World War Two

A selection of images based on the theme of World War Two and showing evidence of defences and the effects of bombing. Check out our Teaching Activity WWII: Life during the Blitz

Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR Bomb Damage, Exeter, Devon The Georgian facade of 27-32 Southernhay West, Exeter, in 1942. The rest of the terrace has been destroyed by bombing. Exeter and a number of other cities were targeted by Hitler in revenge for Air Marshal Harris' bombing campaign against German cities in 1942.	Add to My Favourites Copyright English Heritage Photo Library Telephone exchange beneath Dover Castle, Dover, Kent The reconstructed underground telephone and telex exchange beneath Dover Castle. Construction on the tunnels beneath the white cliffs of Dover was begun in the Middle Ages. They were used as a military command centre and hospital during World War II. This property is now in the care of English Heritage (2010). Download the Dover Castle Teacher's Kit to find out more. Take advantage of our free entry for Learning Groups. Explore an interactive map.
Add to My Favourites Copyright English Heritage Photo Library Operating theatre beneath Dover Castle, Dover, Kent The underground operating theatre in the tunnels beneath Dover Castle. The construction of tunnels beneath the white cliffs of Dover began in the Middle Ages. They were used extensively as a command centre during World War II. This property is now in the care of English Heritage (2010). Download the Dover Castle Teacher's Kit to find out more. Take advantage of our free entry for Learning Groups. Explore an interactive map.	Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR Millbay Road, Plymouth A gap in a terrace of houses in Millbay Road, Plymouth, caused by bomb damage. The ground floor wall with its Doric portico, is all that remains of this elegant Georgian house.
Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR Sussex Terrace, Plymouth The bombed-out facade of a terrace of Georgian houses in Frillbay Road in Plymouth. One of the buildings housed the Permanant Building Society.	Add to My Favourites Copyright Crown copyright.NMR Princes Square, Plymouth A bombed out row of terraced houses in Princes Square, Plymouth, with pedestrians and parked cars.
Add to My Favourites English Heritage.NMR Shivering Sands Maunsell Fort, Thames Estuary, Kent The Shivering Sands Army fort is one of 3 Maunsell Forts. The forts were designed by Mr G. A. Maunsell and erected for defence during 1941-2. Their purpose was to provide anti-aircraft fire within the Thames Estuary area. Each fort consisted of a group of seven towers with a walkway connecting them all to the central control tower. They were all built to the same layout. All 3 forts saw action during the Second World War. The Nore Army Fort was dismantled in 1959 but the other 2 are still standing today. They were used as pirate radio stations during the 60's and 70's, but since then have remained abandoned.	Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR Lockyer Street, Plymouth A bombed-out terrace of Georgian houses in Lockyer Street, Plymouth. The terrace was bombed during World War Two.
Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR Bomb damage at Great Charlotte Street, Liverpool Pedestrians go about their daily routines oblivious to the bomb damage surrounding them in Great Charlotte Street, Liverpool.	Add to My Favourites Copyright Crown copyright.NMR St John the Evangelist, Red Lion Square, Camden, London A view of the bombed remains of the church of St John the Evangelist in Red Lion Square. It was consecrated in 1878 but was damaged in 1941 and was later demolished.
Add to My Favourites Copyright Crown copyright.NMR World War II bomb damage, London A panoramic view of bomb damage in Cripplegate during World War II. A site has been cleared in the foreground and is being used as a car park. The site is now underneath the Barbican.	Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR The library, Holland House, Kensington, London An interior view of the bombed library at Holland House with readers apparently choosing books regardless of the damage. The House was heavily bombed during World War II and remained derelict until 1952 when parts of the remains were preserved. (It was taken by Fox Photos, a London photographic agency.)
Add to My Favourites Copyright English Heritage.NMR Anti-aircraft battery, Trimley St Mary, Suffolk A World War II anti-aircraft battery at Trimley St Mary, at the mouth of the River Orwell.	Add to My Favourites Copyright English Heritage.NMR Anti-Aircraft Battery near Coventry, West Midlands Facing north through west, this World War II anti-aircraft battery lies 9km north of Coventry in farmland close to Fillongley. As a centre of wartime manufacturing, Coventry was heavily defended by gun emplacements such as these, with many positioned in outlying districts to provide early defence from the Luftwaffe.
Add to My Favourites Copyright Crown copyright.NMR Gun mounts at Beacon Hill Fort, Harwich, Essex Many military sites have been continually modified to adapt to new defence technologies. In this view at Beacon Hill Fort, Harwich, three styles of gun mounts can be seen dating from the late 19th century to World War II.	Add to My Favourites Copyright English Heritage.NMR Pillbox on the River Thames, near Lechlade, Gloucestershire A pillbox on the GHQ stop line, a 300 mile long defence line created across southern England as a second line of defence in case of invasion in World War II. Here, the River Thames has been incorporated as a natural barrier.
Add to My Favourites Reproduced by permission of English Heritage.NMR The General Steam Navigation Co, Deptford Creek, London The General Steam Navigation Co was a steamship company founded in 1820. This shipyard was established in 1825 to build and maintain the company's paddle steamers.The Plinlimmon (formerly Cambrai) was hired by the Ministry of War transport in 1939 and here is in war-time livery. Deptford Power Station can be seen beyond.	Add to My Favourites Copyright English Heritage.NMR Prisoner of War Camp, Low Harperley, Durham Constructed in 1943 by Italian Prisoners of War to house approximately 900 low risk German Prisoners during the Allied invasion of Europe. The seven acre site, which includes Barrack houses, Chapel, Theatre and several original wall paintings is the first Prisoner of War camp to be declared a Scheduled Ancient Monument.