Walking along you wouldn’t bat an eye lid at this rather bollard – that’s unless you knew the history of it. In October 1805 the Battle of Trafalgar took place between the British Navy and joint French & Spanish fleets. Twenty seven British ships were up against 33 of their counterparts and, after a bloody…
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In the years leading up to the Second World War the Government ordered the production of hundreds of thousands stretchers. They were built using two metal poles and wire mesh as metal would be easier to clean and disinfect and would be sturdier than wooden or fabric stretchers. Some 600,000 were estimated to have been…
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Situated around a mile west from Coalhouse Fort, this Lozenge pillbox has been the victim of coastal erosion. Once sitting on the Essex marshes it now lies half sunken into the earth and half resting on the sand below. Inside, the pillbox is quite spacious and even has some of the original shutters and shutter…
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Comprised of former farmland, Wick Country Park in Wickford spans 50 acres with over 2km of walking trails. Dotted amongst the site are three pillboxes – only one of which can be accessed inside, the others have been sealed up to prevent any damage. During construction works on the park in 2001, earth excavations discovered…
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Disguised Observation Post We started at a disguised defensive post, which when we visited in 2012 was next to the derelict Esplanade House. When we revisited in 2017, the site has been demolished and replaced with a Premiere Inn – luckily the pillbox-like structure has survived! The brick wall appears to be of classic Southend Victorian origin,…
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Share your memories with us by commenting at the end of the article! Now lying derelict with overgrown grass, collapsed ceilings and smashed windows, this building once held over a thousand students and staff. With the building getting older year on year and student numbers on the up, the school packed up its bags in…
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Upnor Castle is an Elizabethan artillery fort, built in 1559 protect the dockyard and Royal Navy ships docked in the Medway. Construction took 8 years to built the fort following orders from Elizabeth I, who was worried about tensions with Spain. 80 men would have been at the site as it’s peak – today it…
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One of London’s newest museums offers you the chance to take a ride under the bustling streets of the capital. You wouldn’t know it, but under your feet Royal Mail were transporting some 4 million letters across city for up to 22 hours a day. The service dates back to the 1920’s when the tunnels…
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Situated above the White Cliffs of Dover, this iconic castle has guarded our shores from invasion for 20 centuries and is the largest castle in England. Dover Castle is owned by English Heritage and is a Scheduled Monument meaning that it’s “nationally important” and is protected from any unauthorised change. Known as the ‘Key to England’,…
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Do you know your Tett Turret from your Dragons Teeth? We’ve covered over 180 historic locations (and counting!) on the website, most of which are military related so we’ve devised this guide to explain all manner of World War Two Defences. Dragons teeth, or pimples or anti-tank traps, all provide the same purpose. They were…
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