The Bofors gun defending Brighton seafront, 1943.

During the war Brighton was under the threat of attack from the air and invasion from English Channel.

To protect the town, the seafront had several 40mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns positioned along it during the Second World War. These formed part of Brighton’s light anti-aircraft (LAA) defences against low-flying German aircraft. The most well-documented emplacement was positioned on the Kings Road promenade opposite the Grand Hotel. This was manned by Royal Canadian Artillery gunners in 1943.

Where were there other guns?
There was also a Bofors guns at the Palace Pier (between the Pavilion and the gap where the central section had been dismantled). It watched the skies for German planes which were on tip-and-run raids. Wartime memories also recall defensive guns position by the Pitch & Putt near Roedean, at the bottom of Sussex Square, on top of Embassy Court at the bottom of Waterloo Street, on Canfield Road at the bottom of Eastbourne Road and at the bottom of Camelford Street. Some were there for only a few months but others were there for longer.

For further details of where there were gun defended location in Brighton check out the Royal Artillery 1939–45 website maintains a Brighton Gun-Defended Area map showing Heavy Anti-Aircraft (HAA) gun positions (3.7-inch and 4.5-inch guns) at various locations around the town, though specific Bofors (LAA) sites are less comprehensively mapped.

Image credit:

• Library and Archives Canada