The story of wind energy across Europe
The history of renewable energy goes back many hundreds of years, when people began harnessing the powers of nature to produce energy. For most of that time, this has involved the production of kinetic energy by wind and waterpower evidenced by machinery to grind grain into flour (windmills and watermills). During the late 1800s, early pioneers experimented in utilising the powers of wind and water to generate electricity, which became more mainstream from the 1970s onwards. This is a rich and varied history, central to humanity. But it has rarely been looked at in a holistic way, from the early 1100s and the first documentary evidence of windmills arriving in Europe (waterpower goes back even further in time), up until present day and beyond.
With support from the Council of Europe and the European Union, The Mills Archive Trust is working in collaboration with the World Wind Energy Association, the Nordic Folkecenter for Renewable Energy and the German Wind Power Museum, to showcase the important advances in wind power over hundreds and years, including current inventions and innovations.
Central to all these stories are people – it is only through the perseverance of individuals and communities that we have got to this point, where wind is providing a large amount of electricity to meet the needs of people throughout Europe and the wider world.
A necessary ingredient for telling these stories are contributions and content from the public – if you know of a significant person, invention, location or event relating to wind energy at any point in time within Europe that we have not included, do let us know. This story and the map will continue to grow and be shaped by public contributions.
We are in the process of creating an interactive map showing key people, events, inventions and achievements across Europe. You can click the image below and start exploring the interactive map. It is still very much a work in progress, growing as we receive input from people throughout Europe and around the world.
If you would like to get in touch with any questions, comments or suggestions, please contact us.
You can read our press release here.
