A Secret Weapon to Defend Felixstowe and Harwich
In the dark days of 1940, Britain faced the threat of a German invasion. The east coast, including the strategic port of Felixstowe and nearby Harwich Harbour, was especially vulnerable. To bolster coastal defenses, the British deployed a handful of massive railway-mounted heavy guns. One of these was a 12-inch rail-mounted howitzer stationed on the Felixstowe branch line in Suffolk. This huge gun – one of two in the Eastern Command (its twin was positioned across the estuary at Wrabness in Essex) – was intended to hurl enormous shells at enemy ships or invasion forces before they could threaten the vital port facilities
Felixstowe was home to naval bases and was a key entry to the Harwich Haven (the combined estuary of the Orwell and Stour rivers), so protecting it was critical. The 12-inch howitzer, originally a World War I era weapon, gave the British a way to bombard enemy vessels or landing craft at long range. With an effective firing range of nearly ten miles the gun could cover a broad swath of coastline and approaches. Its presence was a powerful deterrent – a secret weapon kept on the move to avoid enemy detection, yet capable of delivering a knockout punch if the Germans attempted to land on Suffolk’s shores.
The 12-Inch Railway Howitzer – A Monster of a Gun
The weapon hidden at Levington, on the road down to Levington Marina, was an Ordnance BL 12-inch Mk V railway howitzer, a gigantic artillery piece mounted on a specialised rail carriage. This beast had impressive statistics:
- Caliber: 12-inch (305 mm) heavy howitzer, originally built in WWIen.wikipedia.org.
- Shell Weight: ~750 lb (340 kg) per shellen.wikipedia.org – each high-explosive round weighed as much as a grand piano!
- Range: ~14,000 yards (around 8 miles), often cited as “nearly 10 miles” in practicerailforums.co.uk. This allowed the gun to hit targets well out to sea or along the coast.
- Mobility: Mounted on a multi-axle railway wagon (Mk III mounting), the entire gun and carriage weighed on the order of 76 tons – truly colossal to transportgeograph.org.uk. A dedicated locomotive (a modified LNER Class F4 tank engine) was assigned to move it along local tracksen.wikipedia.org.
- Firepower: It fired 12-inch diameter shells containing powerful explosive (Amatol) charges, originally designed to obliterate concrete fortifications in WWI. In WWII, such a shell could wreak havoc on ships or concentrated troops.
Deploying a gun of this size on rails offered a few advantages. It could be moved to different firing positions or hidden in railway cuttings, making it harder for enemy reconnaissance to find and bomb. It also could be positioned inland (away from the vulnerable shoreline) while still covering the coast with its long reach. However, firing it was no simple task – when preparing to fire, the crew had to secure the gun carriage in place. In fact, photographs from test firings showed the rail wheels and chassis literally bolted down to the track to absorb the recoil. Without such precautions, the 76-ton gun car would slide or damage the rails from the immense force of each shot. This indicates just how powerful the howitzer was – and how carefully it had to be handled.
Importantly, the two rail guns deployed in the Felixstowe/Harwich area were operated by specialist artillery units. Initially they were part of the 27th Army Field Regiment, Royal Artillery, but by October 1940 they were reassigned to the 9th Super Heavy Battery, RA, reflecting their unique role. Each gun formed half of a battery – one at Levington in Suffolk, the other at Wrabness in Essex – providing a crossfire coverage of the estuary. (Wartime paperwork even caused a bit of confusion: one live-firing warning notice mistakenly mentioned “two guns” at the Levington site, but in reality there was only ever one gun per site, paired across the water) These super-heavy artillery pieces were meant to reassure Britain’s defenders that any attempted enemy landing could be met with devastating heavy fire from well behind the coastal crust of beach defenses.
Building the “Gun Shed” – A Custom Artillery Garage
To house this gigantic rail gun and keep it ready for action, a special shed was constructed in 1941 at Levington (near Nacton) along a short spur off the Felixstowe branch line. Locally it became known simply as “the Gun Shed,” and that name has stuck ever since.
