The shifting sands of East Anglia's coastline have revealed a hidden chapter of British history: the extensive World War Two coastal defences that once stood watch against Nazi invasion. Recent storms and coastal erosion have unearthed rows of concrete blocks, rusting metal structures, and other remnants of the desperate efforts to fortify the UK's shores in 1940.
At the height of the threat, as British forces evacuated from Dunkirk, construction teams worked tirelessly along the coast. Dave Thurlow, who works at the RSPB reserve north of Sizewell, Suffolk, described the scene during July and August as 'frantic', with defences going up rapidly to meet the perceived German threat. Military historians agree that the widespread fear of invasion drove a national effort to protect the coastline.
Among the uncovered structures are anti-tank defences, built by the Royal Engineers and Pioneer Corps, including rows of massive concrete blocks – some bearing soldiers' initials. In Norfolk, at Winterton-on-Sea, Andrew Fakes points out evidence of pillboxes, extensive barbed wire, and mine-laden scaffold posts designed to safeguard a major gun emplacement.
At Minsmere, initial defences involved flooding marshland with seawater by opening sluice gates. This was followed by the installation of anti-tank measures, trenches, and 'dragon's teeth' – steel girders set into concrete in the sea to rip enemy barges apart. The final line of defence featured rows of 2.7-metre scaffolding poles, stabilised and positioned just above high-water mark to slow landing craft or tanks at low tide.
Dr Sophie Day, a University of East Anglia researcher, attributes the periodic exposure of these artefacts to the East Suffolk coast's 'highly dynamic frontage' and soft geology. Coastal change, driven by wave action and exacerbated by climate change and sea level rise, accelerates erosion and sediment transport.
These rare survivors – particularly the 'dragon's teeth' – offer a tangible link to the wartime era, when Britain's shores were under threat of invasion.