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Elveden Explosives Area, Theford
Elveden Explosives Area was located on the Elveden Estate near Thetford in Norfolk, it was home to The Heavy Section, Machine Gun Corps and their tank training school. Use of the estate was acquired by the military in April 1916 and the first tank, Mother, arrived by rail at Barnham station on the 4th of June and was driven by road in darkness to the estate in great secrecy. A further twenty arrived by the end of the month. In July the railway was extended into the estate so that the tanks could travel by rail and unloaded on a siding near Lodge Farm under cover of darkness. Explosions were ignited frequently to maintain the illusion of danger to deter visitors. Screens were erected along the boundary of the estate on the main road to conceal activity from passers by. Brandon Road, which cut across the estate was closed and the boundary was guarded by the Royal Defence Corps and Cavalry, who had no inkling of the activities inside the estate. Tank training took place in the centre of the estate in a cordoned off area, with more usual army training taking place in the rest of the site to give an impression of normality. A full scale trench system was constructed for realist training complete with wire defences.
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Want to know more about Elveden Explosives Area, Theford? There are:0 items tagged Elveden Explosives Area, Theford available in our Library
These include information on officers, regimental histories, letters, diary entries, personal accounts and information about actions during the Great War.
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Those known to have trained at Elveden Explosives Area, Theford during the Great War 1914-1918. All names on this list have been submitted by relatives, friends, neighbours and others who wish to remember them, if you have any names to add or any recollections or photos of those listed,
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