World War Two Open Day At Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings

English Heritage

• 9 May 2026
• 09:00 – 15:00
• See organiser for pricing
• Ages 0 – 18 years

Description

Join us on Saturday 9 May for a free open day commemorating the time when Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings was a temporary barracks and training centre in World War Two.

The trainee soldiers slept on the floors of the Flaxmill Maltings as rats run around them – they referred to it as the Rat Hotel. You can learn about what this life would have been like at this free drop-in event, with lots to do and see for all the family.

You can even go on a tour of the vicinity of the Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings to discover some of the impact of WW2 on the locality. Tours are free and will run twice during the day at 11.30am and 2pm and last one hour. Places are limited on these tours so please email [email protected] to guarantee a place.

During the day you can also:

Experience re-enactment volunteers with show and tell equipment and soldiers’ kit

Train and drill with the Home Guard

Experience a working authentic air raid siren

Learn about the soldiers who trained at Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings by exploring the military records captured by some of the volunteers

Take part in training with grenade beanbags

Splat the Rats to help keep the rat population down

Location

• Spring Gardens
• Shrewsbury
• Shropshire
• SY1 2SZ

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