Wanstone Rediscovered

Time to read:: 15 minutes

Image showing one of the 15-inch guns installed at Wanstone, Dover during the Second World War — Figure 1: One of the 15-inch cross-channel guns installed at Wanstone, near Dover, Kent in May 1942, just prior to commissioning | © Lt. Tanner - War Office official photographer - public domain image obtained via Wikimedia Commons

During the Second World War, The White Cliffs of Dover became the focus for an unprecedented land-based artillery installation. After the war, some sites were demolished, others covered up, while many were left derelict for nature to reclaim. Our project aims to excavate where necessary, and conserve Wanstone and Fan Bay, the most important and best-preserved parts of the site, and to create an experience that can be enjoyed by generations to come.

November - December 2025

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Defence, attack and disuse

Since before Roman times, the coast of South East England has been the subject of many hostile invasion attempts. In the early days of the Second World War, with German forces just 20 miles away, the section of coast to the east of Dover now presented unique opportunities for the British. Previously used mainly for defence, land-based heavy artillery would be used for attacking shipping across the entire width of the Dover Strait in accordance with Prime Minister Winston Churchill's order 'to fight for command of the Strait by artillery'.

The gun batteries at Wanstone, on The White Cliffs of Dover held the largest, longest-range breech-loading weapons ever installed on mainland Britain. These huge guns could fire a shell weighing 1938lbs (900kg) 23.25 miles (37.2km or 40,920 yards) and saw much action during the War. They were installed along with an extensive network of smaller anti-shipping and anti-aircraft artillery that defended against invasion and controlled the Dover Strait and a key air route for attacks on London.

In September 1944, the guns' attention was turned to supporting the Canadian 8th Regiment as it moved northeast from the D-Day landings, capturing the German coast guns that had inflicted so much damage on Dover. The Wanstone guns were fired continuously until barrel wear reduced their range and they could no longer reach their targets, but not before they had inflicted devastating damage on Lindermann Battery.

Post-War

When peace returned, many of the guns had already fallen silent. A few were initially kept for training duties but by the mid-1950s, those remaining had either been put into storage, or, as in the case of Wanstone, the metal parts were cut up for scrap and the sites returned to agricultural use. Although the guns had been removed, much of the infrastructure remained. Some of the military roads were broken up to allow ploughing, but many of the massive, reinforced concrete and brick structures were too costly to demolish. The emplacements and some buildings were partly or completely buried, but many were left to ultimately be reclaimed by nature, some becoming vandalised in the process. By the mid-1980s, most of the gun sites had become a wilderness of brambles, hawthorn and blackthorn.

You can read more about the history of the gun batteries at Wanstone: Wanstone Battery, D2 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery and Fan Bay Battery in our brief history articles.

Image of a group of people standing on a partly buried concrete structure surrounded by trees and scrub — Figure 2: The 'Jane' gun emplacement as discovered in September 2017 | © National Trust/Richard Meadows

A hidden treasure awaits

In late 2017, the private land upon which the Wanstone cross-channel guns, the D2 Heavy Anti-aircraft and the Fan Bay batteries were sited, was acquired by the National Trust. A series of surveys and exploratory excavations revealed 27 military structures, across an area of approximately 0.4 sq. miles, (1 sq. km or around 250 acres), some in a remarkable state of preservation. It soon became clear that Wanstone was a time capsule from the darkest days of the Second World War and the Wanstone and D2 batteries were rare survivors from the Eyesore Clearance Programme in the 1970s, that affected other structures nearer the coast.

Before the outbreak of Covid-19, in early 2020, much of the work was exploratory and small-scale, with the clearance of many of the site roads from over 50 years of leaf mulch, tree debris and moss. The vegetation that had invaded the structures and was causing extensive damage, was removed in a way that was sympathetic to the resident wildlife and wherever possible, wilderness areas were left to nature. A trial excavation at the Wanstone ‘Jane’ emplacement in 2018, showed that considerable remains were present, but a full excavation would be costly and not possible without external funding.

A project to excavate the buried structures and to conserve them, and the existing visible structures, was proposed by the National Trust’s Jon Barker in 2019, to be part-funded by a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant. Before the grant could be awarded, Covid-19 struck, and the grant, together with the project was placed on indefinite hold, to be revitalised in mid-2021. In January 2022, the funds were secured, and a 3-year project ‘Wanstone Rediscovered’ was able to be launched on 1 July 2022.

