Record Details

NHER Number:42184
Type of record:Monument
Name:Possible World War Two gun emplacements behind Horsey Dunes

Summary

Two doughnut-shaped mounds, visible as earthworks on aerial photographs taken from 1944 onwards, may be emplacements dating to World War Two. They would have been used for mounting guns or searchlights. They are located in rough grassland, on the seaward side of Horsey Dunes. If their military origin is correct, they would almost certainly have been associated with one of the coastal defence sites which formed an unbroken barrier along this stretch of coastline, such as NHER 42120 located approximately 225m to the northeast. At the same time, they do not appear to have been fresh earthworks on the 1940s aerial photographs, and the possibility that they date to World War One or relate to the pre-World War Two civilian use of the area cannot be ruled out. At least one of the emplacements is still visible as an earthwork on the most recent consulted aerial photographs of the site, which were taken in 2002.

Images - none

Location

Grid Reference:TG 4693 2316
Map Sheet:TG42SE
Parish:HORSEY, NORTH NORFOLK, NORFOLK

Full description

March 2006. Norfolk NMP.
Two doughnut-shaped mounds, each enclosed by a ditch, are visible as earthworks on aerial photographs taken from 1944 onwards (S1), (S2), (S3), (S4) and (S5), at TG 4691 2319 and TG 4695 2313. They are located on the seaward side of Horsey Dunes, an area that was used intensively by the military during World War Two (see NHER 42120, for example). Their form and their proximity to other defences suggests that they are likely to have been World War Two emplacements, probably for guns but perhaps for searchlights. They do not appear to be fresh earthworks on the 1940s aerial photographs, however, suggesting that they either date to the early years of the war or to World War One. Alternatively, they may not be emplacements but could be associated with the civilian use of the area, in the years before the outbreak of hostilities in 1939. The northwestern mound and ditch still survived as an earthwork in 2002 (S5).
S. Tremlett (NMP), 23 March 2006.

Monument Types

  • MOUND (Unknown date)
  • GUN EMPLACEMENT (World War One - 1914 AD? to 1918 AD?)
  • MOUND (World War One - 1914 AD? to 1918 AD?)
  • SEARCHLIGHT BATTERY? (World War One - 1914 AD? to 1918 AD?)
  • GUN EMPLACEMENT (World War Two - 1939 AD to 1945 AD)
  • MOUND (World War Two - 1939 AD to 1945 AD)
  • SEARCHLIGHT BATTERY? (World War Two - 1939 AD to 1945 AD)

Associated Finds - none

Protected Status

  • SHINE

Sources and further reading

<S1>Vertical Aerial Photograph: USAAF. 1944. US/7PH/GP/LOC298 5021 20-APR-1944 (NMR).
<S2>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1946. RAF 106G/UK/1634 4108-9 09-JUL-1946 (NHER TG 4622A, TG 4722A).
<S3>Vertical Aerial Photograph: RAF. 1952. RAF 540/690 5365-6 11-MAR-1952 (NMR).
<S4>Vertical Aerial Photograph: BKS. 1988. BKS 2090-1 29-AUG-1988 (NCC 4307-8).
<S5>Vertical Aerial Photograph: Environment Agency. 2002. EA 041 AF/02C/339 7022-3 22-JUL-2002 (EA).

Related records - none

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