Starting at Hawkesbury Junction we headed off up the Coventry Canal for just under three days passing through Atherstone, Tamworth (including Fazeley Junction) then Fradley Junction where it ends at the junction of the Trent and Mersey Canal.
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| Coventry Canal - (please click on the map to enlarge) |
To start with this statement contains a (slightly) technical inaccuracy. A number of maps reflect the original history of these locks by showing the Coventry Canal as consisting of a southern and a northern section, connected by a stretch of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal from Fazeley Junction to Whittington Brook. The Coventry Canal Company was formed in 1768. James Brindley was commissioned to build the canal, and work started on it in December that year. Due to the high standards of construction demanded by Brindley, the canal company ran out of money by the time the canal had reached Atherstone in 1769, and Brindley was replaced by Thomas Yeoman.
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| Under Bridge 43 just after Atherstone Lock 5 |
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| Bridge 68 - one of James Brindley's original bridges |
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| Turning onto the Coventry Canal after leaving Oxford Canal at Hawkesbury Junction |
Although the canal reached the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal at Fazeley, the final Parliament-approved stretch to the Trent and Mersey did not progress and both the Trent and Mersey and the Birmingham and Fazeley companies, anxious to allow through traffic between Birmingham and the Trent and Mersey Canal, gained permission to complete and operate the approved but unbuilt section from Fazeley to Fradley. The B&F worked north from Fazeley, and the T&M worked south from Fradley. The full length from Coventry to Fradley was opened in 1789.
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| Narrowboats everywhere at Frazley Junction |
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| NB Eleanor heading north on the Coventry Canal |
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| Waiting patiently for the Skipper to stop taking photos |
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| Canal Reflections |
The Coventry Canal company later bought the northern section, nowadays sometimes referred to as Coventry Canal (detached portion), while the middle section remained under the ownership of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, and thus some maps show this middle section as the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, but others describe the complete route as the Coventry Canal. The Canal and River Trust who manage the canal describe the whole route from Coventry to the Trent and Mersey Canal as the Coventry Canal.
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| Fradley Junction Swing Bridge |
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| Taking on fresh water at Frazley Junction |
Thus the Coventry Canal became key part of Brindley's grand scheme - a vital trade artery for many years. In particular, it was part of the Birmingham - London route via the T&M Canal, B&F Canal, Coventry Canal, Oxford Canal, and River Thames.
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| Hartshill Wharf |
The Coventry paid a dividend right up to 1947, and has remained navigable continuously to the present day.
A most prominent historic site we stopped at on this canal is Hartshill Wharf, a small complex of bridges, waterways, former British Waterways maintenance workshops, yard and manager’s house.
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| Relaxing opposite Hartshill Wharf |
Attached to the wall was a quite amusing notice (below) relating to the use of a nearby bridge over the canal.
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| As interpreted by an "ordinary man"? |
Just reaching the T&M Canal junction we stopped to visit the former WWII air force base RAF Litchfield. 27 Operational Training Unit was formed in 1941; its role was to form and train aircrew for front line bombing operations using Wellington bombers.
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RAF Lichfield layout 1945
(arrow denotes the small section of runway still visible) |
The crews, largely from Australia and other Commonwealth countries, were then posted to their allocated squadrons, mostly in Lincolnshire.
Operational bombing missions were also flown from RAF Lichfield in 1942–43, including the 1,000-bomber raid on Cologne in May 1942.
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| Merlin-engined Wellington Mark II |
Over the last 15 years the former aerodrome has been renamed Fradley Park, however virtually all of the hangars still exist and the majority have been refurbished to be used for industrial purposes.
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| Former aircraft hangers |
That's it for the moment. Next up the Trent and Mersey Canal and a visit to nearby Cathedral City of Lichfield.
Cheers,
The Skipper
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