Description

DUNSTER

26/0/10001 WWII Pillbox
10-JUN-10

II
Second World War pillbox of no recognised type. Built late 1940 or early 1941, forming part of the Somerset Coast line and Blue Anchor Bay defended locality.

MATERIALS: Constructed of brick, concrete and stone and provided with integral camouflage, including a pitched slate roof, with barge boards below and stone facing to ensure that the building resembled a cottage.

PLAN: Octagonal on plan.

EXTERIOR: The pillbox faces north, with an entrance in the southern wall. It is a shell-proof building with seven steel-shuttered fire resistant embrasures, concrete tables under the loops with a wide slot to hold a weapon and a central ricochet wall with unusual deflected cross walls.

HISTORY: After the defeat at Dunkirk in May 1940, Britain was faced with the prospect of imminent invasion. To counter this danger, an anti-invasion plan was developed by General Sir Edmund Ironside, Commander-in-Chief Home Forces, who created a series of static defence lines which were largely in place by the end of the year. The coastal defences included series of closely spaced pillboxes and other obstacles manned by the Home Guard. The Somerset coast was protected by a series of defences including coastal batteries, anti-tank blocks and girders, gun emplacements, cones, section posts, slit trenches and large numbers of pillboxes. The defended locality known as Blue Anchor Bay included at least 12 pillboxes, an infantry section post, an anti-tank girder and obstacles. The pillbox at Higher Marsh Farm retains its original camouflage; this may be to a design by the well-known theatre designer, Oliver Messel (1904-78), or his successor, the artist Julian Trevelyn, both of whom worked at H.Q. VIII in Taunton at the time.

SOURCES: Somerset Historic Environment Record 17637
National Monument Record No. SS SE 136
Defence of Britain Database S0001565
Foot, W., Defence Areas: a national study of Second World War anti-invasion landscapes in England. English Heritage and the Council for British Archaeology (2004)
http://www.connectworks.co.uk/printeurope/pejtbiog.html Accessed 24 June 2009.
Pepys-Whiteley, rev. James Hamilton, 'Messel, Oliver Hilary Sambourne (1904-1978), artist and stage designer', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved on 24 June 2009 from http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/printable/31439
Gooding, M. rev, 'Trevelyan, Julian Otto (1910-1988), painter and printmaker', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved on 24 June 2009 from http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/printable/39970
http://www.answers.com/topic/oliver-messel Accessed 24-Jun-09.

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION:
The World War II pillbox at Higher Marsh Farm, Dunster is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Rarity: it is a rare example of hybrid type
* Historic interest: the pillbox retains its original camouflage which may have been designed either by Oliver Messel or Julian Trevelyn, both prominent artists
* Fittings: the steel shutters are of an uncommon type
* Group value: the pillbox forms an integral part of a nationally important defensive landscape.

Reasons for Listing

The World War II pillbox at Higher Marsh Farm, Dunster is recommended for designation in Grade II, for the following principal reason:
* The pillbox was previously listed within the wrong parish, so its location was not accurately reflected in the List; it should instead be listed in the correct parish of Dunster

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26672974

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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