In order to create the conditions under which thousands of Allied troops with their armoured vehicles and other supporting equipment could be prepared, to become a composite invasion force, it was necessary to gather them all together, under conditions of the highest secrecy and strictest lock-down security from May 1944, from their dispersed location into manageable and very secure, prepared areas, with designated Code letters MA denoting them as (Marshalling Areas).
The areas in close proximity to the sea or ports in Southern and Western England and locations in Wales, had been, identified and chosen for their geographical location and selected as the most suitable for the D-Day tasks, assigned to the Regiments sited there.
These were identified as Embarkation areas, denoted by Code letters EA, were the locations from which they would board ship and landing craft.
Within the New Forest area, Marshalling Area B, had within it:
Camps B1 and B2, then at Cadland Park (now within the boundary of the ExxonMobil Fawley Refinery).
Camps B3 and B4, Beaulieu and Stubbs Wood, Pennerley.
Camps B5 and B6, East Boldre.
Camp B7 Brockenhurst A.
Camp B8 Brockenhurst B, Setley Common.
Most relevant to this particular area is Camp B9 Stanswood Bay.
This was the location of armour and troops forming part of the 50th Northumbrian Division, with its Headquarters at Balmer Lawn,Brockenhurst. Within this camp were 2 tank Squadrons of the 4th/7th Dragoon Guards, 2 tank squadrons of the Royal Engineers, 2 tank Squadrons of the Nottingham Yeomanry (Sherwood Foresters), Westminster Dragoons and others.
The specialist armoured vehicles to be operated by these Regiments, included the Duplex Drive Swimming tanks, AVREs (Assault Vehicles Royal Engineers) the specialist tanks based vehicles described under the Hobarts funnies Tab and others.
This equipment was on the MOST SECRET list and the tanks could not be parked or embarked elsewhere .
Camp B9 was situated at wartime map reference MR 905208. Current OS map reference SU47062 00838.
© The National Archives.
This location is in Nelsons Woods, immediately behind Stanswood Bay Beach, on PRIVATE LAND within the Cadland Estate.
The Marshalling camps are also referred to as Sausage Camps because they were indicated on some maps by sausage-shaped blobs.
