by the lake, and was decommissioned over a period of years after 1962 and then demolished in the 1980s, when the estate was sold to Blue Circle Cement. Their new headquarters, Portland House, was constructed on the site. It is uncertain what use was made of the reactor.
The reactor is not named on available maps, but is probably depicted on the 5th Epoch Ordnance Survey mapping <3> as a building with a semi-circular extension, adjacent to a group of several rectangular huts by the lake. Grace's Guide to British Industry <4> shows a external photograph of the Merlin reactor building which appears to be a tall rectangular block; also in the image are the primary coolant plant house and the sub-critical laboratory.
Associated Electrical Industries were a private company who had purchased Aldermaston Court before the Second World War. After the estate was returned to them, it was used as a research laboratory - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldermaston_Court Acccessed 21/08/2008
Sources and further reading
| <01> | Martin, S, Braithwaite et al (ed). 2005. Memories of life in an English Country Village (Aldermaston and Wasing). p25, 61. [Monograph / SWB14720] |
| <02> | 1896-1978. British Pathe historical collection. https://www.britishpathe.com/video/duke-opens-merlin-reactor/query/merlin. [Projected and video material / SWB149451]
https://www.britishpathe.com/ (Accessed 01/08/2018) |
| <03> | Ordnance Survey. 1962-1981. Ordnance Survey Epoch 5, 1:2500. 1:2500. 1:2500, 1971. [Map / SWB14665] |
| <04> | Tweedie, A (founder). 2007-. Grace's Guide to British Industrial History. https://www.gracesguide.co.uk. AWRE - Atomic Weapons Research Establishment. [Website / SWB149365]
https://www.gracesguide.co.uk (Accessed 05/12/2023) |
Related Monuments
| MWB6276 | Aldermaston Court (Park) (Landscape) |
| MWB16503 | Aldermaston Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) (Monument) |
| MWB3730 | Aldermaston Court (House) (Building) |
| MWB19622 | Portland House, Aldermaston (Building) |
Associated Excavations and Fieldwork
| EWB1555 | Desk-based Assessment at Aldermaston Park, Aldermaston (Ref: 1038) |
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