Nearly 1,000 anti-aircraft sites were built during the Second World War and 192 were retained for use with nuclear weapons in what would be known as the Cold War. Under a plan code named ‘Igloo’, 78 sites were chosen with 54 having guns permanently mounted however at the outbreak of the Korean War, 683 batteries…
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Tucked away in the Little Gypps area of Canvey Island is a park known as the Gunny/Gunney, and here there was once a WW2 Heavy Anti Aircraft (HAA) battery designated as TN7 Furtherwick (Thames North battery No.7). There were six gun emplacements, four octagonal early-war pits positioned in a semi circle facing east and another…
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Driving through Rawreth Industrial Estate you wouldn’t have a clue that you were driving past some old Prisoner of War buildings; but they were once known locally as “Rawreth Camp” or “The Gunsite”. According to the Rochford District Community Archive, the site was constructed at the start of the Second World War, in 1940, originally…
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The Slade Green HAA site (also known as ZS1) was the most easterly anti-aircraft site built inside the London Inner Artillery Zone. Dating back to the late 1930’s, it was possibly built as a prototype to be used as a last resort should any aircraft have passed by the other defences along the river Thames….
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Thames North 8, Northwick ( as it was ‘coded’ during the war) was the name assigned to one of the many heavy anti-aircraft batteries across the country. This one, located down Northwick Road on Canvey, amongst what is now a recycling centre, would have been pointed at the skies to blast any German bombers or…
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TN9 Hadleigh at Sandpit Hill was one of several heavy anti-aircraft batteries in the area – such as TN7 Furtherwick and TN8 Northwick on Canvey, and also TN10 Vange. They would’ve been used for defence in the Second World War to shoot down enemy bombers and fighters during the Blitz. It also would have been a defence…
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TN13, or Bowaters Farm Anti-Aircraft Battery, was built at the outbreak of the Second World War. Whilst many HAA sites have been demolished, we were given permission by the farm owner to have an explore around these 70 year-old remains. Built in 1939, the defence was armed with four 3.7-inch guns and later upgraded to…
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During the early Second World War, Germany bombed British towns, cities, and industries using aircraft. This initially took place in daylight leading up to the Battle of Britain, but when this tactic failed, Hitler decided nighttime bombing would give an advantage. In the Blitz of 1940 and 1941, the daytime was ordinary, but every night…
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When Britain came under aerial attack in the Second World War, thousands of Heavy Anti-Aircraft batteries and associated army camps were built across the country. These are a fairly uniform and easy-to-recognise ruin one can find in anywhere from open farmland to housing estates. We have looked at other nearby batteries, such as those in…
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