Committed to the study and preservation of 20th Century pillboxes and anti-invasion defences – In the UK and around the world

Variant And Local Designs

Allan-Williams Turret
Key facts Allan-Williams Turrets at Bembridge Fort, Isle of Wight in 1988Photographs Kevin Briggs

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Aldershot Command’s 2 – Pounder Emplacement
GHQ Line B Anti Tank Defence. By Tim Denton. This design of anti tank emplacement is unique […]

May 30, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Aldershot Command’s 8-Sided Pillbox
Hampshire and Surrey Bullet Proof Variant. Ten examples of this bullet proof pillbox survive making it one of […]

March 15, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Beehive Pillbox
Key Facts See The Northumberland Beehive Pillbox for more details

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Bison Mobile Pillbox
Key Facts

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Cuckmere MG Emplacement
Cuckmere Haven Variant Machine Gun Emplacements There are three of this local design variant to be found within […]

January 26, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Cuckmere Mini Pillbox Variants
Cuckmere Haven’s One Man Pillbox Variants Ngr TV520977 and 521977 Within the Seven Sisters country park there are two […]

January 27, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Dover Quad
Dover Quad Pillbox The Dover Quad pillbox has a square plan and is 4m on a side. It […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

Dorset Square Variant
Woodsford Castle Defence, Dorchester. SY758903 This square and somewhat part disguised pillbox is built into the garden […]

November 8, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Eastern Command Type
Eastern Command Type This Type is almost unique to Essex (two exist north of Cambridge) and only occur […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

Eared Pillbox
Eared Pillbox This pillbox gets its name from its unusual entrance arrangement which from some angles suggests […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

Essex Lozenge
Essex Lozenge This type is unique to the Essex coastline and is purpose designed to command the flat […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

EXDO Posts
Extended Defence Officer Posts The function of EXDO (or, equally valid for this context. XDO) in the Royal […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Gosport Rectangular Pillbox

October 31, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Hayling Island Rectangular Pillbox
This unusually tall rectangular pillbox can be found beside the A3023 Havant Rd at Hayling Island a short […]

July 8, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Lincolnshire 3 Bay
Lincolnshire Three Bay The Lincolnshire three bay pillbox is a variant form of the FW3/23. Essentially it is […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

Lozenge Pillbox
Lozenge Pillbox The lozenge type is found only in the Northeast of England. The type is an […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

Marlborough Mini Pillbox
Wiltshire’s Smallest Pillbox. Ngr SU188692 Most people walking down Kingsbury StreetÂ in Marlborough wouldnâ€™t give it a second glance […]

February 11, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Mowlem 6 Pounder Drum Pillbox Shalford Surrey
Tillingbourne Brook, East Shalford Lane, Ngr TQ 012474 On a section of GHQ Line B near Shalford […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Mushroom Pillbox
Key Facts Circular Design 360 degree field of fire low profile Gun mounted on railed mounting Usually found […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Norcon Pillbox Type CP/6/40/111
Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Key Facts Pre-cast concrete pipe 6 feet in diameter with 4 inch thick wall After casting it […]

December 26, 2012 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

North Downs Way Shellproof Type 24 Variant.
FW3/24 at Great Copse, Ranmore Common, Surrey. Sequence number 86 – NGR TQ125495. Continuing on the North Downs […]

June 17, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

North Downs Way Tall Type 24
This tall but slim profile type 24 can be found beside the North Downs Way above Wotton in […]

February 24, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

North Downs Way Unusual Variant
Shellproof defenceÂ built for site,Wotton,Surrey. Ngr TQ121494 Along the route of the North Downs WayÂ between Newlands Corner and Ranmore […]

February 20, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by Tim Denton

Northumberland D Type
Northumberland â€œDâ€ Type This variant is only found in Northumberland and 17 examples are known to exist. […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs part 1 A - N by colin

Open MG Emplacement plan — Open Machine Gun Positions
From the Manual OF Field Engineering Vol. 1 (All Arms) 1933 comes a description of how and when […]

February 9, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by colin

Pentagonal Pillbox
Pentagonal Pillboxes Pentagonal pillboxes, as the name suggests, are regular pentagons in shape. This general type appears to […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by colin

Pickett-Hamilton Fort
Key Facts The ‘Lifting & Turning Fort’ In the summer of 1940 many engineering companies approached government departments […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Pillbox Gun Mounts
Turnbull Mounts Turnbull mounts were not exclusively used for mounting Vickers machine-guns but Brens, Lewis, water cooled Brownings […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Pre-Fab Pillbox
Key Facts

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

QF Six Pounder Open Gun Emplacement
The hexagonal Anti-tank gun emplacement or gun pit as it can also be called is one of […]

April 2, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

ROF pillbox variants
ROF Type The ROF type is a bespoke design only found at Royal Ordnance depots and factories. It […]

January 21, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by colin

Seagull Trench
Airfield Defence Pillbox The first thing that people say when they see a Seagull Trench is “Look at […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Surrey’s Mowlem Type 24 Drum
Along GHQ Line B south of Guildford between Godalming and Chilworth there are eighteen unique shaped pillboxes that […]

February 17, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Tett Turret
Key facts Tett turrets at RAF Hornchurch, Essex The former airfield at RAF Hornchurch in Essex boasts the […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Two Storey & Tower Pillbox Designs
Rare and unusual designs normally built for a specific location where observation and a clear view of fire was essential […]

January 12, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Triumph Motorbike Pillbox
Under all that 1/4″ steel plate is a Triumph WO-3SW cica 1939 350cc single side valve. Possiblly the […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Vickers Factory Pillbox.
Brooklands Museum, Weybridge, Surrey. TQ 0699562943 This small and unique six sided pillbox can be found within the […]

May 12, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Vickers Machine Gun Emplacement
Key Facts Build variations can be found with different positioning of secondary loopholes and air vent, length and […]

December 25, 2012 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton

Yarnold Sangar
Key Facts No doubt many of you will have noticed the large number of Concrete `Pipe` type pillboxes […]

January 3, 2013 in Variant And Local Designs / Variant and Local Designs Part 2 O - Z by Tim Denton