Monument record TR 34 NE 334 - Second World War Searchlight Battery Hc05 5, St Margaret's at Cliffe

During the Second World War a battery of four searchlights was established at Oxney Woods. The battery consisted of huts along Dover Road and the searchlights emplaced in a hollow area in the field to the east.(1)

The site of a Second World War searchlight battery, this was known as searchlight battery no. HC05 5 (old number HC 07 3) located at Ringwould at TR 356472. It was manned by 314 Searchlight Battery. It was operational by 14-OCT-1941. (2)

Searchlight sites typically comprised a small ring-ditch to provide the crew with shelter during an air raid, a predictor emplacement for calculating the height and range of targets, a light anti-aircraft machine gun pit, a generator and hutted accommodation for the crew. During the Second World War searchlights were manned by the Royal Artillery and were under the control of the Army's Anti-Aircraft Command. (3)

<1> John Guy, Verbal Communication (Verbal communication). SKE15418.

<2> Dobinson, C, 2000, CBA Twentieth Century Fortifications in England Supporting paper AA/1 Searchlight Sites in WWII A sample List (Bibliographic reference). SKE15230.

<3> Lowry (ed), 1995, 20th century defences in Britain : an introductory guide (Bibliographic reference). SKE56150.