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Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site is a modern barrage balloon mooring located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference GM638. The site represents the defensive infrastructure of Britain during the Second World War, when barrage balloons were deployed across the nation to protect against low-level aerial attack. These hydrogen-filled balloons, tethered to the ground by steel cables, forced enemy aircraft to fly at higher altitudes where they were more vulnerable to anti-aircraft fire and fighter interception.
The mooring sits on bedrock formed from the South Wales Upper Coal Measures, a geological sequence laid down during the Westphalian period and comprising mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete. This coal-rich geology shaped the wider industrial landscape of South Wales, and the region's strategic importance during wartime made such defensive measures necessary.
Barrage balloon sites were typically simple installations centred on a concrete or steel anchor block, with associated sheds for equipment and accommodation for the small crews required to maintain and operate the balloons. Tir-Gwyllt preserves material evidence of this widespread but often overlooked aspect of Britain's Second World War defences.
Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM638. View the official record →
Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site is a modern barrage balloon mooring located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference GM638.
Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site dates from the modern period, and is classified as a barrage balloon mooring. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is GM638.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Crymlyn Bog Second World War Barrage Balloon Site (0.7 km), Earthwork on Kilvey Hill (0.9 km), Bon y Maen Standing Stone (1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Tir-Gwyllt Second World War Barrage Balloon Site stands on South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.