When HMT Empire Windrush arrived at Tilbury Docks on 22 June 1948, it brought one of the largest groups of British Caribbean migrants to the UK.

The Windrush generation transformed Britain’s cultural landscape through art, music and other forms of creative expression.

More than 75 years after the Windrush’s arrival at Tilbury, discover some of the responses to this historical event that have been displayed at Royal Museums Greenwich.

Image
Digital artwork of a market scene selling Caribbean produce

Caribbean commemorations

Created by digital artist and graphic designer, Kareen Cox, this bold installation celebrates the Windrush generation and their contributions to British society and culture.

Kareen was one of five artists commissioned by Royal Mail to create designs for a special collection of postage stamps, to mark the 75th anniversary of Empire Windrush’s arrival in Britain. In her illustrations, smartly dressed passengers disembark from a ship, and a bustling market scene showcases Caribbean produce.

Kareen worked with The Collective Makers, Royal Museums Greenwich’s Practitioners in Residence, to turn her designs into a large-scale artwork. The installation was on display in the National Maritime Museum in 2023.

Home Home

Bringing together moving images, poetry and archival footage, Home Home explores the journeys of the Windrush generation and their connection to the sea.

The film was made by new media artist, Emily Alice Mitchell, and touches on themes including ancestry, identity, collective memory and grief. The work is dedicated to Emily’s late grandmother, who arrived in London from Trinidad in 1967.

Image
Photo of the ship Empire Windrush docked at Southampton Harbour in 1950.

Research guide: Ships, Ports & Passengers

The Empire Windrush was just one of many ships that transported Caribbean passengers to the UK.

In this resource, writer and researcher Veronica Mckenzie uncovers the stories of these other lesser-known vessels – and the people who sailed on them.

What’s On

Image of a small proportion of the Sun, which is lit up in golden yellow at the surface and moves to darker colours away from the surface. A golden plume of a coronal mass ejection is coming out of the Sun and flowing parallel to it.
Exhibitions | Space and astronomy

Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition

See the world's greatest space photography at the National Maritime Museum
Open daily until 11 August 2025 | 10am-5pm
Free
National Maritime Museum
A man dressed in period sailor costume leads a tour of the National Maritime Museum, with kids and parents following behind
Family fun

Character Encounters at the National Maritime Museum

Visit the National Maritime Museum every Saturday to discover a different character from history with their own fascinating story to tell
Every Saturday
Free
National Maritime Museum
The gold hilt of a sword against a dark fabric background. The outline of a human skull has been digitally superimposed on to the right side of the hilt.
Exhibitions | Maritime history

Pirates

Explore the myth, discover the truth: Pirates at the National Maritime Museum is now open
Open daily until 4 January 2026 | 10am-5pm
Adult: £15 | Student: £11.25 | Child: £7.50
National Maritime Museum
Adults and children enjoying a storytelling session.
Family fun

Play Tuesdays

Bring your under 5 on a different adventure every week! Explore the Museum together through song, dance and stories
Term time Tuesdays | 10.30am, 11.30am, 1.00pm, 2.00pm
£4 per child and accompanying adult | Under 6 months free
National Maritime Museum
A group of four with adults and children participating in a craft.
Family fun

Safe Harbour

Safe Harbour is a series of free workshops created to provide a safe space for foster and adoptive families with children under 13 years
Monthly: Next date 28 June | 12.30pm - 2.30pm
Ticketed | Free
National Maritime Museum
Sensory Sailors
Family fun

SENsory Sailors

Come along and enjoy this brand new sensory play session for children under 13 years with special educational needs
Once a month on Saturdays | 11am-12.30pm
Free | Pre-booking required
National Maritime Museum
(Source of a mother helping the child to draw using a pencil Picture)
Family fun

Discover Sundays

Each Sunday come and explore the Museum's collection through hands on creative activities
Term time Sundays | 11am - 1pm | 2pm - 4pm
Free | Drop-in
National Maritime Museum
The gold hilt of a sword against a dark fabric background. The outline of a human skull has been digitally superimposed on to the right side of the hilt.
Talks and tours | BSL tours

BSL Tour: Pirates

Join John Wilson for a British Sign Language (BSL) tour of our Pirates exhibition at the National Maritime Museum
Thursday 15 May and Saturday 1 November 2025 | 2pm-3pm
Adult: £15 | Student: £11.25 | Child: £7.50
National Maritime Museum
Photograph of the entrance to the National Maritime Museum
Events and festivals | Member events

Members' Summer Party

Join fellow Royal Museums Greenwich Members for a fabulous evening at the National Maritime Museum
Tuesday 1 July 2025 l 6.30pm-8.30pm (Sold out)
Free for Members – booking required
National Maritime Museum
Events and festivals

