The Churchill War Rooms, located beneath Whitehall, served as the command centre from which Churchill directed the Second World War.
One of the Top Things To Do In London is to visit the Churchill War Rooms, which I visited in January 2023. Over the year, I visited five more former underground bunkers, all part of my Top Secret Underground War Bunkers series.
The Churchill War Rooms, situated beneath Whitehall from where Churchill and the British government led the war against Nazi Germany.
The War Rooms are 1 of 5 museums that belong to the Imperial War Museum.
Entrance to the Churchill War Rooms:
In 1938, with a war in Europe threatening, offices located beneath the Treasury building in the Whitehall area of Westminster became the temporary shelter for the British Government.
The War Rooms became operational just days before the Germans invaded Poland and Britain’s subsequent declaration of war on Germany.
On entering the museum, you’ll see an original German 250-kilo bomb:
During the Blitz, Bombs this size rained down on London.
Although No. 10 Downing Street was severely damaged, Whitehall and the Treasury never received a direct hit.
The basement offices were only 12 feet below the surface, so they installed a steel-reinforced concrete ceiling, known as The Slab which offered more protection.
Below the Cabinet Rooms, a sub-basement known as The Dock, where hundreds of servicemen and women lived throughout the war.
Cabinet War Rooms
This is the nerve centre of the Cabinet War Rooms in London, where Churchill met with the members of the War Cabinet. Sir John Anderson, Clement Attlee, Lord Beaverbrook, Ernest Bevin, Arthur Greenwood, the Earl of Halifax and Sir Kingsley Wood.
On becoming Prime Minister in 1940, Winston Churchill visited the Cabinet Room and proclaimed: “This is the room from which I will direct the war”
A total of 115 Cabinet meetings were held in the Cabinet War Rooms. The final meeting took place on March 28, 1945, coinciding with the cessation of the German V2 rocket attacks on London.
The room is arranged precisely as it was just before the 5 pm meeting on October 15, 1940.
Royal Marine Guards, positioned inside and outside the Rooms.
The Map Room
This room was in constant use throughout the war and operated around the clock by Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force officers, producing daily intelligence reports for Winston Churchill.
The Transatlantic Telephone Room
Code-Scrambling-encrypted telephones enabled Churchill to speak directly with Roosevelt in Washington.
Churchill’s Office-Bedroom
He reportedly slept at this location only three times during the war, preferring instead to stay at No.10.
The PM’s Dining Room
The Original No. 10 Downing Street Door
This is the original oak door to No. 10 Downing Street, the home and office of every British Prime Minister since 1735 until 1991, when a blast-proof door replaced the original.
Margaret Thatcher opened the Churchill War Rooms in 1984.
Overview:
Opening times:
Monday to Sunday: 9:30 am to 6 pm, last entry at 5pm.
Address:
Clive Steps, King Charles Street, London, SW1A 2AQ
Ticket prices:
For the latest ticket prices and opening times at the Churchill War Rooms, check the official Imperial War Museum website.