Site of Second World War floodlight, East of Purleigh, Maldon (EHER 20558)

Now destroyed. The site of a Second World War 12-sided floodlight which can be seen on an aerial photograph from 1946. The floodlight was probably constructed between 1936 and 1940 as part of an experiment to light up the night sky with a grid of large, fixed 'floodlights', as a defence against German bombers. The experiment, termed 'Silhouette', failed as the network of floodlights acted as a navigational aid for the enemy aircraft, and it was subsequently terminated in March 1940. When visited in 2001, nothing of the floodlight remained.

November 2001. World War Two Defences in Maldon survey: site visit and desktop research. An aerial photograph taken in May 1946 shows the clear 12-sided shape of a 'floodlight' in a field to the east of Purleigh. These fixed searchlights were an attempt, in the late 1930s, to light up the sky from a single massive light source. A network of them was envisaged to give blanket protection against enemy bombs. The experiment, termed Silhouette, was not a success and the sites were abandoned. See EHER 20565 for details of the last surviving 'floodlight' at Kit’s Hill, North Fambridge. <1> Nothing of the floodlight remains at the Purleigh site. <2> During the late 1930s/early 1940s (probably 1936-1940), an experiment was conducted to light up the night sky with a grid of large, fixed 'floodlights', as a defence against German bombers. Each installation consisted of a steel enclosure, 50 feet across, in which the floodlight was mounted, surrounded by twelve large mirrors angled towards the sky. Information on the experiment is still scarce although enquiries by Mr F. Plume at the Public Record Office (PRO) in 1992/1993 have resolved some of the questions. <3> <4> A map drawn by Mr Plume in 1999, from his earlier investigations, shows 50 sites in Essex, located in an area from Little Leighs in the North to Eastwick in the South. It is not known whether this was the complete grid (although one floodlight is known to have been sited at Dovercourt, EHER 10715) or whether the experiment overlapped to other counties. The experiment was not a success - it is said that the light reflecting from the clouds lit up the countryside as a perfect navigational aid for the bombers, and the work was terminated in March 1940. <5> <2> The project was termed 'Silhouette'. <6>