Image showing the concrete foundations of the 15-inch gun emplacement 'Jane' prior to excavation — Figure 3: The Jane emplacement foundations in June 2022 after the exploratory excavation, prior to the main excavation starting on 11 July 2022 | © NT/Isle Heritage CIC Licenced CC-BY-4.0

Wanstone Rediscovered phase 1 - July 2022 - June 2025

The project concentrated on the area where many wartime structures remained substantially intact. As well as the Wanstone and D2 batteries, the project also focussed on Fan Bay. Here, the deep shelter and sound mirrors that had been buried in the Eyesore Clearance Programme had already been excavated, conserved and opened to the public in 2015. Wanstone Rediscovered would now see the Fan Bay gun emplacements, included in the 2017 acquisition, explored to establish whether it might be possible to fully excavate and open at least one of these to the public too.

From neglect to a new future

Led by the National Trust and supported by a £199,000 National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, local businesses, donors, and volunteer effort, the £400,000 project aimed to excavate and stabilise this important site. This was achieved through upskilling our own volunteers and recruiting from the local community and further afield. Local businesses and suppliers quickly saw the importance of this work and partnered with us, a move for which we are eternally grateful. Later in the project we partnered with local schools and other organisations in the community who have provided valuable assistance.

The project aims were:

Archaeological – excavation of three clusters of structures
Conservation – urgent work targeted on waterproofing and stabilisation of the buildings
Participation – a community / volunteer led project offering training, participation and experience

Uncovering Wanstone ‘Jane’ emplacement – Summer 2022

The initial project aim – the uncovering of Wanstone No. 1 gun emplacement (‘Jane’) was planned prior to launch and was quickly realised during July 2022. Volunteers and partners worked closely together to excavate the remains and ensured that proper archaeological records were kept. A significant number of artefacts were recovered, and these have since helped us to understand more about how the gun functioned, and how it was dismantled.

The entire ‘Jane’ emplacement was revealed in just two weeks and the many tonnes of infill material were removed. The full scale of this amazing feat of wartime engineering could now be seen.

But we weren’t to stop there…

View of a semi-circular large concrete gun emplacement with scattered clouds — Figure 4: The fully excavated Jane emplacement | © National Trust/Clive Knott

Fan Bay trial excavations – Autumn 2022

During October 2022, three exploratory excavations were carried out at Fan Bay to establish the extent of the remains there. We knew that the Fan Bay battery and deep shelter had been included in the Eyesore Clearance Programme of the early 1970s. The new trenches showed that the gun emplacements and magazines remained, but the brick and concrete gun houses, that had protected the guns and the rooms behind, had been largely destroyed. Large amounts of brick and reinforced concrete rubble from the demolition was present in the spaces.

The results of this work showed that emplacement number 3 was least damaged, closest to the deep shelter and had the greatest potential for providing a future visitor experience. This emplacement was targeted for a full excavation in the summer of 2023. The emplacements were reburied for the winter.

Image of 2 people working in an excavation uncovering a staircase that had been buried — Figure 5: Fan Bay emplacement no. 3 test dig, October 2022 | © National Trust/Gordon Wise

Excavating Fan Bay Emplacement No. 3 – July 2023

In early July 2023, work started to reveal the remains of the gun emplacement and magazine. The historic importance of this project attracted the attention of many, including the BBC; and we hosted Professor Alice Roberts and the Digging for Britain team for two days. Over 1000 visitors turned up to watch the progress of the dig.

Much as we had done the year before with the Wanstone ‘Jane’ emplacement, great care was taken to ensure as much archaeology as possible was preserved and all finds were recorded. The excavation showed that the 1970s partial demolition had done extensive damage to the brickwork that formed the rooms behind the emplacement. In particular, the walls of the men’s and officer’s shelters and the gun store were found to be detached from their foundations and would have collapsed if excavated. These rooms were left filled with rubble.

After a week of machine excavating and hand-digging, emplacement 3 was revealed – with the aiming marks still painted on the walls of the gun-ring. Emplacement 2 was then partly excavated to leave the top of the gun ring exposed, to give context to the site which was then landscaped. Emplacement 1 was left buried.

During the late summer and autumn of 2023, railway sleepers, kindly donated by a local company were repurposed into support walls for emplacement 3, to stabilise the brickwork and prevent further movement. The aim would be to present emplacement 3 as much as possible in the condition in which it was found.

