Tyneham Church (St Marys) from the the east side, set in the idilic English village Tyneham Dorset, lost in WW2 not to the Germans but to the British Army. In 1943 the 225 residents were asked to leave by the war office ‘temporarily’ vacating their homes in the small village Tyneham in Dorset, to help the war effort, until the war was over. They went to stay with friends and family understanding they would be returning home soon. The Army needed the area for tank firing practice and training for D-Day. However the army kept the area after the war ended. The residents were never permitted to return to live in their homes. St Mary's church which dates from the 13th century, and also the nearby school house are the only buildings that remain in good order. After much campaigning and appeals, in 1974 the Ministry of Defence UK (MoD) allowed more public access at times when the land is not being used for shooting practice, and has made remaining buildings, such as they are, safe, but rejects a hand back of the land. Tyneham, Dorset, UK, 20/04/2017
PS: The last villager left a note on the door of St Mary's Church “Please treat the church and houses with care; we have given up our homes where many of us lived for generations to help win the war to keep men free. We shall return one day and thank you for treating the village kindly” Helen Taylor 17 December 1943
Date: 20/04/2017
Location: Tyneham, Dorset, UK
Photographer: Richard Keith Wolff
