Information for record number MWA12948:
Coventry Rocket Development Test Site

Summary Site of the Coventry Rocket Development Test facilities west of Ansty Airfield (now Ansty Business Park). Cold War Site active between 1945-1971.
What Is It?  
Type: Rocket Test Facility
Period: Unknown
Where Is It?  
Parish: Combe Fields
District: Rugby, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 39 81
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection Local
Description

  
Source Number  

1 After the Second World War examples of the German V2 Rockets were brought to what was then Armstrong Siddley at Ansty, which is now Rolls Royce Ansty. This became the start of the Coventry Rocket Industry on 22nd October 1945. Rocket development and tests continued until 1971.
2 Aerial photographs from the 1980s show substantial remains of the site.
3 A site visit by Tim Heenan revealed a number of remains of the Rocket test site in the area including blast walls, Rocket exhaust cooling water pipes, pieces of metal work from Rocket motor gantries, control rooms and perimiter fencing.
3 Plans of the Rocket Test facility show a number of details including Passilation Dept, Workshop blocks, Coppersmiths Dept, Test Cell, Auxillary Test Cells, Sub-stations, Peroxide Soakaways, Gate House, Pump House, pond and earthworks. At the north end of the site a Vertical Rocket area is marked on the plan with a more detailed plan showing: A Switch Room, 2 - 5000 Gallon HTP (Hydrogen Peroxide) Tanks, an HTP Pumphouse, a Water Pump House, Electronics control room, Test Cell with Concrete blast walls, stairs and a firing platform, a Kerosene Tank and Kerosene Trap, drainage channels and ditches, Observation Mirror and a 2 Ton Capacity Loading Gantry for Nitrogen Oct Handling. A further plan shows an additional development north of this with a test Cell, control room and Pump House with drains and Soakaways. A Workshop and sewage treatment is found to the east behind an earth embankment.
4 Drawing of Coventry Rocket Test site from the 1950s.
5 Parts of site visible on modern Aerial photographs.
 
Sources
Source No: 2
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: SP3981
Author/originator:
Date: 04/05/80
Page Number: 8522
Volume/Sheet: SP3981
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: Modern Aerial Photography (High Resolution)
Author/originator: Blue Sky/Warwickshire County Council
Date: 2007
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Aerial Photograph
Title: Modern Aerial Photography (High Resolution)
Author/originator: Warwickshire County Council
Date: 2000
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Correspondence
Title: Email from Tim Heenan to the HER regarding Rocket Test Site at Ansty
Author/originator: Heenan, Tim
Date: 2010
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Drawing
Title: Drawing of Rocket Test Site at Ansty
Author/originator:
Date: 1950s?
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Photograph
Title: Photographs taken by Tim Heenan of remains of the Rocket Test Site at Ansty
Author/originator: Heenan, Tim
Date: 2010
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique Earthwork Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.

In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.

Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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technique Aerial Photograph Aerial photographs are taken during an aerial survey, which involves looking at the ground from above. It is usually easier to see cropmarks and earthworks when they are viewed from above. Aerial photographs help archaeologists to record what they see and to identify new sites. There are two kinds of aerial photographs; oblique and vertical. back
period Modern The Modern Period, about 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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period modern About 1915 AD to the present (the 20th and 21st centuries AD)

In recent years archaeologists have realised the importance of recording modern sites. They do this so that in the future people will be able to look at the remains to help them understand the events to which they are related.
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monument ROCKET TEST FACILITY * An area for the testing of rockets and guided missiles. Includes all structures associated with both the firing and testing of rockets and missiles. back
monument GANTRY * A framework, often made of steel, supporting a crane or similar structure, or for supporting a platform or stage. back
monument HOUSE * A building for human habitation, especially a dwelling place. Use more specific type where known. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument CONTROL ROOM * A room or building housing the controls to a mechanized system, eg. in a power station, airport, etc. back
monument POND * A body of still water often artificially formed for a specific purpose. Use specifc type where known. back
monument BUSINESS PARK * An area speciallly developed to accommodate commercial buildings. back
monument DRAIN * An artificial channel for draining water or carrying it off. back
monument EMBANKMENT * A long ridge of earth, rocks or gravel primarily constructed to carry a roadway. back
monument CELL * A monastic enclave dependent on a mother house. back
monument WORKSHOP * A building or room used for small scale manufacture. Use more specific term where possible. back
monument WATER PIPE * A pipe through which water is conducted. back
monument SOAKAWAY * A pit filled with rubble, etc., into which rain or waste water flows in order to disperse into the surrounding soil. back
monument DITCH * A long and narrow hollow or trench dug in the ground, often used to carry water though it may be dry for much of the year. back
ROCKET * A missile or aircraft that obtain its thrust from a rocket engine. Some rockets will exist as monuments for example, in the form of gate guardians. Double index with the monument type where appropriate. back
monument PUMP HOUSE * A small pumping station. back
monument AIRFIELD * An area or site used for the landing and take-off of aircraft, often including associated buildings, equipment and other installations. back
monument GATE * A movable stucture which enables or prevents entrance to be gained. Usually situated in a wall or similar barrier and supported by gate posts. back
monument BLAST WALL * A reinforced wall designed to reflect the blast from an explosion. Often found associated with powder magazines, pillboxes and air raid shelters. back
monument TANK * Armoured military vehicle with its own firepower, which operates on tracks for troop mobility over rough terrain. Some may be adapted, or purpose-built, to be amphibious, and may then be double-indexed as AMPHIBIOUS VEHICLE. back
monument FIRING PLATFORM * An area of a site or building providing a stable base for the firing of artillery pieces. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record