Image of a circular concrete structure with a concrete pit in the middle and the gun holding down bolts in the centre of the pit — Figure 6: The fully excavated Fan Bay number 3 emplacement in July 2023 | © National Trust/Gordon Wise

Excavating the ‘Clem’ emplacement – February 2024

Excavating Clem was a very different proposition to Jane. The emplacement had been built into a disused chalk quarry — a ready-made camouflage — but after the gun had been removed and the site handed back for agriculture, the gunsite was infilled with up to 4 metres of chalk, soil and builders’ rubble, then covered in topsoil, so that the land could be farmed.

The sheer scale of the infill, and the amount of spoil that would need to be disposed of, was beyond that which could realistically be achieved on-site. The cost of commercial disposal of this amount of material (thousands of tonnes), could not be funded from the project. We decided to excavate the rear of the gun ring, to show where the training rail and breech pit started, leaving a chalk and soil slope over the front of the breech pit, and the front of the gun emplacement buried. The excavation also revealed the Clem gun store, which had been buried for over 50 years and was in a remarkably good state of preservation.

Image of a semi-circular concrete structure at ground level, with two buildings in the background on a sunny day with patchy cloud — Figure 7: The Clem gun ring (foreground) with the compressor room and lamp room behind | © National Trust/Gordon Wise

Opening Fan Bay no. 3 emplacement – June 2025

One of the project’s key objectives was to open the Fan Bay number 3 emplacement to the public as part of the guided tours of the deep shelter’s tunnels and sound mirrors. During early 2025, we installed a staircase to take visitors from the road, over the gun ring and into the emplacement and a further set of steps to take visitors into the breech pit. We put emergency lighting into the magazine, a new emergency escape ladder in the loading shaft and turned the shell store into a mini museum of artefacts, shell replicas and explanatory documents.

The public tours were re-designed, and the emplacement opened to visitors on June 20, 2025 - exactly 10 years since Fan Bay Deep Shelter opened.

Image of a circular concrete gun emplacement with the holding down bolts visible and with the visitor seating and interpretation boards in place — Figure 8: Fan Bay emplacement no. 3 almost ready for opening in late June 2025 | © National Trust/Gordon Wise

The D2 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery (D2)

The remains of D2 (‘Dover 2’) laid largely untouched since the site was vacated by the military in the early 1950s. The network of concrete roads, emplacements and support buildings were too costly to remove, and the site was allowed to naturally decay, without the destruction and infilling suffered by other sites, such as Wanstone and Fan Bay Batteries. Therefore, unlike the other sites, there has been little major excavation at D2 and the work here has formed a continuous process of smaller tasks.

Almost all of the doors and window shutters on the buildings had rusted through, and most buildings were suffering from water ingress. Pre-Covid-19, much of the work on D2 focussed on cutting back vegetation, weatherproofing roofs and clearing blocked drains. The rusted doors and shutters were steadily replaced with identical items, and small-scale excavations, mostly by hand, revealed artefacts such as instrument mounting locations.

Emplacement number 2 was so badly overgrown that removal of the trees would likely have resulted in collapse of some of the structures and this has been left in the state it was found. It serves to remind us of the progress we have made. The other three emplacements were able to be cleared.

Since 2021, we’ve traced drainage and discovered the wastewater settling tanks and filter beds. We’ve further improved weatherproofing of the buildings and we’ve cut back the vegetation to reveal the edges of the roads. Some 450 tonnes of concrete slabs from an old military road that was demolished in the 1990s to facilitate agriculture (Figure 9 below, bottom right), were removed and crushed in late 2025 and the area re-landscaped. The material recovered now forms the base of our additional parking area.

Work on D2 will now consist mainly of conservation and vegetation management.

An image of a network of roads and buildings forming the semi-circular D2 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery. There is a series of buildings in the centre of the image, which was the command post. The circular parade ground can be seen along with another building, which was the gatehouse or gun store. The three emplacements, with their associated magazines and are clustered around the command post. — Figure 9: An aerial view of D2 showing the command post, centre, with the emplacements clustered around in a semi-circle. | © Isle Heritage CIC with permission

Wanstone Rediscovered phase 2 - July 2025

The three-year Lottery-funded project came to a successful end on 30 June 2025, having delivered its key objectives on-time and on-budget. A total of over 21,600 volunteer hours had been donated by over 90 volunteers in the three years. The full project evaluation report can be viewed here.

During the final months of the phase 1 project, a new project proposal was successfully submitted, internally known as ‘Wanstone Visioning’ and funded out of the National Trust’s Neptune Coastline Campaign.

