How to view Historic England's US photos of England in WWII as it's made publicly available for the first time

A collection of photographs offering a bird's eye view of England during World War Two are being made available to the public for the first time.

The 3,600 images look at England's changing landscape in 1943 and 1944 and include pictures of bomb damage to Old Trafford in Greater Manchester, ancient monuments surrounded by anti-tank defences in West Sussex, and troops at play at a US army camp in Wiltshire.

The pictures were taken by US army air forces (USAAF) photographic reconnaissance units, stationed at bases across England after the US joined the war in December 1941.

Damage to the main stand of the football ground can be seen in the photo, after it was hit in a bombing raid in March 1941 - it was not used again for football until 1949.

The collection has been made available to the public for the first time in an online, searchable map on the Historic England Archive.

Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England, said the collection recorded "changes taking place in England" as well as "capturing fascinating incidental detail, like American troops playing baseball".

"Our collection of USAAF wartime photographs were taken in England by the pilots and aircraft of squadrons that provided intelligence for the eventual defeat of Nazi Germany," he said.

"This came at a cost, with many pilots killed in the line of duty.

"We are making these images available to the public for the first time online, giving people access to this remarkable collection of historic photographs."