Telecommunications Research Establishment

The Telecommunications Research Establishment, better known as TRE, was established in 1935 to develop a radar based defence system for the RAF. It was originally located at Bawdsey Manor in Suffolk before moving to Dundee and then relocating to Swanage in Dorset in 1940. There had been various names for the unit but it was at Swanage that the research organisation became known as TRE. As it became obvious that TRE was located too close to the coast, the organisation was once again on the move in May 1942 to Malvern.

TRE relocated to Malvern College, a boys boarding school. The students were moved to another school for the rest of the war. The major centre for TRE research was the school buildings plus huts constructed in the grounds.

Malvern Radar and Technology History Society

The poster above shows the temporary buildings added to the grounds at Malvern College. Local builders built the accommodation that included laboratories, a restaurant, a Motor Transport Section and an Engineering Unit.

 

In 2011 we visited the school in Malvern as Robin's father had been one of the engineers stationed there. We had a photograph of some of the staff lined up in front of the main school building and, as it was school holidays, we were given permission to explore the school grounds and locate where the photo had been taken. Gwyn Court is second from the right in the top row.

 

Another property, Pale Manor, located near the school, was used for research by members of the Air Defence Research and Development Establishment.

With so many additional people arriving in Malvern, accommodation was required. Many of the TRE staff boarded in rooms in local houses or rented accommodation. St Ann's Orchard, another large building located near the school, accommodated some of the staff.

Historic England

Hotels in Malvern were also used to house the TRE staff including the County Hotel in Abbey Road.

Historic England

The local newspaper, Worcester News 19 June 2019, included a photograph of TRE staff moving into the school at Malvern. Items unloaded included 20 pianos and 400 beds.

 

American engineers and scientists, plus some military, also moved to Malvern to carry out research.

Huts in grounds of Malvern College in winter

The work at TRE was top secret and it was not until many years after the war that the locals discovered why these extra people had arrived in town and how their research had been essential to the war effort. The newcomers did not wear uniforms and as many of the local residents had family serving in military forces overseas they could be suspicious and unwelcoming to the TRE staff. However some of the locals worked in factories to create equipment that would eventually be assembled into radar apparatus.

Radar was a new development. The term RADAR - Radio Detection and Ranging - had been used since 1940. The work of TRE was to create and improve radar systems to assist Allied pilots and provide early warning systems when the German bombardment of England began.

Initially radar towers had been erected to locate enemy planes approaching the southern and eastern coastline. Part of the work at TRE was to improve this radar system. The system of 100 metre transmitter towers was improved when cavity magnetrons were added to the system. Improvements continued to be made to provide warning systems for English cities and towns when enemy planes were approaching.

Warfare History Network

In 1942 British SAS forces raided Bruneval on the French coast and captured part of a radar system installed there. The radar was directed across the channel towards the English coast. It was recognised that the understanding and use of radar was essential to gaining victory in this war. The raid was a dangerous undertaking but it proved to be a successful mission. The captured radar showed the British engineers and scientists how advanced the Germans were in radar technology as well as providing information about how to improve British radar systems.

The radar system at Bruneval - Wikepedia

The scientists and engineers in Malvern also worked to devise ways of blocking German radar systems during a raid by using a system called Windows. H2S was also an important area of radar investigation enabling aircraft to be aware of enemy planes in their vicinity as well as providing an important navigation aid when locating targets.

The top secret work undertaken at TRE was therefore essential in helping the Allies defeat Germany during the Second World War. 

After the war many of the discoveries made by TRE staff at Malvern College led to the creation of items used widely today such as microwave ovens and systems used by police to identify speeding motorists plus developments in radio astronomy. Of course, over the years there have been many advances in radar technology but the work of scientists and engineers at TRE, plus those working in radar establishments in other countries, have led to developments that we now take for granted.

Books

Damien Lewis - SAS Shadow Raiders: the ultra-secret mission that changed the course of World War II. 2019.

Reg Batt - The Radar Army: winning the war of the airwaves.1991.

Ernest Putley - Science Comes to Malvern: TRE a story of radar 1942-1953. 2009.

Websites 

How the Introduction of Radar in World War II Changed the Course of the War - Michael Stroud

Telecommunications Research Establishment - Malvern Museum

Malvern Radar and Technology Society - website 

Telecommunications Research Establishment - Wikipedia

Malvern Radar Heroes - Qinetiq 

TRE, RSRE,DRA, DERA and RADAR - Malvern Beacon 

How Malvern College was taken over by boffins in WW2 - Worcester News 19 June 2019 

The Bruneval Raid - Malvern Radar and Technology History Society

The Forgotten Bletchley Park - Daily Mail  9 December 2019

 H2S - Wikipedia

Using Chain Home Radar - Warfare History Network