Chris Kolonko-Weet
@ckolonko
Archaeologist specialising in UK's F/SWW Home Front & Invasion Defences. Often mistaken for a palaeontologist, architect, & 'pillbox hunter'. I don't know anything about the Atlantic Wall. chriskolonko.wordpress.com
The 55th Division, responsible for defending Suffolk from mid-1940 have now taken the lead in the 'first place to stop building pillboxes race. Previously it was the whole of Northern Command with a date of November 1940.
I haven't messed around with photogrammetry for years but have been reminded that I need to write this up. I had a go at using 1940s stereographic aerial photographs to recreate wartime landscapes for further analysis. The results have got better now the software has improved.
And here is the cancellation of the G.H.Q. Line in Northern Command and Scottish Command which eventually came on the 3rd of August.
And Northern Command being Northern Command once again. On the 30th of June 1940, the Commander of NORCO made it very clear that he dislikes the G.H.Q. Line policy, but would undertake the recce work anyway.
General Ironside is often, if not always, criticised for his 'static' defences. But here it is on the 15th of June 1940, in the initial plan of defence under his new scheme, that mobility was a key component of defence.
You can absolutely feel the tension and get a sense of how the room operated on the 15th of September 1940. Great stuff and amazing to be in the actual room, seeing events unfold. It was also great seeing how the comms worked in the room and through the chain of command.
Well, they had plenty of matches for lighting 'molotov cocktails'!
Another unit to add to the the ORBAT and list of 'Units that did stuff the Home Guard didn't do but are believed to have done today'.
It’s nice to get confirmation of how short-lived the construction of the GHQ Line was. Northern Command and Scottish Command were both ordered to no longer develop their respective sections of the line on the 3rd of August 1940.
And a nice overview of how the city was to be defended. In depth, with a mobile reserve. Not the linear, static defence that is often believed to have been common today.
By October 1940, the 9th Battalion Royal Norfolk Regiment had been brought into the city's defences.
And a nice demonstration that the Home Guard weren't the only units for defence. Here are the units that would have defended Norwich in August. Unfortunately the role of the 125th AT Regiment, the Infantry Training Corps Norfolk and the 50th (Holding) Battalion Norfolk would be overlooked today.
Something you sometimes hear is the apparent scarcity of supplies for the defence of the UK. This allotment of ammunition from the files relating to the defence of Norwich in August 1940 shows that things weren't quite as bad!
Finally getting back into the swing of things after several very busy months. Just finished the 2D plan of a pillbox I surveyed with staff and volunteers from the Canal and River Trust. Next step is writing the site record.
Set out to buy a very expensive Fender US-made Telecaster. Ended up with a very cheap Epiphone instead 😀 Very happy with my first 335-type.
Here's another example from my research on the defence of East Yorkshire that shows that the solders of the Home Forces were very much on the front line and encountered enemy action, which ultimately led to casualties. On the 8th of July 1940, an enemy bomber appeared over Reighton Gap, nr Filey.
If you're out in Dereham today, be sure to pop in. We're out with Allied Star Reenactment Group and the Royal British Legion for the town's heritage open day.
Think I've found an easter egg in HE's chronology guidance... heritage-standards.org.uk/chronology/
I've bought some old and cheap acoustic guitars recently to do up. This is a Hondo H117 from 1981. It had barely been played, probably because the action too high. After properly setting up the bridge and putting on my favourite string gauge, it doesn't sound too bad. The singing is another matter..
I've been given what may be a super rare .303 MkIV bullet 😀 It's far from pristine but very hard to find.
Interesting stats for the allocation of Blacker Bombards to specific units of the Regulars and Home Guard in January 1942. I was expecting the Home Guard to have been issued with significantly more than the Regs.
Finally getting back into some War Diary defence mapping. This time I've mapped 81 cratered roads as of June 1941. This is significant as it adds additional depth to the defences I've already mapped, in particular the bridges prepared for demolition.