William Ironside started his military career with the Boer War. This Pillbox is disappearing under ivy, bracken, scrub trees and well defended by nettles, best come to see it in winter, Unusually free from Vegetation this Pillbox is about a mile down Cow Lane Marcham with a fine view to Abingdon. These are about 100m from the pillbox. At the price of getting badly stung I managed to get this photo, it is a type 22 bren gun only pillbox with inner y-shaped anti ricochet wall. The Air Ministry requisitioned the house when the war began in 1939. The line was divided into a number of sections and that protecting the Bristol area was the GHQ stop-line 'Green' which was 91 miles in length, with 319 pillboxes (48 to be bullet proof only) and 21 miles of anti-tank ditches. You did a great job on this, it's very comprehensive, blessed. These lines met Stop-line Green, which encircled Bristol. For good and accurate information on this subject the leading website and organisation is called the Pillbox Study Group. This pillbox also appears to used for storage, This pillbox is not part of the GHQ line and appears to have been a "home-made" one by presumably the Faringdon Home-Guard. The GHQ Line was the most important, as its purpose was to blunt any German advance before it reached London or the Midlands. Journey. Absolutely massive also signs of a concrete base for them. The location is beautiful and appears to have camping. The concrete base an fixtures seem in good condition. You won't find better quality models of this scale anywhere, they are the best in class. There is a great pub the Swan Hotel and walks in every direction. :) National grid reference is SU712659. I found it using Google maps in satellite mode. This is the second of three pillboxes on Cowlane. $15.39. Walk through the churchyard follow the path between the two stone walls, bear right when you reach fields. The British Army had abandoned most of its equipment in France after the Dunkirk evacuation. See their photo below. Over 50 defensive lines were constructed around Britain, the GHQ Line being the longest and most important, designed to protect London and the industrial heart of Britain. Grass rectangle shows the steady slot for the Cannon, appears to face Abingdon. The Red Stop Line which followed the Thames from Reading to Abingdon then cut across country to Newbridge to avoid the huge Thames loop north to Oxford, the stop line then continued West to Bristol. The main General Headquarters Lines (GHQ), were linear defence lines designed to provide protection to London and important industrial. The Gun Slot still had the original wood shuttering (see photo) so I guess that no gun was ever mounted. Apart from the blow-up pillboxes at Netherton I have not seen any signs of decay and in general are in very good condition. Unfortunately the photo doesn't give an impression of how deep and steep the anti-tank ditch is. 1st Aug 09, 10:26 #2. Concrete Road Blocks opposite Thames-side Cottage Pillbox between Long Wittenham & Clifton Hampden. Media in category "GHQ Line" The following 149 files are in this category, out of 149 total. Shinjuku to Gotanda Yamanote Line (Green 4 Stops) 2. 1. Whether any Gun was ever installed is unknown. Posts Comments Simple theme. Year: 1970-1987. Murray Maclean the local farmer had had a short section ditch of excavated near the two pillboxes on his land. Page 1 of 2 1 2 Last. Ironside was given the command of British forces in Persia in the 1920s the start of the troubles which still continue today. Download this stock image: Last few Reaming GHQ, British bunkers guarding the, former GHQ Line, Over grown foliage left, from a bygone age, of fear, - GM9P0N from Alamy's library of millions of high resolution stock photos, illustrations and vectors. The approach to the farm is blocked (or would have been) by four huge concrete blocks which can be seen covered in vegetation in the verges. Was: Previous Price $21.99. So the question is raided are there remains of the old tithe barn lock below the pillbox base?. Follow. Many more FW3s are still in place north of Chelmsford along the Chelmer Valley and towards Great Dunmow. Is it because the Thames is narrower thus less defendable? This Pillbox is gradually toppling into the Windrush as this river gradually washes away the bank. Why were the gun steady slots never concreted in when the pillboxes were removed? Box is sealed and left by the developers [points given] as a feature on an area of green space for those lucky inhabitants to admire forgotten history from their lounge and kitchen windows!. The result was a long line of pillboxes and other defences, and I knew that many pillboxes still survived along my local stretch. Journey. A second exiting pillbox is just a few hundred meters away