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Canadian Pipe Mine
The Canadian pipe mine, also known as the McNaughton tube, was a type of landmine deployed in Britain during the invasion crisis of 1940–1941. It comprised a horizontally bored pipe packed with explosives, and once in place this could be used to instantly create an anti-tank obstacle or to ruin a road or runway thereby denying its use by an enemy. Inception In November 1939 Lieutenant-General Andrew McNaughton travelled to Toronto for a meeting with Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Hertzberg (Commanding Royal Engineers, CRE) and Lieutenant-Colonel Guy R. Turner, both of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division, Oliver Hall of the Mining Association of Ontario, and Colin Campbell, an experienced mining and construction engineer and Minister of Public Works under Ontario Premier Mitchell Hepburn. The meeting participants discussed military possibilities raised by experimental diamond drilling, an initiative that had been broached by R.A. Bryce, president of the Ontario Mining Association, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RNAS Lee-on-Solent (HMS Daedalus)
Royal Naval Air Station Lee-on-Solent (HMS ''Daedalus'') was one of the primary shore airfields of the Fleet Air Arm. First established as a seaplane base in 1917 during the First World War, it later became the main training establishment and administrative centre of the Fleet Air Arm. Situated near Lee-on-the-Solent in Hampshire, approximately four miles west of Portsmouth on the coast of the Solent at , the airfield closed for military use in 1996 and passed through several owners until 2014 when the current owners Fareham Borough Council bought the airfield and re-branded as Solent Airport. The airfield hosts the Solent Enterprise Zone. History Naval aviation began at Lee-on-Solent on 30 July 1917 when the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) opened the Naval Seaplane Training School as an extension to the seaplane training station at nearby Calshot. The school's first commander was Squadron Commander Douglas Evill. Initially, aircraft had to be transported from their temporary ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jack (device)
A jack is a mechanical lifting device used to apply great forces or lift heavy loads. A mechanical jack employs a screw thread for lifting heavy equipment. A hydraulic jack uses hydraulic power. The most common form is a car jack, floor jack or garage jack, which lifts vehicles so that maintenance can be performed. Jacks are usually rated for a maximum lifting capacity (for example, 1.5 tons or 3 tons). Industrial jacks can be rated for many tons of load. Etymology The personal name ''Jack'', which came into English usage around the thirteenth century as a nickname form of ''John'', came in the sixteenth century to be used as a colloquial word for 'a man (of low status)' (much as in the modern usage 'jack of all trades, master of none'). From here, the word was 'applied to things which in some way take the place of a lad or man, or save human labour'. The first attestation in the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' of ''jack'' in the sense 'a machine, usually portable, for lifting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against France. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century; the oldest of the UK's armed services, it is consequently known as the Senior Service. From the middle decades of the 17th century, and through the 18th century, the Royal Navy vied with the Dutch Navy and later with the French Navy for maritime supremacy. From the mid 18th century, it was the world's most powerful navy until the Second World War. The Royal Navy played a key part in establishing and defending the British Empire, and four Imperial fortress colonies and a string of imperial bases and coaling stations secured the Royal Navy's ability to assert naval superiority globally. Owing to this historical prominence, it is common, even among non-Britons, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hessian (cloth)
Hessian (, ), burlap in the United States and Canada, or crocus in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean, is a woven fabric usually made from skin of the jute plant or sisal fibres, which may be combined with other vegetable fibres to make rope, nets, and similar products. Gunny is similar in texture and construction. Hessian, a dense woven fabric, has historically been produced as a coarse fabric, but more recently it is being used in a refined state known simply as jute as an eco-friendly material for bags, rugs and other products. The name "hessian" is attributed to the historic use of the fabric as part of the uniform of soldiers from the former Landgraviate of Hesse and its successors, including the current German state of Hesse, who were called " Hessians". Hessian cloth is available in different types of construction, form, size and color. The origin of the word ''burlap'' is unknown, though its earliest known appearance is in the late 17th century, and its etymology is spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gelignite
Gelignite (), also known as blasting gelatin or simply "jelly", is an explosive material consisting of collodion-cotton (a type of nitrocellulose or guncotton) dissolved in either nitroglycerine or nitroglycol and mixed with wood pulp and saltpetre ( sodium nitrate or potassium nitrate). It was invented in 1875, by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, who also invented dynamite. It is more stable than dynamite, but can still suffer from "sweating" or leaching out nitroglycerine. Its composition makes it easily moldable and safe to handle without protection, as long as it is not near anything capable of detonating it. One of the cheapest explosives, it burns slowly and cannot explode without a detonator, so it can be stored safely. In the United Kingdom, an explosives certificate, issued by the local Chief Officer of Police, is required for possession of gelignite. Due to its widespread civilian use in quarries and mining, it has historically been used by terrorist groups such a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alan Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke
