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Summary

A Second World War barrage balloon mooring at Staddon Heights is visible as concentric rings of small structures on aerial photographs taken from the 1940s onwards.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1002585: Watch House battery and ditch

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX45SE/177

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• BARRAGE BALLOON MOORING (World War II - 1939 AD to 1945 AD (Between))

Full description

Untitled Source (Migrated Record). SDV138256.

Des=plymouth fortress survey/ pye,a. / (1993)/ copy in smr.

Untitled Source (Aerial Photograph). SDV138257.

Aph=raf/cpe/uk/1890/2128/(10/12/1946).

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1890, Devon County Council RAF/CPE/UK/1890 FS 2127-2128 10-DEC-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV169268.

Three concentric rings of small low structures are visible.

PLYMOUTH FORTRESS SURVEY, 1992, Untitled Source (Migrated Record). SDV27236.

Vis=-/-/1993(pye) staddon heights barrage balloon. Site of wwii barrage balloon, clearly illustrated on the late 1940s aerial photograph (copy held by mr forster of staddon cottage); sited on higher ground to the rear of staddon heights battery, just in front of the 19th-century rifle butts. It consists of a point with a central square around it and an outer circle of concrete bollards which presumably held pins to anchor the balloon. This is the best-preserved site to survive in the plymouth area (plymouth fortress survey).

Bluesky International Ltd/Getmapping PLC, 1999-2017, Pan Government Agreement Aerial Photographs, Next Perspectives APGB Imagery SX4851 15-MAY-2016 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363087.

Most of the blocks of the barrage balloon mooring are clearly visible as low structures.

Historic England, 2014, NMR 29059, NMR 29059_026 13-JUN-2014 (Aerial Photograph). SDV363262.

Two concentric rings of small low structures are visible.

English Heritage, 2014, Staddon Heights Defences, including Fort Staddon, Brownhill Battery, Watch House Battery, Staddon Heights Battery, Staddon Battery and associated features and structures. (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV356311.

A barrage balloon mooring site of c.1940 date.
The Second World War barrage balloon site is also a rare survival, with few known to remain nationally. The only designated example of its type is at Pucklechurch, Gloucestershire and was listed at Grade II in 2010 as a group with two balloon repair workshops (listed at Grade II in 2003). The balloon site at Staddon Heights survives well, with only minor damage to the concrete blocks, and the attached iron rings are intact. A buried feature by design, the site serves as evidence of our defence strategy during the Second World War at this key historic defensive position, protecting the City of Plymouth, its port and industry.
Description: The site comprises pre-cast concrete blocks, set flush with the ground surface. The central block is 262cm by 262cm, with a cast-iron ring set in the centre of its upper face. A set of eight evenly-spaced blocks is arranged in a circle around the central block, approximately 3m from it. A further circle of 24 mooring blocks stands approximately 5.5m outside the inner circle. The outer circle secured the guy ropes used when the barrage balloon was fully bedded down. The blocks in the inner and outer circles are all approximately 40cm by 60cm. The inner circle blocks have three cast-iron rings fixed to their upper face, and those of the outer circle have a single cast-iron ring, and each face is inscribed with a number (1 to 24). A further iron ring is set in the ground to the south-east of the outer circle, possibly for the use of a winch lorry.
Extent of Scheduling: The scheduled area includes the parts of the glacis to the north and north east of Fort Staddon that survive well, and the course of the military road south of the fort to Brownhill Battery. The south-eastern boundary is defined by the embanked east extent of Brownhill Battery, which adjoins Watch House Battery brake, continuing west to form a southern boundary incorporating Watch House Battery and ditch. The western boundary leads north from Watch House Battery, above the South West Coastal Path, to include the former observation posts and the buried remains of Staddon Heights Battery and Staddon Battery, and the latter's rampart wall. The area to the east of these batteries is included with its earthworks and Barrage Balloon Site, and its north-eastern boundary is defined by the rifle butts wall.

Hegarty, C., Knight, S. and Sims, R., 2019-2020, The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping Survey. Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (AI&M, formerly NMP) (Interpretation). SDV362982.

A complex of small low structures, arranged in three concentric rings with a central square structure, is visible on aerial photographs taken from the 1940s onwards. Covering approximately 55 metres in diameter, the inner circle of eight pale radially arranged rectilinear low structures is 12 metres in diameter. This is closely bounded by a further ring of small rectilinear structures, and further out, a final ring of structures. A larger central block is also visible. They are similar to the remains of the barrage balloon site to the north (MDV126506) which are also interpreted as the ring tethering blocks of a Second World War balloon barrage.
Two earthwork mounds, 6 by 8 and 10 by 6 metres, are located in close proximity at SX4892051084 and SX4891151115 respectively, are visible only on the 1940s aerial photographs. These may be temporary post-war features and have not been transcribed.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV8098 - The South Devon Coast to Dartmoor Aerial Investigation and Mapping (formerly NMP) Survey, Area 2, Avon Valley to Plymouth (Ref: ACD2040)

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