Many people visiting Levington Marina Suffolk Yacht Harbour will see the building now used by EYE Maine and Boat Gear Direct as their office and workshop. This was not a typical railway shed or barn – it was a purpose-built gunhouse designed around the howitzer’s needs. The shed sat astride its own length of track (parallel to the main line), allowing the gun train to be stored under cover. When fully closed, the building concealed the massive cannon from German aerial reconnaissance and protected it from the elements.
Ingeniously, the top portion of the building could slide back on rails when it was time to use the gun. Effectively, the entire upper half of the shed was like a movable sleeve. For normal firing, the standard procedure was to roll the gun out of the shed onto the mainline or a clear firing spur. The shed at the Trimley site (the twin gun across the estuary) was built so that it could be rolled entirely backward away from the gun, giving an unobstructed field of fire. At Levington, the design was slightly different – rather than the whole building moving, the roof and upper walls retracted, which could allow the howitzer to fire while still partially under cover if necessary. This feature meant the crew could, in an emergency, open the roof and fire the gun from its hiding place without even shuttling it out onto the main track.
Inside the Levington gun shed, there were some interesting facilities. For example, a deep servicing pit was built into the floor beneath the rails. This pit allowed soldiers to get underneath the heavy gun carriage for maintenance and preparation. The crew would typically load and prime the howitzer inside the shed, where ammunition and equipment were close at hand, before moving out to a firing position. The shed basically served as an armed garage: keeping the weapon fueled (so to speak), maintained, and ready to go at short notice. When an alert came, the doors could open, the gun (already loaded) could be steamed out by its locomotive to a pre-surveyed firing point near Levington Bridge, and within minutes that massive 12-inch gun could be booming across the Suffolk landscape.
During 1941-42, there were indeed test-firing exercises conducted to ensure the gun was zeroed in and the crew well-trained. These were dramatic events for the locals – one can imagine the ground shaking as the 750 lb shells were hurled out toward the North Sea. Warnings had to be issued to nearby residents and even to shipping traffic before each firing. As noted, the gun carriage had to be clamped down firmly for these tests. The recoil was so tremendous that without bolting it down, it could have caused damage. There are photographs (held by the Imperial War Museum and Suffolk archives) of the Levington rail howitzer being fired, which show the elaborate measures taken to stabilize it. Fortunately, aside from these practice shots, the gun never had to fire in anger at an actual enemy. The mere presence of such heavy armament was largely deterrent – no German surface vessels ever ventured within range, and the feared invasion of 1940-41 never materialized in East Anglia.
From Wartime Duty to Peacetime Dormancy
As World War II progressed and the immediate invasion threat subsided, the role of the rail-mounted howitzers evolved. By 1943-44, Allied forces had seized the initiative overseas, and coastal guns in Britain saw little action. The super-heavy rail guns like the one at Levington remained on standby for a few years but were essentially insurance policies that fortunately never had to be cashed. In late 1944, with the enemy pushed back across the Channel, the Army began withdrawing some of these big guns for redeployment or scrapping. The 12-inch rail howitzer at Levington was likely removed from its shed by the end of the war, its steel and parts destined for reuse or scrap as the military downsized its coastal artillery. (Many WWI-vintage weapons that had been dragged out of storage for 1940 were scrapped by 1945 once they were no longer deemed necessary.)
What remained was an empty shed – but a very robust and sizable one. The Levington gun shed itself was left intact, and for decades it stood as a silent witness to the frenetic preparations of WWII. The railway spur at Levington Bridge was eventually taken up (the Felixstowe branch line continued in use for regular trains, but the gun’s siding became redundant). The area around the shed returned to relative quiet. With its concrete foundation and stout construction, the building found uses in peacetime as a storage depot and workshop. Its military purpose had ended, but it was built so solidly that it simply made sense to reuse it rather than tear it down.
