Monument record MDO41154 - Wartime military training area , Knighton Heath, Poole

A loose cluster of small sub-circular earthworks on Knighton Heath are visible on 1940's aerial photographs. The features may be small dug-outs or weapons pits associated with an area of possible wartime military training activity. They were digitally plotted by the Dorset Stour NMP project.

A loose cluster of small sub-circular earthworks on Knighton Heath are visible on 1940s aerial photographs (1 -3).

The features comprise a range of irregular and regular earthworks, from small sb-circular enclosures around 5m in diameter to larger sub-reactangular enclosures around 11m long and 6m wide. In between are additional irregular banked and ditched features, some of which may be small dug-outs or weapons pits, others of which have the appearance of short crenallated trenches. The features may be associated with an area of possible wartime military training activity; there are further groups of similar features spread across the heathland to the south , some of which are closely associated with other military sites, such as the bomb decoy site (MDO41179) and an area of zig-zag practice trenches (MDO41168), for example.

The site is still open heath on current Google Earth imagery and some of the features are still visible. The features were digitally plotted by the Dorset Stour NMP.

<1> Royal Air Force, 08-MAR-45, RAF/106G/LA/163 RP 3023-4 (Aerial Photograph). SDO16033.

<2> Royal Air Force, 30-OCT-45, RAF/106G/T/16 FVp1 7001-2 (Aerial Photograph). SDO16043.

<3> Royal Air Force, 12-DEC-46, RAF/CPE/UK/1893 RP 3255-6 (Aerial Photograph). SDO16029.

Record last edited

Sep 5 2023 10:34AM