SM UB-122 was a World War One German submarine, or U-Boat, in the German Imperial Navy which was first commissioned in March 1918 after a year of construction. The 183ft warship was armed with 10 torpedoes and a 3.46 inch deck gun which would have been operated by the 31 men and 3 officers onboard….
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The bunker was built in late 1940 as the South East Army Command Brigade Headquarters. It can be presumed that this was unlike most military installations on home ground in that it was not a defensive site for use by defensive forces; like the Home Guard or Territorial Army, but an actual command post for…
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As the world entered the 20th Century, technology was advancing at a rapid rate and communication between the UK and America was already wired with a transatlantic submarine cable. Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi was an expert in radio transmission and developed the first system which allowed wireless transmission from Cornwall to New Foundland, US. Following…
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Prime Minister Winston Churchill was after a location for a new, secret, Army Battle Headquarters and came across the perfect location in Reigate; an old chalk quarry with easy access by car and a vantage vantage point on top of the tunnels that has a view stretching miles. It’s also rumoured that some of the…
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If German forces were successful in invading Britain during the Second World War, the dozens of Zero stations would have come into operation. They were designed so that spies could secretly give information to out stations, before the coded information was passed on via radio to zero stations who would then inform the Special Duties…
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The Anti-Aircraft Command Operations Room in Merstham was built in 1951 as part of Pendell Army Camp, which was demolished to make way for the M23. The Operations Room was saved from demolition, being just metres away from the motorway. The Home Office took ownership of the site in the 1960’s before handing it over…
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During World War 2, the Deepdene hotel and grounds were taken over by Southern Railway who had chosen the site to be its emergency wartime headquarters. Making use of some existing caves, which had been there for some 300 years, building work started to turn the chalk tunnels into a bomb-proof underground control centre. In…
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As aerial bombing emerged during the Second World War so did the defences. In addition to anti-aircraft batteries the Government started to build more discreet defensive positions with a new decoy programme launched in 1940 with some 839 decoys built. Potential targets such as airfields, factories or oil refineries had decoys built in the nearby…
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Shooters Hill is one of the highest points in London with a summit of 432 feet. The name is thought to date back to 1226 when the land was used for archery practise; either that or a common area for highwaymen. During the Second World War several defences were built in the area to protect…
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The history of ‘Henley’s’ dates back to 1837 when WT Henley opened a worksop in London, manufacturing covered wires, and went on to become one of the leading electrical companies – most notably for their role in the development of submarine cables. In 1863 they won a contract with the Indian Government to build a…
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