also built on the raised canal bank. Very solid thick concrete walls, but no loopholes, what was its function? Constructed in 1940 as part of Great Britain’s an7-invasion defensive countermeasures, GHQ Line Green was sited to protect the south-west city of Bristol from German invasion. The GHQ Line (General Headquarters Line) was a defence line built in the United Kingdom during World War II to contain an expected German invasion.. This was also known as the Bristol Outer Defence Line and was later manned almost exclusively by units from the Home Guard. We must have passed the ones close to the A34 near Abingdon on Saturday as we drove from Southampton to Oxford and back. This pillbox is directly opposite its twin which is expectedly on the Thames Bank. Powered by Blogger. (supposition only, what is true is that the pillbox was not in anybody's way. If the Germans managed to penetrate this, Ironside ordered the building of 'stop lines' manned by the Home Guard. GHQ Line Pillbox, Waverley Ln, Farnham, UK. This pillbox is on an island formed by branches of the Thames. Drayton lock about 2 miles down the canal fortunately does exist and has been partially restored. Between Fyfield and Newbridge is just agricultural land, The farmer has also maintained a short section of the Anti-Tank Ditch, This is near the Pillbox toppling into the Newbridge. Part of a countrywide network of sta7c 'stop lines', by autumn 1940 the an7-invasion stratagem had evolved and the use of linear Only spotted this recently was it covered up before? I'd been informed of its location but this pillbox was almost impossible to locate using Google Maps Earth or Satellite however and even when I walked along the path I could just see an entrance of a pillbox otherwise covered by ivy and a brushwood. The positive items From WikiCommons by Bukvoed (Click on photo). Platforms. Is this because of the quality of construction? This is just guesswork please post a comment if you know anything. What an excellent historical document you have created here....I got chills! New Listing N scale Blair Line Green Door Lounge kit-New! The GHQ Line ran from the northern end of the Taunton Stop Line near Highbridge in Somerset, along the River Brue and the Kennet and Avon Canal to Reading, around the south of London south of Guildford and Aldershot, to Canvey Island and Great Chesterford in Essex, before heading north to end in Yorkshire. Obviously they were intended to be moved into the road but how? The General Headquarters (GHQ) is the headquarters of the Pakistan Army and is located in Rawalpindi, adjacent to the Joint Staff Headquarters.It was established on 14 August 1947 in the headquarters of the former Northern Command of the British Indian Army. The skirmish, known as the Battle of Culham Bridge, ended in a Parliamentarian victory and the Royalist commander Sir Henry Gage was killed. While there are so many there is no particular rush to preserve them they hardly seem endangered but that was always true for things that have disappeared. These were designed to contain a massive gun. Waverley Abbey, Elstead. PILLBOXES, PILLBOX, ANTI-INVASION DEFENCES, WWII, PILLBOX STUDY GROUP,INVASION HISTORY, BUNKERS, MIL, Hairstyles, Cool Cuts, How to Style Your Hair. Its position seems quite odd but a military mind would probably explain that it was to increase the field of fire. In ideal conditions GHQ Line Green could have had limited success in slowing down an invasion force. The bridge was subsequently restored and is classified as an ancient monument. The pillbox is marked Private but I don't think that would have hindered Guderian! After the war farmers were given a massive £5 per pillbox to demolish them, the farmers just kept the money as rent. A small cache that can be a short walk or part of a larger circuit between Whitminster and Saul taking on several other caches, GC4E2KE, GC14Y91, GC6FFNX and GC3KVP4 among others This Pillbox (Type 29) formed part of the GHQ Line, and more specifically as part of the Green Stop Line … The main defence lines were supplemented by further Command and Corps stop-lines. The GHQ Line (General Headquarters Line) was a defence line built in the United Kingdom during World War II to contain an expected German invasion. The Red Stop Line was intended to stop a thrust from the southern coast. This massive concrete pillbox base is built over the already abandoned Tithe Barn Lock at Abingdon. Platforms. Brand: GHQ. I think I've spotted its twin on Google Maps will have to go back though. filling it in, and put them in there bath, he said his mother went mad as back then then moved to Saxton Roas from Zion court West st Helens street,and the had a tin bath in front of the fire in the front room.So this was a Luxuary to have a bath in doors. We