This project, which started on July 1, 2025, will yield the continuance of the conservation work on the three sites, care and maintenance, and will generate proposals for the final visitor experience. The generic ‘Wanstone Rediscovered’ name will remain, and the intention is to seek additional grant funding during the life of this project, to eventually enable us to achieve our objective – to fully open the site to visitors.

Our Blogs

Depending on site activity we aim to publish a new blog entry approximately every two months. These are announced on the White Cliffs of Dover Facebook page, and the latest blog entry is below. To comply with National Lottery Heritage Fund rules, the previous phase 1 project blog is retained. The full resolution images for both blogs and for other images on this page are available to download from our Flickr site, subject to the licence terms and links are provided for each image.

Wanstone Rediscovered Phase 1 Blog - Excavation and Conservation 2022-2025

May / June 2025

Protecting and rebuilding the brickwork

We’re proud to share recent conservation work carried out by our dedicated team of volunteers—made possible through the generous support of our partner organisations. A key milestone was the application of Stormdry Masonry Protection Cream to the newly repaired brickwork on the magazine buttresses. Supplied by our partner, Safeguard Europe, this specialist treatment penetrates deep into the masonry, forming an invisible water-repellent barrier. It helps protect the now porous bricks from frost damage and delamination, ensuring long-term preservation. All eight buttresses—two per magazine—have now been treated and this should now protect these historic structures for decades to come.

After the guns were dismantled in 1957, the site returned to agriculture. While no buildings were fully demolished, many were buried under soil to maximise farmland. In some cases, parapets and other features were removed to reduce the depth of cover required. The Clem gun store was one such structure, completely buried until its excavation in 2024. Volunteers are pictured reinstating the parapet, restoring the building’s original profile and improving its resistance to the elements. This careful reconstruction enhances the site’s visual integrity and honours its wartime heritage.

We’re immensely grateful to everyone who has contributed to this journey—from suppliers and supporters to the volunteers who continue to bring Wanstone’s story back to life, in some cases, quite literally, one brick at a time. This phase of the Wanstone Rediscovered project ended on 30 June 2025, but we are delighted to be able to announce that a new, internally funded project launched on 1 July 2025, enabling us to take the work we have already completed forward. A new blog will trace the progress of this project.

Download images: Upper Lower

National Trust volunteers applying Stormdry Masonry Protection Cream to the brick buttress walls of the entrance to one of the Wanstone magazines — Applying Stormdry Masonry Protection Cream to the brick buttress walls of one of the Wanstone magazines | © National Trust/Peter Goodwin

A bricklayer working on repairing the parapet wall of the Clem gun store, which was demolished when the site was covered over in the 1960s — Rebuilding the parapet wall of the Clem gun store. | © National Trust/Peter Goodwin

Wanstone Rediscovered Phase 2 Blog - Conservation and Visioning 2025 -

November - December 2025

Vegetation Control and Drainage

Nature is continually trying to reclaim the historic artefacts that we have uncovered at Wanstone and while we are keen to ensure we preserve the habitats that have been naturally created, we need to protect the structures from encroaching roots. In the image, we are cutting back the vegetation at the wartime wastewater treatment site. Here, effluent from the accommodation blocks passed into a settling tank, with the liquid overflowing into an over-balancing pair of troughs. As one trough filled, the mass of water eventually overcame the mass of the other trough and the assembly tipped, sluicing the liquid over a gravel base and allowing bacteria to break down the organic matter, with the empty trough then being filled and the process repeated. An early form of biological sewage treatment.

The Fan Bay plotting room main entrance shaft had suffered from rainwater ponding and penetration from the surrounding land and while the internal drainage had continued to protect the structure, we needed to stop the water flow to ensure long-term preservation. During October we excavated a new soakaway nearby and in early December we constructed a series of low walls to direct water away from the shaft and into the drain leading to the soakaway. On a particularly wet workday in mid-December, we checked the site and there were no puddles. A successful way to end the year.

Download images: Upper Lower

Image of a person driving a machine that is cutting vegetation around a concrete tank — Clearing vegetation from around the wastewater filter beds | © National Trust/Gordon Wise

An image of a drain to a soakaway, with low brick walls to deflect floodwater into the drain — The new drain to a soakaway at the Fan Bay Plotting Room | © National Trust/Philippa Dale

Visiting the site

The Wanstone site is currently fenced off and is only open four days each year - for the National Lottery's 'Thanks to You' event, in March and the Heritage Open days in September. Please don't attempt to access the site yourself as there is work in progress and there are deep excavations and surface obstructions, many left from the 1950s, which may cause injury. On our open days, we will welcome you, share the history of the site and the progress we have made. Watch our blog (above) and our White Cliffs of Dover homepage and Facebook pages for details of the next open days. Access for special interest groups can be arranged - please contact us well in advance using the 'Get in touch' details on the homepage.

