Opened in 1943, Rivenhall was used by both the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Force. During the war it was used primarily as a combat airfield with various fighter and bomber units based there. In was closed following the end of the the war in 1946 although it was kept in reserve for a following…
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The SS Richard Montgomery was a US Liberty Ship, constructed in 1943. In 1944 it was part of a convoy delivering explosives with 7,000 tonnes on this ship along. Whilst heading to Sheerness on August 12th 1944, the ships anchor was caught in the sandbanks off the Kent coast, causing the vessel to become grounded….
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At the outbreak of World War II, the Port of London was the busiest port in the world. As such, a large proportion of supplies to the UK entered by ships navigating the Thames. The German Navy quickly sought to put a stranglehold on this route, and to this end, utilised a new secret weapon…
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After checking out Southend’s wartime sea-defenses, we then had a look from the seawall at the ‘Mulberry Harbour’ back in 2011, split in half and stranded out in the sea. Many people visit it out on speedboats e.t.c., or even walk out when the tide is exceptionally low. It can be seen clearly today even…
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RAF Detling was a military airfield just outside of Maidstone, first opened prior to World War One as RNAS Detling (Royal Naval Air Service). Whilst the site doesn’t exist today, traces of it are still dotted around the village of Detling. Battle HQ’s were semi-underground bunkers built close to airfields where a Commander could organise…
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As World War Two intensified, Surrey Council Council ordered four deep shelters to be built. These big underground complexes could accommodate hundreds of civilians in the event of an air raid. This shelter was built within the grounds of the now demolished Cane Hill Asylum, so presumably would have been available for both local residents…
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As war intensified in 1940, the Royal Air Force were looking to rapidly expand their airfields across the country. In Norfolk, officials from the Air Force were tasked with finding sites where it would suitable to quickly and cheaply build new airfields – usually by converting farmland. As the search across the county continued, suspicions…
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The artillery battery at Longues-sur-Mer was built as part of the Atlantic Wall coastal fortifications and was built by German Forces in the first half of 1944, being completed within just four months. Constructed on the Normandy clifftop some 60 metres above the sea level, it was built in one of the best positions to…
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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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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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