William Armstrong was a man of the 19th century. He tamed electricity, hydraulics, heavy machinery and whatever else to build his empire. He invented the modern rifled built up gun to which navies of the world still use, and gave it to the British Government. Patriotic to a fault, he also had so many other interests and the means to pursue them. His house at Cragside was the first to be powered by hydroelectricity. He built shipyards and could build everything for the battle cruiser in house. His hydraulic machinery even powers the London Bridge. He is one of the men who built our modern world. There is a new book about Sir William Armstrong's life by Henrietta Heald, the "Magician of the North" and it is available on Amazon
