Report - Sleeping Giant - Kithurst Hill Sussex April 2018

[WilsonTheHuman]

Another one close to my old hometown and a place I've visited before but never ventured down the path that takes you to this hunk of machinery. We traveled over to see this one on a rather overcast day at the end of April. Spring was yet to spring as it were; it was chilly with the last lingering tail of the beast from the east, and a little muddy but a pleasant walk along the South Downs Way took us to our destination. Even if she is mostly a shell, she is still a sight to see!

Sleeping Giant is the chassis of a Churchill MKII Tank, a relic of the time the south downs was a hive of military activity during WW2. This particular tank was used by the 14th Canadian Army Tank Battalion to train soldiers headed for war. This one developed mechanical problems and so got left behind on the hills of Sussex, used by the 2nd Canadian Army Division for target practice. At the end of the war most paraphernalia was removed, but it proved too difficult to remove the tank, and so it was rolled into a nearby bomb crater and buried until 1993, when it was unearthed and taken to sit at the edge of a field. Parts were stripped to renovate other tanks leaving the very bullet hole ridden chassis, track drive wheels and gun turret gears to sit where they are now.

Sorry if some of the photos are a bit ropey, had to take some on my phone due to my camera battery running low!

 

[Jackdaw47]

Another one close to my old hometown and a place I've visited before but never ventured down the path that takes you to this hunk of machinery. We traveled over to see this one on a rather overcast day at the end of April. Spring was yet to spring as it were; it was chilly with the last lingering tail of the beast from the east, and a little muddy but a pleasant walk along the South Downs Way took us to our destination. Even if she is mostly a shell, she is still a sight to see!

Sleeping Giant is the chassis of a Churchill MKII Tank, a relic of the time the south downs was a hive of military activity during WW2. This particular tank was used by the 14th Canadian Army Tank Battalion to train soldiers headed for war. This one developed mechanical problems and so got left behind on the hills of Sussex, used by the 2nd Canadian Army Division for target practice. At the end of the war most paraphernalia was removed, but it proved too difficult to remove the tank, and so it was rolled into a nearby bomb crater and buried until 1993, when it was unearthed and taken to sit at the edge of a field. Parts were stripped to renovate other tanks leaving the very bullet hole ridden chassis, track drive wheels and gun turret gears to sit where they are now.

Sorry if some of the photos are a bit ropey, had to take some on my phone due to my camera battery running low!

Neat pictures, the time of year lends a lot to a nostalgic atmosphere despite what it would have been used for. :-)

 

[WilsonTheHuman]

Neat pictures, the time of year lends a lot to a nostalgic atmosphere despite what it would have been used for. :-)

Thank you! I'd like to revisit now it's summer and the crops have grown in a bit. Sadly I now live 100 miles away in a different county! I'll hopefully go back up there next time I venture back to Sussex though. It's interesting how we were taught about the war in school, but never much about how significant Sussex and the South Downs were in preparing troops.

 

[explorewithDR]

I can confirm the tank has been removed and taken to an unknown collector/museum. Massive shame. Was a brilliant little find.

 

[the126]

Yes massive shame

 

[Honeybadger]

Shame it's gone. Hopefully if it's gone to a museum it can be restored but judging by the condition I'm not sure that's possible

 

[Honeybadger]

Shame it's gone. Hopefully if it's gone to a museum it can be restored but judging by the condition I'm not sure that's possible

 

[Calamity Jane]

Those bullet holes really make you think. Thanks for sharing this, I do hope the tank has been taken somewhere safe. Its part of history, Canadians fought with us, and we should remember all.

 

[Toodlecat]

Hope it's gone to a good place, would be a shame otherwise.

 

[monk]

Those bullet holes really make you think. Thanks for sharing this, I do hope the tank has been taken somewhere safe. Its part of history, Canadians fought with us, and we should remember all.

The bullet holes were done by the Canadians themselves.
If you go up to the sight after the farmer plows you can find loads of old bullets,.
I have one at home that i found which was shot but never hit anything, you can see the spiral marks on it from the barrel still.

 

[Ordnance]

https://www.wscountytimes.co.uk/news/iconic-south-downs-landmark-to-be-moved-to-france-1-9057895

Tuesday 03 September 2019

 

[monk]

@the126 Wasnt there a willy's jeep in a ditch as well? Reef used to talk about it.

 

[Calamity Jane]

The bullet holes were done by the Canadians themselves.
If you go up to the sight after the farmer plows you can find loads of old bullets,.
I have one at home that i found which was shot but never hit anything, you can see the spiral marks on it from the barrel still.

Oh wow, why did they shoot up their own tank? Thanks for info. The casings sound like a nice piece of history also. Nice to have one though.

 

[pirate]

good to see it’s going to get restored

 

[monk]

Oh wow, why did they shoot up their own tank? Thanks for info. The casings sound like a nice piece of history also. Nice to have one though.

Some more info here

WW2 Churchill MKII Tank. South Downs West Sussex

High up on the South Downs West Sussex, you could once find a WW2 Churchill Tank. Once used for target practice by the Canadians. Located on Kithurst Hill.

www.southdownswalking.com

"The 14th Canadian Army Tank Battalion used this tank and others just like it, for training. This tank was due to be used on the ill-fated Dieppe raid (19th August 1942) but developed mechanical problems so was left behind in Sussex. The 2nd Canadian Army Division used it as target practice on the South Downs and after the war ended efforts were made to remove the remains."