Coastal battery. The gun emplacements and revetments are in good condition. Magazines are banked and covered and seem reasonably sound. Some of the ancillary buildings are now roofless.
battery
Pictures of the large gun house at Low Cocklawburn beach near Scremerston. These are from 2004 and predate the current trend for graffiti and general painting of the rear wall.
There are four searchlights installed here and a Twin 6pdr with no overhead cover or director tower. Pictures below from June 2025. Extreme range photo’s taken from Pentalina Ferry.
4 x 12pdr QF guns were emplaced here. The battery remains fairly complete. The magazines are still extant but buried.
Located on the Golta peninsular on the Island of Flotta, This WWI battery initially housed 3 3pdr’s. This was upped to 4 12pdr’s which were transferred from Holm battery . The battery is extremely well preserved and even has blast baffles remaining in one of the trenches to the magazine.
Fairly well preserved HAA Battery located on Bressay, Shetland.
Situated SE of Lerwick, immediately W of Peerie Geo, at the end of the Knab Road, The Knab. Coastal Battery. One gun emplacement and magazine remain. The second gun emplacement has been replaced by the turning circle at the end of the Knab Road.
Coastal Battery, consisting of two searchlight emplacements and one engine house, the latter of which is presently used as a domestic garage. The battery had two 12 pounder guns installed in October 1942 and later reduced to Care and Maintenance in January 1945. In use, the battery had the dual […]
Coastal Battery. The surviving remains of this battery consist of two gun emplacements, magazine, engine room, battery observation post and three searchlight emplacements. In June 1940 two 4-inch guns were emplaced, being replaced in July 1940 by two 6 inch guns. The two 4-inch guns were moved to Calback battery […]
Some aerial footage of Bawdsey Battery over the last couple of years. Recently, Matt Porter has started documenting the pillboxes that are being ravaged by the sea at East Lane (Bawdsey). EMERGENCY COAST ARTILLERY BATTERY: S0006224 PILLBOX (TYPE FW3/22 AA): S0008124 PILLBOX (TYPE FW3/22): S0006072 Bawdsey Battery Observation Post S00060223 […]
2 x 6″ breech loaders Mk7 on CP2 mountings. There was also a 4.7″ gun on a temporary mount next to the battery. Much of this battery has been destroyed by quarrying.
2 6″ BL Mk7 on CP2 mountings. This battery was built in 1938 and was still in M.O.D. ownership until the late 1990s. It has been preserved and tours are available. See http://www.nessbattery.co.uk/ for more details.
2 x 12pdr Quick Fire in WWII and 2 x 4″ QF in WWI
COAST ARTILLERY BATTERY: S0015230 (Extant) Twin 6pdr QF gun emplacement. A cable railway was laid to facilitate supply of the battery along with a jetty at the camp adjacent to the battery. Fragments of rail remain in-situ and some winding gear too. Some trucks are dumped on the shore below […]
2 x 12pdr QF guns emplaced here.
1 x Twin 6pdr QF gun house and associated buildings. Currently used as a paintball venue hence some of the additions visible in the pictures. Thanks to Orkan Adventures for giving us permission to wander round.
2 x 12pdr QF in gunhouses with different architecture.
2 x 4.7″ QF Mk4 on Mk3 mountings to start with and 2 6″ BL Mk7 on P8 mountings later. The degree markings on the gun mounts do not appear to correspond with a compass in any way, the 0 on the ring in the fourth picture is pointing SSE. […]
1 x Twin 6pdr Q.F.
1 x Twin 6pdr QF gun house survives along with the engine room and 1 of the 3 searchlight houses. Links Battery Director Tower (blown up by the army in the 1960s) from the golf course, photo of a video. Thanks to Wendy Barker of Orkney Escapes for permission to […]
2 x 12pdr QF one in concrete gun house the other in an open emplacement with a peat blast wall to allow all round traverse.
2 x 6″ breech loaders Mk7 on CP2 mountings. Much of this battery is built on top of the WWI 6″ QF battery. Pictures below from 2002 Pictures from 2015 showing “collapse” of the 2 6″ gun houses.
2 x 12 pdr QF and associated buildings.
Much of this WWII battery is built on top of the WWI 3 x 4″ QF battery. some of the emplacements can be seen between the WWII ones.
1 x Twin 6pdr with no overhead cover. Unigue double split beam searchlight houses.
1 x Twin 6 pdr QF emplaced here. Search light houses are facing collapse from erosion.
1 x 12pdr QF installed in a temporary emplacement allowing all round traverse.
2 4.7″ QF Mk4 on Mk3 mountings were emplaced here. The battery was never really finished – there being no overhead cover for the guns and the BOP was a Jane Hut.
Coast artillery Battery housing 2 x 12pdr QF guns. Remains of paintings in each gun house. Pictures are from 2003. Pictures from 2020
1 x Twin 6pdr QF gun house and associated buildings.
2 x Twin 6pdr QF guns for defence of Hoxa Sound against AMTBs and covering the Boom defence. Apparently this type of gun produced a lot of smoke – hence the need for the separate director towers.
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 […]
Belfast, Northern Island. Grey Point is located in the village of Helen’s Bay off the main Belfast to Bangor road on the coast of Belfast lough east of Belfast. It is tucked a little out of the way but is reasonably sign posted on Fort Road. From official guide book. […]
Goodrest Farm, Bannerhill, Kenilworth. NGR SP275693 Along with some friends I travelled to Kenilworth to take a look at the heavy anti-aircraft site at Goodrest Farm, Bannerhill just off Rouncil Lane to the east of the town. In 1940 the heavy anti-aircraft battery [or HAA] known as Bannerhill Camp, was […]
Pendennis Castle, Cornwall Pendennis Castle guards the entrance to the River Fal at Falmouth, Cornwall. Originally built by Henry VIII, subjected to an intense blockade by the Roundheads in the 17th Century and surviving WWII it offers a unique insight into 450 years of history. It has several important WWII […]