Southend-on-Sea in the Great War (Your Towns & Cities in the Great War)

'A fortified place'. This is not the way we usually think of Southend-on-Sea but it was the description used by the Germans during the Great War. Built beside the Thames Estuary and with the Shoebury Garrison to the east, Rochford Aerodrome to the north and the longest pleasure pier in the world to the south, it was regarded as a legitimate target. During the war the pier was used as an embarkation point for British soldiers about to be transported to France.Southend-on-Sea in the Great War looks at the lives of the ordinary people of the town who coped with the new and unexpected problems that arose. A number of large hotels became hospitals for wounded military. The imposing Palace Hotel became the Queen Mary Royal Naval Hospital and it even received a visit from the Queen herself. The role of women changed.