The city of La Coruna is situated on the north west coat of Spain, about 45km from Ferrol (north) and 70km from Santiago de Compostela (south). The base was opened in the 1920`s and built by the Spanish Army on top of Monte de San Pedro to defend any possible […]
International Sites
29 posts
Playa De Las Americas, Canary Islands I have been aware for sometime of Pillboxes on some of the other Canary Islands but, I have to say that I was particularly pleased to find an example on the sea front in Playa de Las Americas. I spotted this postcard in a local […]
A Photographic Snapshot. by Graham G Matthews
Fort Battice was one of the four ‘modern’ forts built between April 1934 and 1940 as part of the Belgium outer defences of Liege (Luttich). It had a garrison establishment of 22 Officers, 92 NCO`s and 758 men manning four 120mm guns, six 75mm guns, four 60mm anti-tank guns with […]
Sound mirrors are large acoustic deflectors, used for early warning of approaching aircraft.Unlike the earlier Semi-Spherical sound mirrors of the South Coast of England, this mirror is in the form of a stone built parabolic wall, 225 feet in length. It’s known locally as Il-Widna, Maltese for “the ear”. A […]
Pillbox on Skeppsholmen Island, Stokholm, Sweden By Ian Sanders
My brother was on holiday in South Africa during April 2004 and photographed this pillbox which appears to be based on a type 22 design. The pillbox is located near the entrance to Durban Dockyard. A local resident believes the pillbox will be demolished in the near future as part […]
In 1942 the Italians had surrounded the city with a Ring of Wire, later they fortified the road junctions with pillboxes and roadblocks. Almost all the defences had been removed just one or two pillboxes remain. The Ring of Wire is protected as a National Park it is in fact […]
I am a member of “The Coast Defense Study Group” in the USA and a resident of the Island of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands. I am curious as to whether or not your group has come across any cast-metal turreted pillboxes in the U.K. in conjunction with defenses of […]
I have included several photos of pillbox types found on the Island of Oahu, Hawaii. It is a WW2 mass-produced variant built of reinforced concrete and built either at Army engineer base yards, then transported to the site, or poured in place on site depending on the location. It includes […]
Altea Pillboxes, Altea, Valencia, Spain There are two well preserved – but frustratingly unrecorded – pillboxes and one ruined one about 2km North of the town of Altea, (Valencia Region), in the area known as Cap Negret. The design of the two survivors is as good as, or maybe better than, […]
Porto Paglia, South Sardinia A Pillbox Restoration joint venture between A.S.S.Fort Sardinia and “L’Orizzonte” The War 1940-43 And The Coastal Defences In South-West Sardinia. Portopaglia is a well preserved landscape in south-west Sardinia. The location is under the Municipality of Gonnesa. The now restored concrete positions are overlooking the beautiful beach […]
The following information was kindly e-mailed to the PSG by Daniele Grioni in Lombardia (Northern Italy). A Coastal Pillbox for a heavy machine-gun (Type Breda 37) at Capitana ( uartu Sant’Elena) . The stronghold “Domus de Maria” found along the road between Domus de Maria and Teuleda in southern Sardinia. It […]
Association For Historical Studies & Fortifications In Sardinia During summer 2001 a new study group called “A.S.S. Fort Sardegna” has been created in Cagliari. It is a cultural association which aims are to promote, realize and participate in initiatives to study and safeguard wartime (1940-1943) heritage in the Sardinia insula. […]
Norwegian Pillboxes at the foot of the Holmenkollen Ski Jump in Oslo. by Ian Sanders
Hello to everyone in the Pillbox Study Group I am an archaeologist working for the Auckland Regional Council in New Zealand and recently undertook a survey a coastal defence battery (2×6 and 2×9.2 inch guns) in the Whangaparaoa Defence Area, north of Auckland. The approaches to the battery are defended […]
There are relics of fortification along the beaches either side of Napier, New Zealand. Mostly, these were/are pillboxes of presumably New Zealand Ministry of Defence design. In addition, there was a Coastal Defence Artillery Battery on Bluff Hill, overlooking the Port of Napier. A little research showed that 77 Battery […]
On a recent visit to Malta, Paul Wells spotted this camouflage pillbox close to the famous Blue Grotto. Unfortunately, Paul was only able to get a distant photograph of the structure but he says it appears to be in good condition and in no danger of destruction. Obviously someone thought […]
By Daniele Grioni
The defence plan of the early 1930’s was for a defensive line across the Kowloon Peninsular, known as the Inner Line (or later as the Gindrinkers Line), and fixed machine gun posts, backed up by mobile reserves for the southern beaches of the Island. In 1935, construction started on a […]
Whilst on the beach one day I spotted what to my untrained eye looked like a pillbox. I went back the next day with my camera and took the attached pictures which I thought may be of interest to PSG members. It is located on top of a small sand […]
Whilst strolling along Kalamanki Beach, Zakynthos the day after I arrived in Zante imagine my surprise when looking up from a particularly interesting geological feature – a quartz dyke – to discover a Pillbox perched precariously on the cliff edge above. Based very approximately on a cross between a Type […]
The Westwall was a series of fortifications constructed between 1938 and 1940 along the western frontier of Germany between the Netherlands and Switzerland. In WWII the Allies called it the Siegfried Line. After Germany invaded Belgium in May 1940, the line was no longer garrisoned and was neither maintained nor […]
Two pillboxes for a Vickers machine-gun near ‘Moulin du Rhin’ east of Dunkirk. They are part of a group of four pillboxes that defended the inundated polders in the western part of the Maginot Line. The front of one of the pillboxes near ‘Moulin du Rhin’. The embrasure is slightly […]
I have recently visited the area of Lille again to look for pillboxes there. I have selected some photos for your site. Up to now I have identified the following types of pillboxes: 1) A Single HMG and an entrance with a 90° curve (E.g. Moulin dur Rhin). 2) As 1), but […]
Having been introduced to ‘concreteitus’ by my next door neighbour Graham Matthews I couldn’t help noticing these structures whilst on holiday near Pointe Du Raz just below Brest. These were tucked away in the cliffs overlooking the beach at the Baie Des Trespasses. I guess these are part of the […]
It was signed as an ‘Air Raid Tower’ and its purpose was to look for incendiaries and bombs during British/American air raids. It is located in the middle of the Pilsner Urquell Brewery in Pilsen by Ken Blackman
Whilst on holiday in Cyprus I managed to find a couple of Pillboxes in a small village called Latchi, situated on the west coast about an hours drive away from Paphos. They were on top of a steep hill, the first with a single embrasure overlooking the bay. This was […]
Photos byDave Davies