Poisonous Workplaces: What Workers Faced in British Chemical Weapons Factories

Soldiers were not the only victims of chemical warfare in the twentieth century; the workers who produced these weapons also risked injury and death. Focusing on British chemical weapons factories during both world wars, this article advances our understanding of the human costs not only of war but also of the preparation for war. Technologies such as physical barriers, ventilation systems, protective equipment, and detection systems mitigated some hazards to workers, but financial constraints, wartime pressures, and limited knowledge of the damage caused by prolonged exposure to low levels of chemical weapons resulted in serious damage to workers' bodies.