And finally…

Today we can only marvel at the speed and craftsmanship of those who did so much in so little time to defend our country. Uncovering and conserving these remains will help us tell the story of a momentous time in the history of this corner of England, at the same time remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice—some on these sites. We hope that we can achieve our aim - to open these historic artefacts for all to see. In this way, the memories of those who served here, and those who did not return, can live on.

‘They shall not grow old, as we who are left grow old: age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.’

Download our pictures

Most of the images we feature on these pages are available to download in original resolution, either from our Flickr site or from the source on the links below. Please observe all license conditions. Images open in a separate window.

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Can you help us? (image below)

Image of a large group of people standing on the edge of a concrete pit with a Union Flag hanging into the pit with trees and grass in the background

Can you help us?

All the work so far has only been possible due to the efforts of local volunteers. We are always looking for people to join our friendly team. Our plans are ambitious and will use many hours of volunteer time as well as a wide range of physical skills and knowledge. We welcome both individual volunteers and organisation/corporate volunteer groups so could you give some of your knowledge, time and energy to this fascinating and worthwhile project?

Find out more

Inspiring, leading and resourcing the UK’s heritage to create positive and lasting change for people and communities, now and in the future.

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Rhino Plant Hire was established in 1993 by Neil and Kim Morgan. Neil worked for several big companies in the South East of England before deciding to set up his own company. The company undertakes a variety of work such as agriculture contracting, working in quarries with heavy plant and machinery and low loader work.

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Isle Heritage CIC is a community interest company, founded in 2021 and based in Sandgate, near Folkestone, Kent. The company employs a small team of experienced archaeologists, and aims to deepen and enrich people's connections to, and appreciation of, the natural and cultural heritage of the places where they live, work, or visit. This is achieved through a wide range of activities, including archaeological fieldwork and research, educational activities, displays and events, and publication.

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We design and deliver bespoke, participant-led group and team projects through hands-on learning experiences within natural environments, using bushcraft techniques. We believe by offering such experiences, people can enhance their connection with others and discover or rediscover their individual connection to nature. We hope this will also foster a deeper sense of care and respect for the land, including a shared ‘Leave no Trace’ philosophy.

The Brick Guru specialises in brickwork and we are based locally in River, Dover. We strive for perfection and endeavour to leave a legacy of first-class brickwork. We were pleased to support the Wanstone Rediscovered Project and undertook significant brick repairs to the historic magazines on site.

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The Kent Underground Research Group (KURG) is a charity, formed in 1981 to carry out research into the origins, use and history of the many subterranean features of Kent and the Southeast. Members have a unique mixture of practical and academic skills. The group carries out surveys of underground structures and research into old records, including interviews of those who may have memories of workings. These are brought together to publish history of sites in the Group’s research reports. Although Kent is a primary focus, the Group has been called to places as far away as Sussex and Berkshire.

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Founded in 1983, Safeguard Europe manufactures and supplies building protection products worldwide. Key product areas include damp proofing, timber preservation, structural waterproofing and masonry repair systems. Product quality, consumer education and customer support form the pillars of our company mission. We offer free CPD webinars throughout the year to educate professionals and homeowners alike about dampness in buildings. We have supplied the Wanstone Rediscovered project with products including Stormdry Masonry Protection Cream to assist with conservation of the brick buttresses.

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Wanstone Battery - a brief history

We trace the history of the Second World War cross-channel guns 'Jane' and 'Clem'. Be amazed by the staggering size and capability of these weapons from over 80 years ago.

Black and white image of 15-inch gun Clem taken just prior to commissioning in May 1942

D2 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery - a brief history

Find out more about the D2 Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery at Wanstone, near Dover, how it was built, the important role it played in the Second World War and what the remains tell us.

Image showing the Command Post at D2 shortly after the acquisition in 2017

Fan Bay Battery - a brief history

Established on the orders of Winston Churchill, Fan Bay was one of a series of coastal gun batteries that defended the English coast during the Second World War. Find out more about the guns, their emplacements and the infrastructure that supported them; and how the battery fell into disuse, dereliction, was covered over and destined to be forgotten. This is the story of Fan Bay Battery and how it was rediscovered.