Tag: military
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Rievaulx Bridge: Monks, Floods, and Tanks
In 1826, William Turner stood on this bridge to paint his famous view of Rievaulx Abbey. Anyone hoping to recreate his masterpiece today would be sorely disappointed, thanks to the abundance of trees along the river and the endless stream of traffic rattling across the bridge. This three-arched, hump-backed structure, built from limestone ashlar, replaced…
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High Lingrow: From Wartime Deception to Agricultural Use
At Port Mulgrave today, where the weather could not make up its mind, shifting between sunshine and snow flurries. Lingrow Cliffs is just that little headland across the bay, not really anything special, especially at low tide. But near its highest point—named, with great imagination, High Lingrow—there was once a Second World War bombing decoy…
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An Overlooked Wartime Relic of Sherwood Forest
A pit stop at the Sherwood Forest visitor centre for some exercise. Instead of yet another photograph of the Major Oak – that 1,000-year-old tree allegedly used by Robin Hood, of which the internet is already saturated – I have chosen something more original: a pair of ditches. These ditches, grandly named ‘Military Bunker Pits’…
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RAF Fylingdales and The Big Freeze of 1963
As we batten down the hatches in preparation for Storm Isha, the more mature of you might remember the so-called ‘Big Freeze of 1963‘, during the winter of that year. It stood as one of the coldest winters since the notorious one of 1946/7. Temperatures plummeted, leading to the freezing of lakes and rivers. The…
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Scallywag hideout
A few weeks ago I had a tip off about a WW2 ‘Auxiliary Unit‘ operations base above Danby Park overlooking Castleton (thanks, Chris). This would have been the hideout for a special detachment of the Home Guard which would have operated as a guerrilla force in the event of a German invasion. Although these were…
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Balfour Coast Battery, Hoxa Head
During both World Wars, Scapa Flow in the Orkney archipelago was used as a naval anchorage for the British fleet. To protect the southern entrance to the anchorage, gun batteries were established at Hoxa Head and on the island of Flotta. At Hoxa, concrete buildings, foundation and plinths still remain, most relating to the World…
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Duncombe Park Army Camp
About 3km after crossing Rievaulx Bridge with its opportunity to gaze at the majestic abbey, the Cleveland Way crosses a concrete road at Griff Lodge. Here the National Trail bears left to Helmsley avoiding Duncombe Park. The concrete road is a reminder of the military presence during WW2 at Duncombe Park. Following it through Park…