Teachers' Evening 2025

Celebrate the end of term at the National Maritime Museum and find out about schools sessions, resources, CPD and project opportunities at all Royal Museums Greenwich sites
Thursday 3 July 2025 | 4.30pm-7pm
FREE for UK school teachers and educators
National Maritime Museum
A group of people stretch their arms to the side
Experiences | Ocean Court

Movement on the Map: Tai Chi Qigong

Find your flow in these gentle sessions on the Ocean Map
Friday 4 July 2025 | 1pm-1.30pm and 1.45pm-2.15pm
Free
National Maritime Museum
Illustration of a pirate, with dagger and rifle over his shoulder
Talks and tours | Member events

Members' Lecture: Pirate Commonwealths

Join Dr Richard Blakemore as we delve deeper into 'pirate commonwealths' and how they affected empires, politics and piracy in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
Thursday 10 July 2025 | 6.30pm
Free for Members
National Maritime Museum
Portrait photo of the band Blue Machine, featuring the group of four stood on board historic ship Cutty Sark
Events and festivals | Museum Lates

Ocean Songs

Live music at the National Maritime Museum celebrating our ocean planet, its mythology, natural wonders and as-yet-undiscovered depths
Friday 11 July 2025 | 7pm
£10
National Maritime Museum
A dance leaps beside Nelson's Ship in a Bottle sculpture
Events and festivals | Ocean Court

Rhythm!

Go with the flow at the National Maritime Museum's vibrant dance festival, inspired by the ocean and movement
Saturday 12 July 2025 | 11am-5pm
Free
National Maritime Museum
Eleanor Anne Porden
Talks and tours | Member events

Members' Lecture: Eleanor Anne Porden

Uncover the often-forgotten life of John Franklin's first wife, Eleanor Anne Porden, with author Sam Pope
Monday 14 July 2025 l 6.30pm
Free for Members
National Maritime Museum
A photograph of children wearing cardboard cars smiling and laughing
Family fun | Ocean Court

Ready Steady Sail!

Join us for a day of ocean fun with crafting, storytelling and through an interactive walkabout performance to bring our new Ocean Map to life!
Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 July | 10.30am, 12pm, 1.45pm, 3.15pm - sold out
Free
National Maritime Museum
Aerial view of waves crashing in a dark blue sea
Talks and tours | Member events

Members' Lecture: Blue Machine

Discover the blue machine that drives our planet with scientist and presenter Dr Helen Czerski
Monday 21 July 2025 l 6.30pm
Free for Members
National Maritime Museum
A mother and daughter sit on the Great Map during World Ocean Day at the National Maritime Museum
Family fun | Ocean Court

Ocean: above and below

Dive into an ocean adventure with free activities every day at the National Maritime Museum this summer!
Daily except Mondays | 23 July - 31 August 2025
Free
National Maritime Museum
photo of a hand made pocket with embroidery
Workshops

Historical pocket making workshop

Create a timeless tie-on pocket as part of this project providing community workshops accessible for people with memory loss, Alzheimer’s and dementia
Tuesday 5 August, 4 November and 2 December | 11am-1pm
Free, drop-in
National Maritime Museum
Image of many people standing around within a photography gallery with astrophotography images on the walls
Talks and tours | Royal Observatory 350th anniversary

Evening of Astrophotography

Come along to a panel discussion to learn more about astrophotography, and enjoy a private viewing of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2024 exhibition
Friday 8 August 2025 | 6pm-8pm
Adults: £12 | Students and Under 25s: £8.50
National Maritime Museum
A Black man wearing green sunglasses and a geometric patterned top stands contemplatively by the River Thames
Events and festivals | Ocean Court

International Slavery Remembrance Day

Explore the legacies of the transatlantic slave trade and its abolition at the National Maritime Museum
Saturday 23 August 2025 | 11am-5pm
Free
National Maritime Museum
A drawing of a Royal Naval Auxiliary tanker seen in starboard-quarter view, turning in the River Thames off Greenwich. In the background is the Old Royal Naval College. There is a black smoke coming out of the top of the boat
Conferences | Maritime history

Britain, Conflict, and the Sea conference

This conference seeks to explore the ways in which modern Britain has been shaped by ideas and practices of maritime war
Friday 12 September 2025 9am-5.45pm | Saturday 13 September 9am-3.30pm
Adult £50 | Postgraduate Researcher/Student £25 | Members £45
National Maritime Museum
Young people attach brightly coloured pieces of painted fabric to a suspended washing line
Workshops

Saturday Art Club

Register now for our weekly creative workshops for young people aged 13-16 during term time at the National Maritime Museum
Saturdays from October 2025 - April 2026 | 10am-1pm
Free
National Maritime Museum
Careers event students Cutty Sark rope making
Events and festivals

STEM careers event: from seas to stars

Free careers event for schools
Wednesday 4 March 2026
Free
National Maritime Museum

Images courtesy of Kareen Cox