have over six thousand packs of 1:285 scale figures in stock at any one time. Well over 100 pillboxes still exist on this section in 2012, with around 40 highly visible FW3 Type 22, 24, 26, 27 and 28 boxes between the Rettendon Turnpike and Howe Green, mostly alongside the recently constructed A130. In ideal conditions GHQ Line Green could have had limited success in slowing down an invasion force. GHQ Line - Dogmersfield (Basingstoke Canal) Filling in the gaps - Copped Hall - Bumbles Green; From a Gun Emplacement to a Control Tower 04/28 - 05/05 (27) 04/21 - 04/28 (5) Translate. In June 1940 under the direction of General Edmund Ironside, concentric rings of anti-tank defences and pillboxes were constructed in and around London. The British Army had abandoned most of its equipment in France, the RAF had been badly mauled by the Luftwaffe. Operation Sealion - Game 3 - Assault on the GHQ Green Line Having broken through the Taunton Stop Line with comparitive ease, the II Battalion, 3rd Fallchirmjager Regiment were now ready to make an assault on the GHQ Green Line, the last defensive position guarding Bristol … Returning to this historical masterpiece with fresh angel dust...because I love it! Operation Sealion - Assault on the GHQ Green Line I don't know when I first became aware of or interested in 'Operation Sealion'. 1 product rating 1 product ratings - GHQ 53-018 Garbage Truck Kit N scale. Gotanda to Kugahara Ikegami Line (Red 8 Stops) Directions from Shinagawa Station. 14th Jan, 2017. 5 out of 5 stars. Hi Stephen, apologies for the long delay in my reply. You won't find better quality models of this scale anywhere, they are the best in class. I know of a few on the coast in Cornwall and Dorset, and have photos of them. These blocks are practically hidden by undergrowth, one remains clear and when I noticed it (it's the typical size of a Road block Stone) it is then that I noticed the pillbox on the opposite bank. Stop Line Green would have been the last line of defence against the Nazis if they had invaded back in 1940. 0 bids. Here at the River Ock a phalanx 5 lines each containing 6 "teeth" were used. Ending Jun 28 at 7 ... New-Brand New Gauge: Standard. This dismisses the notion that the stop line was a defensive ‘folly’. Pillbox in Thames-side Cottage Garden between Long Wittenham & Clifton Hampden. Directions from Shinjuku Station. In 1940 the canal had been unused for 40 years or more. ... Graffiti in the form of a green eye on the ruins of a WW2 defensive structure with some trees and blue sky behind Ernie Pyke Theatre and the Kabuki Theatre - Tokyo, Japan. Although they must be difficult to demolish, many have been, especially when they were in the way of road widening. From here on its way to Swindon and beyond the canal has raised banks, the most expensive to build and to maintain. Few people today know how close to defeat Britain was just after Dunkirk. A length of the ditch seems to remain unless they used a natural waterway. The GHQ Line (General Headquarters Line) was a defence line built in the United Kingdom during World War II to contain an expected German invasion. 14th January 2017. The pillboxes along the Stroudwater Canal and River Frome formed part of Stop-line Green. 1. The Pillboxes where demolished in 1945 as the bridge is a historic monument. At the end of a long farm lane. He said that the pillboxes were situated at each change of direction of the ditch, the idea being that the pillboxes could fire on the tanks while they vulnerable as they tried to negotiate the ditch. On GoogleMaps and Multimap this ditch wends its way to Marcham. The score was used to generate a total score ranging from 0 to 36. I surmise that even if it is a natural ditch that it was dug out wider as an anti-tank ditch. Pillbox at Lechlade view of St Lawrence Church in distance, did you no about the two WW2 Block houses on the green in front of Gainsborough green shop Abingdon,they were blown up about 1964/5 just after my parents moved in to there house opposite the block houses.Thinking about the G.H.Q line they would have been allmost next to it.From Saxton road about opposite the Saxton Arms pub was 4 shop then a gap which led to the allotments, which was where Gaisborough Green is built.My grandfather said there was a wooden bridge over the G.H.Q ditch to access the allotments.My Father said when he was a boy he got a lot of fish out of the ditch just as they were slowley. I wasn't aware there were so many inland too. The Teeth don't go right up to the bank but may be the Ock has been recut. Pillboxes were typically built in pairs so although there is no sign of the existence of the second pillbox it is likely that that the base was indeed built for a pillbox. 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