Maunsell Forts. Thames Estuary.

[oldgit]

Posted on Thames Forum.

A YouTube video shot very recently by a group from France.
Might interest anybody who has done the trip from the Thames to Merdeway or perhaps even going over to parts foreign.
A good look round the forts and featuring some very good quality war time cine footage .
Think some were built on the Thames at Gravesend .
The boat they used (Xpilot) frequently took out film crews and private parties to visit the forts. ***
Footage of the pirate radio crews was the most interesting.

 

[dpb]

In the early 90's we used to go out there in our Sea Ray bowrider from Herne Bay which at the time was our local slipway.
We tried to actually go onto the structures just once on a flat calm day, only to realise when we tried that there actually was a swell of about 2m that you would not be aware of other than the water would rise up and down the legs of the forts by that amount. When we looked carefully around we could indeed see these gentle rolling 'hills' moving across the water.
It freaked us out somehow so the one crew who made it onto the legs jumped back on and we went back to the coast.

 

[tillergirl]

Good vid. Shame c'est en Frog. My Franglais couldn't cope with the details of the commentary esp. the history bit.

 

[vas]

add subtitles in youtube and then settings autotranslate the autocreated subtitles to EN, worked okayish

 

[oldgit]

Remember when Radio Sutch transmitted from the forts.

 

[PilotWolf]

I love these old places.

The history is incredible. Just exploring them is exciting.

Old forts, castles,mines, tunnels.

Maybe that’s just me?

W.

 

[oldgit]

The area round here has had military connections since the Romans got out of their inflatables and ran up the beach to the usual warm British reception.
Nelson joined his first ship locally and of course the Victory was built here, how the hell it ended up in Portsmouth nobody know !
Several old curtain Napoleonic Forts can still be found and several youtube videos on exploring the tunnels are online.
Couple of forts out in river one of which is fairly easy to access by boat.
Recommend anybody visiting area when this all over to visit the RE Museum in Gillingham.
A much overlooked branch of the forces , they were normally first into anywhere long before the rest of the army even thinking about getting their boots on .
List of Palmerston Forts.
Palmerston Forts, Chatham - Wikipedia
Home - Royal Engineers Museum

From the aviation point of view.
When Sheppey had Wright stuff
Winston Churchill learned to fly here as well.

 

[Hurricane]

I used to compete in a sailing race round those forts.
I've always wondered what they looked like inside.

This thread reminded me of a long time ago, i went onto two of the Solent Forts.
And a few years later I reported on here with some pics.
Using Google, I managed to find my old post and reinstate the pics.
So here it is - dug up from the past:-

Solent Forts

We were invited to look at the future of redeveloping Horse Sand and bring it up to something like the standard of No Mans Land.
This meant that we had a visit to both - it was a bit like "this is what it was like - this is what it should like" - sort of like the BBC's "Changing Rooms or the DIY program that Nick Knowles does - you know the sort of thing.

I'll do Horse Sand first and another post later with No Mans Land - see if you can spot the difference!!!

 

[Hurricane]

And more - split because of this stupid forum software

That was Horsesand - I think I can re-instate the No Mans Land post as well if anyone is interested

 

[oldgit]

I say one thing your water looks a lot clearer than the Mudway.
Google Earth.
One of several WWI submarines lying on the mud flats in the Medway. The engines were removed to power generators.

 

[Hurricane]

OK - so I did manage to recover the No Mans Land Forts so I am posting them as well
I hope this isn't too much of a thread drift - sorry if it is

No Mans Land Fort - Solent

Now on to No Mans Land.
Some of the statistics were explained at the time.
If I remember correctly, it cost 7 million quid to revamp.
I think they said it cost them 12 grand just to cut a hole in the side to form a tradesmans entrance - origionally they were just a granite construction but during the war 12 inch thick armour plating was applied.
But just think of the project - you've decided to start your DIY and you decide you want a yard of sand - ok so you get it onto a boat and send it out - then you've got to get it all the way up there - so you need a crane - to fix the crane yo need concrete - to make concrete you need sand - there's a hole in my bucket Dear Liza Dear Liza etc....
I believe they pay council taxes just like us but the heating oil comes fairly infrequently - by ship!!!
No electricity - have their own generators - all the navigation lights we saw ran with battery backups etc - Trinity House were there the day we visited - changing the batteries.
Both forts have their own fresh water springs - that was the funny hole in the last set from HorseSand.
BTW - did you see the open air jacuzi!!!
There was also an underwater room in each fort that used to house a winch to pull up a submarine net or wire that stretched between each fort.

Now on to the pics of No Mans Land.
Yes - it does have its own in door swimming pool.
There is an area inside which they call "The Street" complete with its own telephone box.

Some of the pictures in this post show the inside of the "lighthouse" which has been turned into a residence - the top room has a lounge with a 360 degree view - just imagine that - a room with a view - must be the best view on the whole of the south coast.

There is a reception room as you enter which has a vintage car as a display.
Below the street and entry levels and down in the depths, the owner has built little bars - the whole thing is just like a little town but only three people were living there when we visited.

Here we go then - No Mans Land Fort

 

[Hurricane]

Agin - split becauseof the photo limitation.

BTW the bed in the picture is in the lighthouse section and rotates with the sun.

So just spare a thought when you are next passing.


Sorry again for the thread drift but I think these forts will be interesting as well as the Kent ones.

 

[oldgit]

So did somebody buy it ?

 

[Blue Sunray]

How it used to be:

 

[Rappey]

That is an incredible transformation of that fort.

 

[Hurricane]

How it used to be:

Thanks for posting that video.
I hadn't seen it before - I'm going to download and keep it with my pics.

 

[Blue Sunray]

Thanks for posting that video.
I hadn't seen it before - I'm going to download and keep it with my pics.

I'm told (but can't verify) that the film is actually shot across several of the forts.

 

[Ian h]

heard that they were all up for sale again

 

[Fender!]

 

[Hurricane]

Foolhardy but really interesting - I've copied the clip and will keep it with the other one.
The clip mentions that it was up for sale in 2002 - that would have been the time we went there.
Thanks for posting.