A "chocolate box" county. A vision of thatched cottages, hollyhock-filled gardens, cream teas served on gingham tablecloths and rolling hills containing nothing scarier than a loud tractor. That's how I used to think of Somerset. I wasn't expecting anti-tank fortifications, hefty barriers against an invading army, nor formidable gun emplacements. Until recently, when I took a leisurely cycle ride from Chard to Ilminster along the National Cycle Network's route 33.
It was once a GWR branch line, built alongside the long-forgotten Chard Canal. That is until Dr Beeching proposed the line's closure, which came in 1964. Now it offers a tranquil, traffic-free ride through the countryside. It wasn't always so peaceful. In World War Two it became part of the Taunton Stop Line, a 50-mile-long obstacle designed to stop Hitler's troops if they decided to invade England. Running from the Bristol Channel to Seaton on the east Devon coast, it had roadblocks and hundreds of pillboxes readied for Allied soldiers or the Home Guard.
The Stop Line Way (01935 829333, visitsouthsomerset.com), as it is called, is four miles long and starts near the old Chard Central station. I was surprised to find this fine railway building intact. Only the trains and track are missing, as it's now a factory shop. Plastic houseplants and soft furnishings are sold under the handsome train shed roof, from where steam trains once departed for Taunton.
I didn't get far along the trail before finding the first wartime defences. Heavy concrete blocks, designed to stop tanks in their tracks. Other blocks, in pairs either side of the track bed, had slots cut into them. These were designed to hold rails that would be put into position if invasion was imminent, completely barring the way.
この記事は Best of British の September 2022 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
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この記事は Best of British の September 2022 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン

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