East Yorkshire Coastal Defences

World War Two Defences 

This and following blogs are designed as a guiding tour of the remaining relics of WW2 invasion defences.

Flamborough Head To Spurn Point

I will start the trip down the E.Yorks coast here at the once heavily defended Flamborough Head as the only remaining relics of defences at the old RAF Bempton radar station are now completely off limits.The first survivors here are a well worn set of anti tank blocks and a lozenge pillbox (a type specific to the north east) on the beach at Thornwick Bay.The pillbox is sealed so there's no interior access.A nice piece of "signed"concrete just below the pillbox could give the date of the construction.

Half a mile inland of Thornwick Bay stands another pillbox.Again a lozenge shape,this one faces towards Flamborough itself,covering the road out of the town.It is now on the edge of a caravan park.Once again sealed apart from the two east facing embrasures.

We have to go around a mile south east to the next inland pillbox.A lozenge again,this faces north towards the last box.Standing in a field interior access is possible to this one.

Heading back towards the coast is another lozenge pillbox.This one now resides on the golf course so access is difficult.It is banked up with earth now but interior access is fine although it was full of wet mud when we visited.This one faces towards the coast and would have been behind a barrage balloon site.

The only remnants of the balloon site seem to be three remaining tie down points.These are located at the side of the coastal path.

Following the coastal path south towards the lighthouse another lozenge again all sealed up.Facing towards the coast.

This is closely followed by the first "eared" pillbox.One of two covering the main bay below the lighthouse.A type designed for heavy machine gun use.Called eared due to the way the entrances stick out to each side.This type is unique to the Yorkshire coast.Anyone manning these pillboxes had no exit without facing the attackers as for some reason the doors were built facing the front.This example is bricked up and inaccessible due to brambles.

The other of the pair is on a slope below the lighthouse,difficult to access and yet again sealed up

Now we go to just south of the car park where once there was a chain home low radar station.Here there are signs of a light AA battery with the remains still visible at ground level of 6 gunpits.

To the rear of these on a slope is another lozenge pillbox.South facing and yet again sealed up.

A trek along the coast follows to get to the next remains.Almost directly south of the town of Flamborough on the cliff edge is a lozenge pillbox.The interior of this one is open to access.It faces south along the coast covering the break in the cliffs at Danes Dyke.

Flamborough Head ends at the next gap in the cliffs, Danes Dyke,here we find a pillbox guarding the top end of the dyke and the remains of two anti tank blocks on the beach.

The anti tanks blocks showing how much beach stone was added to the mix

Now into Sewerby and as seems to be the norm in resort towns most if not all of the wartime defences are long gone.The only one surviving here is a lozenge pillbox on the golf course,again with the door bricked up.

Then in between Sewerby and  Bridlington all that remains is an almost wrecked eared pillbox on the beach

There are no remains in the town of Bridlington itself.The next pillbox is to the south on Bridlington golf course and has been converted to a shelter.

Then its back to the beach for another eared pillbox buried in among the dunes.

Its south past the next caravan park where over the next mile there are four more of what I call "second line" pillboxes,all lozenges.Leading down to the next beach exit at Auburn Farm.

Back to the beach for the same stretch and what remains of the"first line"defences.First is an impressive double row of anti tank blocks with the first accessable eared pillbox set just to the rear of them.Range markers of landmark features are just visible over the embrasures of this box although now nearly obscured by graffiti.

Following this are more anti tank blocks and remaining sections of an anti tank wall leading down to another

eared pillbox again with the range markings and unfortunately more graffiti.This box appears to have been built into the anti tank wall and theres pieces of what look like the remains of beach scaffolding next to it.

Just down from this is a beach defence light emplacement.Stretching between this and the beach exit are more anti tank blocks.

At the exit point are the remains of another eared pillbox with only the concrete raft surviving,the box being scattered around it.

