Like last year, I decided to take a Jeep for the first
day and the Dodge for day two. New to see this year at the Battery are the two
replica naval guns, installed in the gun emplacements in the Spring. The first
picture shows the Battery as seen from the beach, with the various buildings
marked.
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The drive up on Saturday was shrouded in light mist and as I drove onwards, it
gave the impression of heavy rain on the screen while the hood remained bone
dry. It dried up briefly upon arrival and I started to look around when the
rain started. I quickly retired back to the Jeep and waited for it to pass.
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It dried up late morning and was brighter by the time of the beach battle at
noon. The Germans did the attacking on day one while the British made the
assault on day two. It was during this that the commentator announced that the
German attack on Norway, was the only attack they made during the war that
involved a beach assault.
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There were only five Jeeps there including mine, but several other interesting
vehicles were on display. One of the more unusual ones was this
"Bedouin" car, originating with a Citroen 2CV. A Harley, some Austin
Champs and Land Rovers were also on show.
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As previously mentioned, the Battery gun emplacements now have replica Mk VII,
6 inch naval guns installed and look much better for being occupied! Both
emplacements had re-enactor displays, but in one, a gun crew ran simulated
ranging, loading and firing displays. The port of Blyth can be seen in the
background of the last gun image. At the end of the car park, looking in this
direction, there is also a search light building.
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While most of the vehicles were located on the fields beside the battery, a
few and other displays were positioned on the other side of the public car
park. It made a surprisingly large site to walk around.
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There were a number of dioramas around the site. One item which put a smile on
my face was amongst the Royal Navy Beach Assault diorama. There were several
sticks of explosive and in the end was a slow burning fuse - which was
smouldering! As usual, the Allied displays were to the left of the battery
while the Germans were to the right.
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Day two started nice and warm with almost a completely clear sky. The Dodge
had a good run up though I had to increase the free play in the brake pedal
once I got there. This had been the longest continuous run since fitting the
new brake pipes and adjusting the shoes.
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The following pictures are of the battery buildings. The grey tower is the
World War One Ranging Tower, while the square tower was the World War Two
replacement. The second picture is the wartime plan of the site, showing the
battery and associated buildings, plus defensive block houses and barbed wire
defences around the site. The third picture is from the WW2 ranging tower,
looking to the South East while the last building is a surviving defensive
block house. The gun slits have long since been filled but their rectangular
outlines can still be seen in the outside walls.
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Blyth Battery was just one piece of the coastal defences around the port which
can be seen in the following picture.
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The journey home in the Dodge was uneventful and we went straight back to the
storage yard. The Dodge was then packed away in the container and we made the
last three miles back home in the car left there when I collected the Dodge
the night before.
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