Slade Green HAA Battery
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 …
Northwick Farm HAA Battery
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 …
Benfleet Explosives Magazines
Seven Victorian tunnel-like magazines were built on the Benfleet waterfront near Jotmans in the late part of the 19th Century. They would have been used …
Purfleet Heritage Centre & Magazine
Purfleet Heritage & Military Centre is a museum set up inside Magazine No.5 from the Royal Magazine of Gunpowder. This MOD magazine (which means an …
Canvey Concrete Barge
Ferro-Concrete barges were used to keep artificial ‘Mulberry Harbours’ afloat used by the allies in D-Day as checkpoints in the English Channel. One was thought …
Grain Tower
Known as 1, The Thames – this 19th century fort is situated 500 meters out into the mouth of the River Medway and was built …
Sutton & Shopland Pillboxes
The area north-east of Sutton Road Cemetery and Temple Farm Industrial Estate in Southend is home to numerous pillboxes, and once there was probably even …
Grain Dummy Battery
Grain Dummy Battery, originally known as Grain Battery, was built shortly before Grain Fort, completed in 1865 to support two nearby forts; Grain Fort and …
Fobbing QF Bomb Decoy
After setting off from the explosives site at Coryton, we headed on a trek across the marshes towards the town of Fobbing. We were searching …
French Cannon Bollard, Bankside
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 …
Tilbury Coastal Pillbox
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 …
Wickford Pillboxes
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 …
Southend Seafront WW2 Defences
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 …
Upnor Castle
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 …
Dover Castle & Wartime Tunnels
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. …
Hadleigh HAA Battery
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 …
A Guide to Second World War Defences
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 …
Bowers Gifford Pillboxes
First visited in the summer of 2012, Bowers Gifford is home to five surviving pillboxes which would have formed part of the GHQ defence line. …
RAF Hornchurch
What is RAF Hornchurch? Hornchurch Country Park covers almost 105 hectares on the former site or RAF Hornchurch. Used today by dog walkers, fishermen and …
Hatfield Peverel ROC Post
In a field parallel to the A12 lies two remains from the Cold War. Opened in July 1959 is the Royal Observers Corps (ROC) Post …
Wat Tyler Park WW2 Defences
As you should know if you’re either a budding historian or keen BTP reader, Watt Tyler country park is situated on the GHQ line – …
Upper Horse Island
When Beyond the Point was first established in 2011, we started investigating some strange patterns on Upper Horse Island, situated to the west of Canvey …
Paglesham Pillboxes
Paglesham is a vast expanse of mostly rural land surrounded by earthen seawalls of the common pre-North Sea Flood style witnessed across the Essex coastline. …
Canvey Island ROC Post
Photos from Dave Bullock. Above ground photo by Nick Catford. Nick Catford from the amazing site Subterranea Britannica visited the site in 1997, 1998, and …