Department of Miscellaneous Weapons Development facts for kids
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| Department overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1941 |
| Dissolved | 1945 |
| Jurisdiction | Government of the United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | Admiralty Building Whitehall London |
| Parent Department | Admiralty |
The Department of Miscellaneous Weapons Development (DMWD) was a special group in the British Admiralty during World War II. People sometimes called them the Wheezers and Dodgers. Their main job was to invent and test unusual weapons. They worked on all sorts of new ideas to help the war effort.
Contents
History of the DMWD
The Department of Miscellaneous Weapons Development was created in 1941. It grew out of an earlier group called the Inspectorate of Anti-Aircraft Weapons and Devices. This group started in 1940 and focused on improving radar and other tools to defend against enemy aircraft.
How the DMWD Grew
The DMWD was a temporary group that worked only during the war. It expanded its role to include many different types of weapon development. Charles Goodeve helped make the DMWD bigger and gave it more responsibilities.
Where the DMWD Worked
The DMWD had its own special places for research and experiments. These included:
- Universities
- Research centers
- Its own experimental bases, like HMS Birnbeck in Weston-super-Mare
- The Frythe in Welwyn, which they took over in 1945
What the DMWD Researched
The DMWD worked on many different projects. They researched:
- Anti-aircraft weapons: Like vertical rocket launchers.
- Anti-submarine tools: Such as radar deflectors and decoys to trick enemy submarines.
- Amphibious assault equipment: This included special nets for landing craft to help soldiers land on beaches.
- Ship camouflage: They also looked into ways to hide ships from enemy sight.
DMWD After the War
In 1944, some DMWD staff went to India. They helped connect the East Indies Fleet with technical departments. After World War II ended in 1945, the DMWD joined with other departments. They formed a new group called the Craft and Amphibious Material Directorate.
Famous People at the DMWD
Many interesting people worked at the DMWD. These included:
- Nevil Shute: A Lieutenant-Commander in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR). He was also a famous writer.
- Edward Terrell: Another RNVR Lieutenant-Commander. He invented plastic armour for ships and tanks.
- Louis Klemantaski: A well-known photographer of motor racing.
- Barnes Wallis: The inventor of the famous bouncing bomb, used to attack dams.
Leaders of the DMWD
The DMWD had two main leaders during its time:
- Captain G.O.C. Davies: Known as Jock Davies, he led the department from 1941 to 1943. He came from the Ministry of Supply.
- Captain F.W.H. Jeans: He took over from 1943 to 1945. He had worked at the Admiralty in Washington.
DMWD Projects and Inventions
The DMWD created many different devices. Some were very successful, while others were less practical. Many of their inventions used solid-fuel rockets for power.
Unusual Rocket Projects
The DMWD experimented with some very unique rocket-powered ideas:
- Panjandrum: This was a huge, rocket-propelled wheel designed to blow up beach defenses. It looked quite strange and had mixed results.
- Hajile: This was a rocket-powered way to drop supplies instead of using parachutes.
Camouflage for Water
A group called the "Kentucky Minstrels" tried to hide bodies of water. These waters were used by enemy bombers as navigation points.
- They spread coal dust from a ship named HMS Persil.
- The idea was to make the water look like land.
- However, the wind and tides often washed the coal away.
- Sometimes, the coal-covered water was mistaken for roads in the dark, which caused confusion.
Successful DMWD Inventions
The DMWD also developed some very important and successful weapons:
- Hedgehog: An anti-submarine weapon that fired many small bombs forward. This was better than older depth charges that dropped off the back of a ship.
- Squid: Another powerful anti-submarine mortar.
- Holman Projector: A simple anti-aircraft weapon that could be put on naval ships.
- Degaussing: A system to protect ships from magnetic mines. These mines would explode when a ship's magnetic field passed over them. Degaussing made ships less magnetic.
- Mulberry harbour: The DMWD played a big part in developing parts of this artificial harbor. It was used during the D-Day landings in France, helping Allied forces bring supplies ashore.
Testing New Weapons
Many experimental weapons were tested at Brean Down Fort. This fort was a satellite unit of HMS Birnbeck, which the DMWD used as a base. Some of the weapons tested there included:
- Seaborne bouncing bomb: Designed to bounce across water to hit targets, avoiding torpedo nets.
- AMUCK: An anti-submarine missile.
- Expendable acoustic emitter: A device designed to confuse noise-seeking torpedoes by making false sounds.