Moving inland from the beach is the first of what seems to be some WW1 era defences which occur from here down as far as Skipsea,the majority of which are seven feet square boxes whose walls are only seven inches thick.This one has two extra embrasures cut into the front corners.

In a field just south of the camp site is another larger box of the same seven inch thickness construction.This may have been some sort of command structure.

And set further back in the same field another seven foot square pillbox.

At the southern edge of the same field in the hedgerow are two more of the small pillboxes set side by side.

Down on the beach along the next stretch most of the remains are now in the surf and suffering badly from erosion.After the start of yet more anti tanks the next eared pillbox lies wrecked among them and there's a badly eroded beach light emplacement.

Scattered anti tank blocks run all the way in patches along this area wth two more wrecked eared pillboxes.

Apart from the remains of one eared box there's nothing more to see at beach level as far as Barmston.

The "second line"defences above this area start with a lozenge set back in a field,this one has ranges marked over the embrasures which are still reasonably clear.

At the front edge of the same field is another lozenge with one of the smaller square pillboxes behind it.

Moving south two fields is another lozenge with again a small square box behind it.

To the rear of this is an eared pillbox,the only one of this type found in the second line in the area.

There's a solitary anti tank block on the cliff edge just in front of what was once Barmston Mere with another of the smaller pillboxes to the rear of it.

There are three more lozenges in the fields between this and Barmston with one more small box between them and the caravan park.

The next section running from Barmston down to Skipsea is almost bare of beach defences now,there being just two lots of anti tank blocks both of which have been moved to use as sea defences.One lot at Barmston and another lot half a mile further south

Above the cliff line there are still ten remaining lozenge pillboxes.All situated in fields apart from one in a caravan park.

The next section running from Skipsea to Atwick has more remains on the beach although a lot of them are now in a badly eroded state.First at the beach access path are the remains of some sort of bunker which from a distance we thought was another of the small square pillboxes but closer inspection shows the walls are far to thick and it looks like WW2 type construction.

Next to the bunker are the remains of an eared pillbox closely followed by another beach defence light emplacement all among scattered remains of anti tank blocks.

Then over the next mile are the just recognisable remains of five more eared pillboxes.

The second line in the fields above the cliff tops start with a small pillbox at the side of beach exit path then a lozenge set on top of a hill and angled towards the same pathway.Between it and the cliff edge is another of the smaller boxes.

Then set further back on a rise in the ground another lozenge facing the coast.

Between this one and the cliff edge yet another of the smaller pillboxes.

Then set further back near the coast road another lozenge survives.

Another lozenge resides in the middle of the caravan park,this one is sealed up.

Then there are three more lozenge pillboxes between the caravan park and the town of Atwick.

 Behind the third pillbox is a bunker which was once banked up with earth but is now exposed after the soil has washed away over the years.This was probably some sort of control bunker although it has no openings apart from the entrance at the rear.

Another lozenge survives in the caravan park to the south of the resort. 

Just to the south of this in the next field is another command type bunker,larger than the last one having two bays this time and a pillbox adjacent to it.

Then come the last of the beach defences in this area with a few anti tank blocks which have been moved as sea defences at the slipway down to the beach.

Its into Hornsea for the next remains,there are six pillboxes surviving here.Unusual for a resort town.The first one is on the edge of a new housing estate and is a standard lozenge and bricked up.

The second one is rather overgrown in the hedgerow behind the school playing fields and is one of two variants only found in Hornsea that have two larger embrasures in the front face as opposed to the normal four rifle size ones presumably for a machine gun of some sort.

A couple of hundred yards inland is another with two larger embrasures,this one is in an area of allotments and is crammed full of junk.

There is another standard lozenge in woodland on the northern edge of Hornsea Mere and facing across the water probably as defence against any type of flying boat landing on the mere.

On a hillside on the south side of the mere is another standard lozenge covering the road into the town.

The last one is behind the caravan park south of the town and is the another variant.This one has two small and one large embrasure in the front face. Again unique to Hornsea.