Field Marshal Alan Francis Brooke, 1st Viscount Alanbrooke, (23 July 1883 – 17 June 1963), was a senior officer of the British Army. He was Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS), the professional head of the British Army, during the Second World War, and was promoted to field marshal on 1 January 1944. As chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, Brooke was the foremost military advisor to Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and had the role of co-ordinator of the British military efforts in the Allies' victory in 1945. After retiring from the British Army, he served as Lord High Constable of England during the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. His war diaries attracted attention for their criticism of Churchill and for Brooke's forthright views on other leading figures of the war. Background and early life Alan Brooke was born on 23 July 1883 at Bagnères-de-Bigorre, Hautes-Pyrénées, to a prominent Anglo-Irish family from West Ulster. The Brookes had a l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Demolition Belt
In military terminology, a demolition belt is a selected land area sown with explosive charges, mines, and other available obstacles to deny use of the land to enemy operations, and as a protection to friendly troops. There are two types of demolition belt: * A primary demolition belt is a continuous series of obstacles across the whole front, selected by the division or higher commander. The preparation of such a belt is normally a priority engineer task. * A subsidiary demolition belt is a supplement to the primary belt to give depth in front or behind or to protect the flanks. See also *Camouflet *Land mine A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ... References Area denial weapons Force protection tactics Military terminology of the United States {{US-mil- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shornmead Fort
Shornemead Fort is a now-disused artillery fort that was built in the 1860s to guard the entrance to the Thames from seaborne attack. Constructed during a period of tension with France, it stands on the south bank of the river at a point where the Thames curves sharply north and west, giving the fort long views up and downriver in both directions. It was the third fort constructed on the site since the 18th century, but its location on marshy ground led to major problems with subsidence. The fort was equipped for a time with a variety of large-calibre artillery guns which were intended to support two other nearby Thamesside forts. However, the extent of the subsidence meant that it became unsafe for the guns to be fired and the fort was disarmed by the early 20th century. Shornemead Fort was in use from its completion in 1870 to its abandonment in the 1950s. Much of it was demolished by the Army Demolition School of the Royal Engineers in the 1960s. The barracks and administrati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anti-tank Obstacle
Anti-tank obstacles include, but are not limited to: *The Czech hedgehog and Dragon's teeth are the most famous types of World War II anti-tank obstacles. *Anti-tank trenches were used on the western front during World War I, and in the Pacific, Europe, and Russia in World War II. * Anti-tank mines are the most common anti-tank obstacles. For implementation of various anti-tank obstacles: *For British anti-tank obstacles, see: British anti-invasion preparations of World War II#Lines and islands. *The Korean Demilitarized Zone is known to have very large minefields. *The Berlin Wall used many different obstacles, including several types of anti-tank obstacles. *The Atlantic Wall used many different obstacles, including several types of anti-tank obstacles. *The Czechoslovak border fortifications used many different obstacles, including several types of anti-tank obstacles. *The Mannerheim Line The Mannerheim Line ( fi, Mannerheim-linja, sv, Mannerheimlinjen) was a defensive ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bourley And Long Valley
Bourley and Long Valley is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Fleet and Aldershot in Hampshire. It is part of Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area for the conservation of wild birds. This site has varied habitats, with heath, woodland, scrub, mire and grassland. The heathland is important for three vulnerable birds, woodlarks, nightjars and Dartford warblers. There is a rich invertebrate fauna, including the nationally scarce '' Eumenes coarctatus'' potter wasp, silver-studded blue butterfly and downy emerald The downy emerald (''Cordulia aenea'') is a species of dragonfly. It is metallic green and bronze in color, and its thorax is coated with fine hairs, hence its name. Like most other emeralds, the downy emerald has bright shiny green eyes. Adults ... dragonfly. References {{SSSIs Hampshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Hampshire Special Protection Areas in England ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brewery
A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of beer has taken place since at least 2500 BC; in ancient Mesopotamia, brewers derived social sanction and divine protection from the goddess Ninkasi. Brewing was initially a cottage industry, with production taking place at home; by the ninth century, monasteries and farms would produce beer on a larger scale, selling the excess; and by the eleventh and twelfth centuries larger, dedicated breweries with eight to ten workers were being built. The diversity of size in breweries is matched by the diversity of processes, degrees of automation, and kinds of beer produced in breweries. A brewery is typically divided into distinct sections, with each section reserved for one part of the brewing process. History Beer may have been known in N ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prohibition In The United States
In the United States from 1920 to 1933, a nationwide constitutional law prohibited the production, importation, transportation, and sale of alcoholic beverages. The alcohol industry was curtailed by a succession of state legislatures, and finally ended nationwide under the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, ratified on January 16, 1919. Prohibition ended with the ratification of the Twenty-first Amendment, which repealed the Eighteenth Amendment on December 5, 1933. Led by pietistic Protestants, prohibitionists first attempted to end the trade in alcoholic drinks during the 19th century. They aimed to heal what they saw as an ill society beset by alcohol-related problems such as alcoholism, family violence, and saloon-based political corruption. Many communities introduced alcohol bans in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and enforcement of these new prohibition laws became a topic of debate. Prohibition supporters, called "drys", presente ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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