Over time the exterior of the shed received a facelift – new metal cladding was added to weatherproof it – but otherwise it changed very little since the 1940s. Locals who might not know its history would just see an anonymous industrial shed by the old railway alignment. But those familiar with its past continued to call it “the Gun Shed,” preserving the memory of its original function. In the post-war years the site was obscure enough that only railway buffs or military historians paid it much attention. However, its story was not over.
The Gun Shed Today – From Artillery to Anchors
Fast-forward to the 21st century, and the once-secret gun shed has found an entirely new purpose. Boat Gear Direct, a marine equipment company, now occupies the historic structure at Levington, supplying companies such as Levington Marina Suffolk Yacht Harbour. The company’s address is proudly listed as “The Gunshed, Levington, Ipswich” – a nod to the building’s heritage.. Inside, instead of munitions and a rail howitzer, you’ll find anchors, chains, buoys, and boat parts for sale. The transformation is quite remarkable: a building designed to support a weapon of war is now helping local sailors and fishermen by supplying maritime gear.
Figure: The former WWII gun shed at Levington as it appears today. Apart from some modern exterior cladding, the structure remains much as it was during the war. This unassuming shed once housed a 76-ton rail-mounted howitzer that protected the Felixstowe area.
Visiting the site today, you might notice the high vaulted shape of the roof and the hefty dimensions of the building – clues to the oversized occupant it once sheltered. If you peek inside (with permission), you could even spot the maintenance pit where soldiers labored to service the gun’s undercarriage. The rails themselves are long gone, but the legacy is literally built into the floor. It’s a surreal contrast: where once a giant cannon was readied to fire at invaders, now everyday marine hardware is stocked and sold. The peaceful rural surroundings of Levington give little hint of the thunderous artillery blasts that once echoed here during test firings.
The story of the Levington gun shed is a fascinating example of how military infrastructure can be repurposed in peacetime. A structure born out of necessity in war – meant to hide and facilitate a deadly weapon – has outlived its original use and found a new life serving the community. Its continued existence also preserves a slice of local history. Many World War II structures have vanished over the decades, but this one stands, quietly telling its tale.
Legacy of the Levington Rail Gun
Why was the gun shed at Levington needed? In summary, it was needed to house and operate a massive rail gun that formed a key part of Britain’s coastal defense in WWII. It was intended to allow quick deployment and firing of an artillery piece powerful enough to rival naval guns, all while keeping it hidden and protected when not in use. The shed and its rail howitzer never had to engage in actual combat, but they provided a vital assurance during Britain’s most vulnerable hours that any enemy approach to Harwich or Felixstowe could be met with heavy shells raining down. This application – a mobile heavy artillery platform for home defense – was quite unique, and it shows the level of ingenuity and preparation at that time.
Over the years, what could easily have been a forgotten ruin has instead been maintained and adapted. The gun shed at Levington stands as a tangible link between the past and present. From a top-secret rail gun hideout to a boat equipment workshop, its walls have seen dramatic changes. For history enthusiasts, it’s an exciting find: an outwardly ordinary building with an extraordinary story behind it. And for the owners of Boat Gear Direct and their customers, it’s perhaps a point of pride (and certainly a great conversation starter) to conduct business in a place of such historical significance.
In the end, the Levington gun shed is more than just an old building – it’s a symbol of how landscapes of war can be converted to landscapes of peace. Next time you pass by that innocuous grey shed near Levington, remember that it once cradled one of Britain’s super-guns. The fact that it now stores anchors instead of artillery is a reassuring reminder of how far we’ve come. The guns of war have long fallen silent, but the structures that supported them live on, quietly adapting to serve new purposes while keeping the memory of our history alive.
For local history and defence for the Felixstowe Peninsular – https://landguard.com/
Sources: Historical details were compiled from Suffolk heritage records and wartime documentation railforums.co.uken.wikipedia.org, as well as the Felixstowe Branch Line history archive en.wikipedia.orgen.wikipedia.org. Technical specifications of the 12-inch railway howitzer are based on Royal Artillery reports and contemporary references en.wikipedia.org. Current usage information is courtesy of Boat Gear Direct, the present occupant of the Levington gun shed site boatgeardirect.co.uk.
