Skip to main content

Posts

North Weald Redoubt: The London Defence Positions

The rivalry between France and Britain in the 1870’s again raised the fear of invasion. To meet such a threat, Colonel Ardagh laid out a defence scheme for the United Kingdom.  His key assumption was that an invading enemy’s objective was to be London. His scheme recommended garrisons for the defence of naval bases and commercial ports, a mobile field army concentrated in the south of England and all volunteer troops not required for the defence of ports or naval bases to occupy positions selected for the defence of London.   The most likely landing place, where an army would only be a few days march from London, would be between Portsmouth and Harwich; the next best stretch of coast would be between Great Yarmouth to Harwich. Thus, the Field Army, covered by its cavalry and the Imperial Yeomanry, were to be distributed along a front stretching from Aldershot-Gravesend-Colchester. Behind this front, a second line of 10 main positions was to be manned by Volunteers organised in...
Post a Comment
Read more
Recent posts

Selsey Bombing Range, West Sussex (also known as Range 26 during the war and the Manhood Range or Earnley Range post war)

The Selsey Range was originally established in May 1941 in response to requests by Commands for coastwise armament training areas and an area was marked of Selsey Bill (which was an extension of the old Littlehampton air gunnery range) and was known as the Selsey Bill air firing area (Training Area A.F. 26). It was operation from June 1941. Subsequently, an addition to the Selsey Range was set up in the early part of 1943 as an air to ground range for use by squadrons at Tangmere (Training Area A.F. 26a).   Clearance to use the range was given for the duration of the war only.   In December 1943 it was decided to provide further facilities for low level and dive bombing practice within the same area and these facilities came into use in March 1944. In August 1944 the range was further extended for rocket projectile (RP) firing, which drew strong local protest.   The RP facilities came into use in November 1944. It was not until December 1944 that live bombing faciliti...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ward Hill Trench, Thorpeness

 At Ward Hill, Thorpeness, there can be found the possible remains of a trench. It is approx 16m in length and runs in a northerly direction.  Is it First or Second War? Well actually, if it is indeed a trench, it is Second War and matches the location of  a section post of the 5th Royal Berks Regiment sited in 1941.  This followed a reorganising of the string of the linear defences sited to cover vulnerable beaches in 1940 and thus add depth to the defence.  Above: possible extant remains of trench, Ward Hill (2m scale ruler in trench) Above: maps showing location of possible extant trench remains, Ward Hill So why the suggestion of a First War trench? The answer to that question is because a trench in the vicinity is marked on  a trench map I acquired a while back, dated August 1914, and marked Orderly Room in feint crayon. There is also a very faint stamp, on which HQ Mounted Division can be made out. The Mounted Division, concentrated in East Anglia, wa...
Post a Comment
Read more

DFW Drawing 10890 - A Standard Grease Trap

Undoubtedly the  best known  DFW (Directorate of Fortification and Works) drawings / designs  are the pillbox types. However, the DFW covered all aspects of military constructions.  Probably most people are not familiar  with drawing DFW 10890, a standard grease trap. These were built to trap grease (as there name implies!) from sinks in washrooms or cookhouses and are often a conscious remain of temporary military camps along with concrete bases for Nissen / curved asbestos  types of hut.  The trap in the image below is from the domestic camp of a Heavy Anti-Aircraft battery, part of the Diver Defences (defence against the Flying bombs) constructed as a result of the 'Winterization' programme which replaced tented camps with hutted camps. As well as the satisfaction of finding such features during field work and being able to match it to an official drawing, it also allows us to identify washrooms/cookhouses within the remains of the camp layout....
Post a Comment
Read more

Medmerry - Selsey WW2 anti-invasion defences

  At high water, the beach at Selsey Bill (including Medmerry) is heave shingle, and at low water hard sand and light shingle.   Landings by enemy vessels with a draught of up to 5 feet were practicable. The beach at Medmerry was backed by the Broad Rife. The beaches were classed as suitable for landing heavy mechanised units, although exits were generally poor and onto open fields only, except on the west side from East and West Wittering where there where exits onto main roads and from the Lifeboat House westwards where there was also an exit onto a main road. On the east side, Pagham Harbour provided a small inlet that could be suitable for landing small craft.   Following the fall of France, Britain became a theatre of war, and the south coast of Britain was the most likely place for a German invasion.   At this time Montgomery’s 3rd Division briefly held the south coast until early July when it was relieved so it could act as a mobile counter-attack force at...
Post a Comment
Read more