Battery Lothringen was a
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
coastal artillery
Coastal artillery is the branch of the armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications.
From the Middle Ages until World War II, coastal artillery and naval artillery in the form of c ...
battery in
Saint Brélade
St. Brelade ( French: ''Saint Brélade'') is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. It is around west of St Helier. Its population was 10,568 as of 2011.
The parish is the second-largest parish by surface area, covering ...
,
Jersey
Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...
, named after the
SMS'' Lothringen'', and constructed by
Organisation Todt
Organisation Todt (OT; ) was a civil and military engineering organisation in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, named for its founder, Fritz Todt, an engineer and senior Nazi. The organisation was responsible for a huge range of engineering projec ...
for the
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
during the
Occupation of the Channel Islands
The military occupation of the Channel Islands by Nazi Germany lasted for most of the Second World War, from 30 June 1940 until liberation on 9 May 1945. The Bailiwick of Jersey and Bailiwick of Guernsey are two island countries and British ...
. The first installations were completed in 1941, around the same time as the completion of the nearby
Battery Moltke
Battery most often refers to:
* Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power
* Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact
Battery may also refer to:
Energy source
* Automotive battery, a device to provide power ...
, in
St. Ouen.
[Jersey Occupation Trail](_blank)
The battery is at the end of Noirmont Point, a rock headland which overlooks
St. Aubin's Bay,
Elizabeth Castle
Elizabeth Castle () is a castle and tourist attraction, on a tidal island within the parish of Saint Helier, Jersey. Construction was started in the 16th century when the power of the cannon meant that the existing stronghold at Mont Orgueil w ...
, and the harbours of
Saint Helier
St Helier (; Jèrriais: ; french: Saint-Hélier) is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands in the English Channel. St Helier has a population of 35,822 – over one-third of the total population of Jersey – ...
. It was a part of the
Atlantic Wall
The Atlantic Wall (german: link=no, Atlantikwall) was an extensive system of coastal defences and fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the coast of continental Europe and Scandinavia as a defence against an anticip ...
system of coastal fortifications, and most of the concrete structures remain today. The 3rd Battery of Naval Artillery Battalion 604 was stationed here.
The site overlooks the 19th century
Martello tower
Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts.
They stand up ...
of
La Tour de Vinde
La Tour de Vinde, (aka Noirmont Tower), is a Martello tower that the British erected between 1808 and 1810 to command the approaches to St Aubin's Bay, Jersey. The tower stands at the foot of the cliffs of Noirmont Point, in the Vingtaine de No ...
.
Naval guns
In 1941, the main guns in the battery were three
15 cm SK L/45 naval guns, with a fourth 15 cm SK L/45 installed later.
These guns were originally manufactured by
Krupp
The Krupp family (see pronunciation), a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, is notable for its production of steel, artillery, ammunition and other armaments. The family business, known as Friedrich Krupp AG (Friedrich Krup ...
and date from 1917.
The guns were placed on elevated concrete platforms. Ammunition was stored in nearby bunkers, and was manually transferred from the bunkers, via concrete
footpath
A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as motorized vehicles, bicycles and horses. They can be found in a wide ...
s, to smaller concrete storage bays at the guns.
After the
Liberation of the Channel Islands, the guns were removed by the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
, and discarded at the foot of the cliffs at Les Landes, in
St Ouen
Audoin (AD 609 – on 24 August 684; also spelled ''Audoen'', ''Ouen'', ''Owen''; la, Audoenus; known as Dado to contemporaries) was a Frankish bishop, courtier, hagiographer and saint.
Life
Audoin came from a wealthy aristocratic Frankish fami ...
.
Gun no. 1
This gun was positioned on top of a walled concrete platform, with one access ramp, and a small room alongside the gun.
Ammunition was stored in Ammunition Bunker VII, and was manually moved from the bunker up to the gun, via a sloping concrete path, to be stowed upright in small bays, just to the rear of the gun.
To the rear of the platform, there was a barrack hut, an administrative building, and a personnel bunker. Only the bunker remains in 2012. To the east, was a latrine.
Electrical and communications services for this gun were linked to the command bunker.
In 1992, gun no. 1 was recovered and returned to Noirmont Point. The recovery work was completed in March 1998, by placing the cannon back on the gun platform, using a
Chinook helicopter.
Gun no. 2
In 1941, this gun was positioned on top of a concrete platform, to the north-east of the command bunker.
Gun no. 3
Gun no. 3 was positioned on top of a concrete platform. The ammunition bunkers are not in close proximity to this platform, so extra storage bays were built below the platform.
In 2012, there is no gun at this position. A section of the platform wall is missing, due to demolition when the gun was removed.
Gun no. 4
Gun no. 4 was positioned on top of a concrete platform.
MP1 tower
The Marine Peilstand 1 tower, or MP1 tower, was used to observe targets at sea. The round tower is around tall, and has four observation floors, each with a wide, and narrow
embrasure
An embrasure (or crenel or crenelle; sometimes called gunhole in the domain of gunpowder-era architecture) is the opening in a battlement between two raised solid portions (merlons). Alternatively, an embrasure can be a space hollowed out ...
(for observation purposes only). Each of these floors was assigned to observe for one of the four 15 cm naval guns. The tower has five floors, including a windowless lower floor, plus a further open rooftop floor. Access is gained via a steel
door
A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security b ...
