England's Historic Seascapes: Southwold to Clacton
Oxford Archaeology (South), 2007. https://doi.org/10.5284/1000277. How to cite using this DOI
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Resource identifiers
- ADS Collection: 746
- ALSF Project Number: 4729
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1000277
- How to cite using this DOI
England's Historic Seascapes:
Southwold to Clacton
ALSF Project Number 4729
Oxford Archaeology, 2007
North Galloper Military Zone
Primary Subcharacter Type:
Military practice area
Main Character / current form and use
This character area is predominantly characterised as a military practice area, named after the nearby Galloper sandbank (see The Galloper character area). The zone is one of several within the study area used by the Royal Navy for mine laying and mine counter-measure exercises. The area is permanently delineated though access is only restricted during active exercises. Notification of which is given by radio shortly before minelaying takes place.
The area is also a recognised shipping route, transited by bulk and cargo ships, ferries and gas carriers and tankers (Jones et al nd). No specific restrictions apply to the character area and a number of different routes cross the area.
Depth is relatively uniform throughout the character area, ranging between 30 m and 50 m, though small areas fall within the range 50 m to 100 m. These generally tie in with patches of gravel in an area of gravelly muddy sand. The tidal range in the character area is within the range of 2-4 m at Mean Spring Tide (DTI 2004).
A number of submarine network cables transit the area including a cable running north-south through the area connecting the United States with the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, maintained by Global Crossing. Concerto South connects the UK to the Netherlands and Belgium and is maintained by Interoute and Flute Ltd and Farland North connects Aldeburgh to Domburg in Holland. A number of cables in the character area are disused.
A tertiary Royal Yacht Association (RYA) route runs directly east-west through the area from Harwich Harbour to the continent.
Historic Character and archaeological potential
The character area has no known navigational features and as such is not a feature of historic charts. The Albert Close fishing chart of 1953 records that this area was good fishing ground.
The area was defensively mined as part of a large coastal barrier during WW2 and contained the break in this barrier known as Gap E (Foynes 1994). Considering this there are surprisingly few known wrecks in view of the size of the character area. In total nine wrecks are known, six of which are considered dangerous but unfortunately no details are available for any of the vessels. This may be a consequence of the depth of the area and lack of investigation.
The potential exists therefore for shipwreck archaeology although it is not expected to be high. Any surviving vessels may be well preserved as a consequence of their depth. In addition, the area has potential to contain submerged prehistoric landscapes, features or artefacts, having been dry land prior to 8000 BP. However, no investigation work is known to have been done in this area.
Character perceptions
The area is only likely to be recognised by shipping communities and the military. The extent of the use of these areas for current military practices is unknown, therefore it is possible that the area is best known as a route for commercial shipping.
Bibliography
DTI, 2004, Mean Spring Tidal Range: Atlas of UK Marine Renewable Energy Resources. Department of Trade and Industry, 2004
Foynes, J. P., 1994, Battle of the East Coast (1939-1945). J. P. Foynes
Jones, L. A., Coyle, M. D., Evans, D., Gilliland, P.M., & Murray, A. R., Southern North Sea Marine Natural Area Profile: A contribution to regional planning and management of the seas around England. Peterborough: English Nature.
Wikipedia. Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org (15/03/2007)
