Information for record number MWA8001:
Pillbox, Chapel Hill, Napton on the Hill

Summary A Second World War pillbox, a small concrete building whose walls contained loopholes. The pillbox housed guns. It was used to defend the Grand Union Canal, which formed a defensive line between Birmingham and Oxford. The pillbox is located to the west of Chapel Hill.
What Is It?  
Type: Pillbox
Period: Unknown
Where Is It?  
Parish: Napton on the Hill
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 45 60
(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 National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Picture(s) attached

  
Description

  
Source Number  

1 A prefabricated (concrete panel shuttered) pillbox that might have been part of the Oxford/ Birmingham stop line.
2 Note, including sketches and photographs (3 pages).
3 A substantial reference guide.
4 'The prefabricated type has precast inner and outer panels slotted into vertical concrete posts. Concrete was poured into the void between inner and outer panels.
 
Sources
Source No: 4
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: C20 Defences in Britain - an introductory guide
Author/originator: Lowry, B. (ed)
Date: 1995
Page Number: 86
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Twentieth Century Fortifications in England
Author/originator: Dobinson, C S
Date: 1996
Page Number: 179
Volume/Sheet: II
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Prefab pillboxes along the Oxford Canal in Warks
Author/originator: Brace, J
Date: 1997
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: Notes
Author/originator: Brace, J
Date: 1997
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
A Second World War pillbox on the Oxford Canal near Napton on the Hill
Copyright: Warwickshire County Council
Date: 2003
Click here for larger image  
 
A Second World War pillbox on the Oxford Canal at Napton on the Hill
Copyright: J Brace
Date: 1997
Click here for larger image  
 
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument CANAL * An artificial navigable waterway used for the transportation of goods. Nowadays also used for recreational purposes. back
monument FORTIFICATION * A usually permanent defensive work. Use specific type where known. back
monument DEFENCE * This is the top term for the class. See DEFENCE Class List for narrow terms. back
STOP LINE * A notional line of resistance defined by anti tank obstacles, pillboxes and gun emplacements. back
monument CHAPEL * A freestanding building, or a room or recess serving as a place of Christian worship in a church or other building. Use more specific type where known. back
monument PILLBOX * An often squat building with thick, loopholed walls and a flat roof, designed to accommodate a variety of weapons, usually strategically positioned to cover a vulnerable point in a defensive system. Many were built to standardized designs. back
monument WALL * An enclosing structure composed of bricks, stones or similar materials, laid in courses. Use specific type where known. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record