The MOD has a rich and diverse historic environment on its UK and overseas estate, containing many thousands of historic buildings and archaeological sites. As the guardian of these valuable heritage assets, DIO is responsible for their stewardship, a key …
A team of archaeologists and volunteers has just finished excavating part of a 2,500-year-old Iron Age hillfort on Lulworth Training Area. The impressively sited Flower’s Barrow hillfort is sadly being lost to the sea due to coastal erosion due to its …
I’ve been running Operation Nightingale archaeological digs now for more than ten years. It’s an initiative to assist the recovery of wounded, injured and sick military personnel and veterans by getting them involved in archaeological investigations. It’s always a real …
The element of secrecy and security that surround most Ministry of Defence sites lends them an air of mystery. A result of this is that many of them are also associated with urban myths – some more believable than others.
It has been a busy and challenging year for DIO. In addition to supporting the government’s wider COVID-19 relief efforts, we continued to deliver on a range of key projects and programmes for our customers and staff throughout the UK and abroad. Let’s look back at some of the year’s main achievements.
It’s that time of the year again where we’re looking for nominations for the Sanctuary Awards!
Today, marked the official launch of my new book on 'Exercise Beowulf' which covers years of excavation work at Barrow Clump.
On the 3rd December, I attended the annual MOD Sanctuary Awards and as we come to the end of the Year of Green Action, it was a great time to reflect on our responsibility to preserve and nurture our estate.
Regular blog readers will know that there is an annual cycle of archaeological excavations at the Dreamer’s Bay site at RAF Akrotiri. The Ancient Akrotiri Project team, which is overseen by DIO and led by the University of Leicester School …
Archaeology in DIO is unique compared to any other organisation. The MOD owns about 1% of the UK mainland and is responsible for preserving, protecting and maintaining 777 Scheduled Monuments.