Today, on the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War, I thought it would be interesting to share some little-known history of wartime Titchwell uncovered by Mike Barratt, one of our stalwart reserve volunteers.
Between 1942 and 1945, Titchwell was used by the Royal Tank Regiment as a firing range. A special concrete road was built to bring tanks onto the site. The road was so well built that we're still using it, this time to bring in all the machinery for the Titchwell Marsh Coastal Change Project!
The tank gunners practiced by firing blank shells at targets attached to wire cables pulled across what is now the freshwater marsh and the brackish marsh. You can still see some of the concrete buildings that housed the winches alongside the West Bank Path.
More evidence of Titchwell's past as a tank range can be found on the beach. If you turn right off the beach boardwalk and head towards Brancaster, you'll come across two rusting tank hulls that were used for target practice.
Hidden in the sand for decades and first exposed in 1991, these are the remains of two Covenanter A13 Mark III / Cruiser Mark V tanks. According to the Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset, this was arguably the worst tank ever brought into production in Britain. No wonder they were used for target practice!
Hi Rob
My OH really appreciated reading your story. It just the history of a place, and it goes without saying. Words are not there, but the whole life drama is there, and nothing can beat those thoughts at all.
Thank you for sharing the background of Titchwell Marsh.
Regards
Kathy and Dave