tarboat's photos with the keyword: military

Pillbox on Finnygook beach at Portwrinkle.

At the end of the long war of independence between Eritrea and Ethiopia vast quantities of wrecked military hardware littered the country. This was mostly gathered up and dumped in a vast scrapyard on the outskirts of Asmara the Eritrean capital. Here it will no doubt stay as moving it to where it could be melted down would be hopelessly uneconomic.

Mounted troops demonstrating their skills at the Tracks to the Trenches event at Apedale. The troops attending the event incuded contingents representing the forces of Russia and Bosnia-Herzegovina as well as the usual suspects.

Originally planned as a filling factory (ROF Macclesfield - Factory No.13), the site was requisitioned before 1941 and was open as an ammunition store by 1942. The fourteen standard sheds continued in use until 1964. The surviving buildings are now in agricultural and light industrial use.

In the dark days of 1940/41 there was a real fear of invasion after the German forces overran the nearby European countries, and desperate efforts were made to develop defences within Britain to help stop or at least slow down an invading force. One method was the use of roadblocks incorporating concrete cylinders that were supposed to be able to obstruct mechanised traffic. The remains in this image are part of a factory that was set up to manufacture these cylinders and was abandoned after the invasion scares were over. Since then it has lain derelict and quietly disappearing into the woodland that has developed on teh site. The pulley wheel is attached to one of three pan mills used for preparing materials and the corrugated iron sheets are what little is left of the building that once protected the machinery. There is also a batch concrete mixer and dozens of unused cylinders around the area.

During the first world war there were a number of air attacks made upon the North-East coast by German aircraft. Zeppelins raided the area fifteen times between April 1915 and November 1917. Defence against these raids was very limited and depended on knowing when aircraft were approaching and from what direction. To this end a series of listening stations were erected along the coast (and also in the south of England) in the form of 'sound mirrors'. This example, now sitting in the midst of a Redcar housing estate, and listed Grade II, was constructed by the Royal Engineers in 1916. It is about 17ft high. The sound of the approaching aircraft was reflected off the concave surface and into a receiving trumpet mounted on a steel column in front. This was connected to the listening operator by a stethoscope and this was moved to find the part of the dish producing the most sound, which indicated the direction of approach. At least the local populace could then be given advanced warning of the impending raid. Acoustic listening devices of various shapes were constructed along the coasts until the 1930s after which they began to be replaced by Radar.