Woolwich Arsenal 1913/14

Woolwich Arsenal — The Foundry Club

Woolwich Arsenal were founded in October 1886 by a group of munitions workers at the Royal Arsenal in Plumstead, south-east London. Originally known as Dial Square, the club quickly adopted the name Royal Arsenal, before becoming Woolwich Arsenal in 1893.

From the outset, the club was deeply entwined with the industrial identity of the area. The Royal Arsenal was one of the largest armaments complexes in the world, and football provided recreation, pride, and cohesion for a skilled working community whose labour quite literally armed the British Empire.

Woolwich Arsenal entered the Football League in 1893, becoming the first London club to do so. Their early League years were played at the Manor Ground, Plumstead, where large crowds gathered despite difficult travel for visiting northern clubs. Financial pressures, isolation from the League’s northern heartlands, and declining attendances eventually forced drastic action.

In 1913, Woolwich Arsenal relocated north of the Thames to Highbury, shedding “Woolwich” from the name in 1914. Though controversial, the move saved the club and laid the foundations for what would become one of the most influential institutions in English football.

This image deliberately references the Woolwich era: the industrial strength, martial discipline, and muscular athleticism that defined the club long before Highbury glamour or Chapman’s modernisation. The figure is not an individual player, but an archetype — the Arsenal man as worker-athlete.

Woolwich Arsenal — 1913/14

The 1913/14 season marked a pivotal moment in the history of Woolwich Arsenal. It was the club’s final campaign south of the Thames, played at the Manor Ground in Plumstead, and a year that brought profound change both on and off the field.

Financial difficulties, declining attendances, and the logistical challenge of competing in a largely northern league had placed the club under severe strain. Despite a respectable mid-table finish in the Second Division, it was clear that Woolwich Arsenal’s future could not be secured in their original home. In the summer of 1913 the club made the controversial decision to relocate to Highbury, north London — a move that would ultimately redefine its identity and destiny.

The team of 1913/14 embodies the last expression of the Woolwich era: resolute, disciplined, and shaped by the industrial roots of the Royal Arsenal. Their deep red shirts and uncompromising style reflected a club forged in armaments factories rather than drawing rooms — a working-class institution built on effort and organisation.

Within a year, the outbreak of the First World War would bring competitive football to a halt, closing the chapter on Woolwich Arsenal entirely. What followed was rebirth, reinvention, and the emergence of a new Arsenal — but the foundations were laid here.

This image captures a club on the threshold of history:

the end of Woolwich, and the beginning of Arsenal.

Product details:

• You will only pay shipping/postage for 1 item, no matter how many items you purchase.
• Discounts are given for multiple purchases.
• Size: A3, A4, A5
• Single Sided
• Paper: 400gsm premium art stock
• Print quality: Museum-grade, high-resolution
• Finish: Unframed
• Watermark shown in images does NOT appear on the final print
• Carefully packaged for safe delivery

A striking piece of football history — ideal for collectors, historians, and lovers of our national game.

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