, at the top floor, which is protected by an adjacent embrasure, suitable for
small arms
A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions).
The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes c ...
.
An
Oerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original German Becker Type M2 20 mm cannon design that appeared very early in World War I. It was widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others, with various models emplo ...
was placed on the top of the tower for anti-aircraft purposes. In 2012, the gun is no longer present, but its steel support can be seen.
The tower, built between April and October 1943, is near the top of the steep sloping cliff, and extends no higher than the headland, which means its profile does not protrude into the sky when seen from afar. The visibility of the tower was reduced further using
camouflage
Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the ...
.
It is one of three completed direction and range finding towers, of this type, in Jersey. Nine towers were planned, but only towers 1 to 3 were built.
The towers were to be positioned around the entire coast of Jersey, so that any neighboring pair of towers could work together to pin-point a precise location of a target using
triangulation
In trigonometry and geometry, triangulation is the process of determining the location of a point by forming triangles to the point from known points.
Applications
In surveying
Specifically in surveying, triangulation involves only angle me ...
. The position of the target would be passed on to the artillery, so that the gun could be rotated, raised or lowered to the correct orientation to fire upon that target.
Westwall type 101v bunker
This personnel
bunker
A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. ...
is adjacent to the tower. It was sealed and filled in after the
Liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
, and was excavated from 2009, by the Channel Islands Occupation Society.
Type M.132 Command bunker
![Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-223-0042-13, Guernsey, Entfernungsmessgerät auf Klippe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-223-0042-13%2C_Guernsey%2C_Entfernungsmessger%C3%A4t_auf_Klippe.jpg)
The command bunker is alongside the MP1 tower. It featured an armored
naval rangefinder, and two steel observation cupolas. A periscope was used in conjunction with the rangefinder, to determine the direction of a target.
The bunker was built between March 1943, and May 1944. It has two floors, one entrance, and an escape shaft. It is constructed of reinforced concrete.
The lower-floor serves as a living area, and has nine chambers, which include quarters for troops, two rooms for officers, an administration room, a standby room, a room for a
central heating
A central heating system provides warmth to a number of spaces within a building from one main source of heat. It is a component of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (short: HVAC) systems, which can both cool and warm interior spaces.
...
plant, and a coal store. There is an escape
shaft, which is accessible from the
NCO's room. The upper-floor includes the operations room, washroom, toilets, first aid room, telephone exchange, and an escape shaft. The main entrance is on this floor, and is defended by two embrasures. The operations room provides underside access to the cupolas.
In 2012, only the arms of the rangefinder are original. They were recovered from the foot of the cliffs, restored and attached to a new turret.
This bunker has been restored and operates as a museum during the tourist season.
Searchlights
Two
searchlights
A searchlight (or spotlight) is an apparatus that combines an extremely bright source (traditionally a carbon arc lamp) with a mirrored parabolic reflector to project a powerful beam of light of approximately parallel rays in a particular direc ...
were installed, on concrete platforms, on either side of the headland. In 2012, only the platforms remain.
Present day
In 2013, the headland site is fully accessible at all times, and there is a public
car park
A parking lot (American English) or car park (British English), also known as a car lot, is a cleared area intended for parking vehicles. The term usually refers to an area dedicated only for parking, with a durable or semi-durable surfac ...
at the end of the headland. Some of the installations and interiors are in a restored state, and can be visited at various times – usually on Sundays.
The gun emplacements can be visited at any time, including two partly restored guns, on display, at two of the gun platforms.
Memorials
In 1950 the States of Jersey purchased the headland at Noirmont as a memorial to all those Jersey people who perished during the occupation. A memorial stone was unveiled at Noirmont on 9 May 1970 to mark the 25th anniversary of Liberation.
One of the bunkers has a plaque honouring two pilots of
263 Squadron who died on 7 December 1942 when they were shot down as they attacked a German convoy off the Point in their
Whirlwind
A whirlwind is a weather phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow (current) gradients. Whirlwinds occur all over the world and ...
fighter-bomber.
There is a memorial to the 16 men of the US Navy's
PT Boat
A PT boat (short for patrol torpedo boat) was a motor torpedo boat used by the United States Navy in World War II. It was small, fast, and inexpensive to build, valued for its maneuverability and speed but hampered at the beginning of the wa ...
Squadron 34 who died on 9 August 1944 when they attacked a German convoy ferrying guns from Guernsey to Jersey. Fourteen of the men were from PT 509, which rammed a German minesweeper escorting the convoy, and two were from PT503.
See also
*
German occupation of the Channel Islands
The military occupation of the Channel Islands by Nazi Germany lasted for most of the Second World War, from 30 June 1940 until liberation on 9 May 1945. The Bailiwick of Jersey and Bailiwick of Guernsey are two island countries and British ...
*
Coastal fortifications of Jersey
Jersey is a heavily fortified island with coastal fortifications that date to the English Civil War, the Napoleonic Wars, and Nazi Germany's occupation of the Channel Islands. The fortifications include castles, forts, towers, Martello towers, art ...
References
{{Jersey topics
World War II sites in the Channel Islands
Saint Brélade
Museums in Jersey
Coastal artillery
Fortifications in Jersey
Military history of Jersey
World War II sites of Nazi Germany
Military history of the Channel Islands during World War II
German occupation of Jersey during World War II
Lothringen
Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gra ...
1941 establishments in Jersey