Stow Maries AerodromeThe base was classified as an aerodrome by the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...

of the time as it did not have paved runways but it consisted of a grassed field which allowed aircraft to take-off and land in any direction no matter from which way the wind was blowing. is a historical airfield located in the village of

Stow Maries Stow Maries is a village and civil parish in the English county of Essex. It is located on the western (inland) end of the Dengie peninsula and forms part of the Purleigh ward in the Maldon district. The place-name 'Stow Maries' is first atteste ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, England. The airfield was in use by the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

(latterly the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

) during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It has been given listed status on account of being the best preserved airfield complete with First World War era buildings and is open to the public as a visitor attraction.

History

The site, which is southwest of

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the River Blackwater, Essex, Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea ...

in Essex, was first surveyed as a possible aerodrome in August 1916, but it was not ready to accept aircraft until May 1917. The aerodrome was built as a direct response to the threat of German

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...

and

Gotha bomber ''Gothaer Waggonfabrik'' (''Gotha'', GWF) was a German manufacturer of rolling stock established in the late nineteenth century at Gotha. During the two world wars, the company expanded into aircraft building. World War I In World War I, Got ...

raids on the

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

area. It was built as part of a plan to site airfields from

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

to prevent inland penetration of hostile forces. Each base was to be sited to apart from the other. In April 1918, the aerodrome was handed over to the newly formed Royal Air Force, who instituted a survey in October of the same year which determined that the base had a complement of 219 personnel and 16 Camel aircraft assigned to No. 37 Squadron (Home Defence). Some of the buildings were not yet finished, and it is thought that after the

armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...

in November 1918, works may have been halted, but some buildings were completed in December 1918. The domestic accommodation was furnished with enough space for 204 men and 15 women. By the time of the abandonment of the base in 1919, it had over 500 personnel and 36 aircraft based there. Originally the aircraft were housed in two Bessonneau Hangars, but these were replaced with two permanent structures in 1917. A gap in the hedge surrounding the airfield is known as Milburn's Gap. In April 1918, Lieutenant Cyril Milburn's

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...

aircraft went through the gap after it stalled on take-off, killing the pilot. The aircraft were known to be unreliable and of the ten pilots killed operating from Stow Maries, eight died in accidents whilst two were shot down by the Royal Navy. Milburn is buried in the graveyard of the Church of Saint Mary and Saint Margaret in Stow Maries village, under his real name of Edward Gerald Mucklow. The base was not re-used during the

Second World War 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 ...

, although it was surveyed twice, bombed by the enemy (as it was left looking like an airfield) and saw at least one

Hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

from 242 Squadron land there after it was damaged during an aerial battle in 1940. The buildings, grassed fields and most of the surrounding area were returned to agriculture. In 1997, the Royal Commission for Historical Monuments in England (RCHME), surveyed the site and found evidence of 47 buildings. At least twenty-four of the original buildings have survived (and these have all been given

grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

status). In 2009, efforts were made by a group of enthusiasts to return the base to use as a light aerodrome and museum as it was the most complete World War I era aerodrome left in England. In 2017, the

Duke of Gloucester Duke of Gloucester () is a British royal title (after Gloucester), often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; the curren ...

formally opened the second museum building on the site.

Notable people

Claude Alward Ridley Claude Alward Ridley, (15 November 1897 – 27 June 1942) was a British aviator and military officer. During the First World War, he served as a fighter pilot and was decorated for home defence in southern England against German attacks from pl ...

– Pilot who commanded No. 37 Squadron whilst based at Stow Maries

Notes

References

Sources

*{{cite report, title=Conservation Statement for Stow Maries First World War Aerodrome, date=May 2014, publisher=ACTA Landscape and Heritage Consultants, website=Maldon District Council , url=http://www.maldon.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/10255/stow_maries_aerodrome_conservation_statement.pdf, accessdate=18 January 2019, ref={{Harvid, CSSM, 2014

External links

Official visitor attraction websiteImages of the site
Military units and formations established in 1916

World War I airfields Royal Flying Corps airfields RAF World War I sites in England