Rainham Marshes Firing Range

[homosapien1918]

At the side of the Thames Estuary, not much left now, turned into an RSPB reserve, history below.

In 1906 the War Department created the Purfleet Rifle ranges and in 1915 those at the Rainham end of the site. On Aveley Marsh three Stop Butts were created (part of one still stands) with a Mantlet bank in front of each. This broken linear feature still divides Aveley and Wennington Marshes. The hundred yard shooting ridges can still be seen across the marsh and in the scrub the Cordite store and one of eight anti-aircraft ammunition magazines still stands testament to the military history of the marshes. It was an important air defence location during both wars and a Zeppelin was reputed to have been shot down from the Anti-submarine blockhouse in March 1916 while decoy beacon fires were lit on Wennington during WWII air raids.

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Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr
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Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr
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Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr
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Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr
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Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr
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I think the targets were put up above this long shelter.

Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr
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Rainham Marshes by dervish99, on Flickr

 

[Badoosh]

Some interesting stuff left there. Really like the shots & loving that graf in the last pic!

 

[fluffy5518]

Crackin' report mate !! I have had my eye on this site for a while. Thanks for posting 'cos now i know it's worth doing.!!! Being RSPB land is it open access or is it resticted and is there any chance that you could give me the location of the anti submarine tower that is here as i've looked on Google Earth many times without success !!

 

[homosapien1918]

Crackin' report mate !! I have had my eye on this site for a while. Thanks for posting 'cos now i know it's worth doing.!!! Being RSPB land is it open access or is it resticted and is there any chance that you could give me the location of the anti submarine tower that is here as i've looked on Google Earth many times without success !!

Hi i think the tower is visible from the footpath but i didnt get to it, was with the family. Access is no problem, jsut pay your entrance fee to the reserve and there you go, lots of walkways so pretty much hemed in, there is a cycle way that runs between the reserve and the Thames which is free, i think that would give closer access to the tower. There are also supposed to be some old concrete Mulbery barges left over from the war kicking about someplace.

 

[outkast]

Hi the submarine tower is between the ranges and the seawall, theres only one way of reaching it and that is to walk along the wall and approach it from there, theres a embrasure that you can climb through to get inside but unless you are quite small and good at climbing, I am the later, then you wont get in, theres not a great deal inside anyway, thers also a magazine down by the entrance of the bird watching place just as you drive in, thats worth a look but you have to wait until the coast is clear before jumping the ditch to get to it, theres also a funny little pillbox next to it.

PS: the submarine tower is WW1.

Regards.