Maunsell Sea Forts, United Kingdom

The sea forts of Maunsell are one of the most unusual military installations, that are by fate in ruins. They were built during the Second World War at the mouth of the Mercy and Thames rivers. Already in the late 50-ies of the last century the structures were out of order and stopped being used. In the 1960s, one of the abandoned offshore platforms was captured by one of the local residents, proclaiming its territory an independent state of Sealand. The rest of the forts are still in desolation. Absolutely everyone can visit them.

The construction of sea forts, which were an important component of British air defense, was carried out under the project of a famous engineer Gaius Ansell Maunsell. The best specialists of the British navy and the British Army worked on the implementation of his project. It is important to note that 87 towers were necessary for the initial design, but in fact only 21 towers were built in the structure of the three forts. Each of the towers was equipped with radars, anti-aircraft guns and searchlights, and on some towers today fragments of once powerful weapons can be found. During the war in the territory of each fort there were 120 soldiers. In the war years, the benefits of the sea forts were invaluable. More than 20 German aircraft, as well as more than 30 cruise missiles, were destroyed from them. Excursions to Fort Mounsell are very popular among tourists. In order to visit this desolate object yourself, it is enough to rent a boat. Next - Balaclava Naval Base