We arrived and got in line for tickets to the Churchill War Room Tour.
We waited in line for tickets beside a couple very friendly Aussies who were visiting London, and we had a very nice chat to pass the time before we got in.
The War Room is a bunker complex located beneath the Treasury building in Westminster. The complex became operational a week before Britain declared war on Germany and remained open and active until the end of the Second World War. The complex has been preserved to look as it did during the war years.
Inside, you can see where Churchill and the Cabinet conducted the war.
The complex is tight to maneuver in and full of offices and areas for running the war.
Security in the complex was rather tight:
The threat of bombardment was a real concern as the bunker complex was not quite as bomb-proof as they would have liked.
Some notices are rather polite:
The bunker complex is quite interesitng with lots of recorded recollections written up rfom people who worked in the bunker posted for people to read and learn about the experience. It's very much walking through a place where history was made and a war won due to the decisions made in these rooms.
The bunker also had a very informative poster, and very knowledgeable and helpful docent who explained the secret and secure encrypted communication line that had been setup between Churchill and FDR - the SIGSALLY.:
=A very cool bit of cryptography history and technology right there.
In addition to the bunkers setup as they were in Churchill's time, there's a museum dedicated to the man.
The museum has a display oif the many hats Churchill wore:
There's also Churchill's sidearm from when he served on the Western Front in World War 1 when commanding the Royal Fusilliers:
Yes, it is a Colt 1911.
The Nazis used a famous photo of Churchill in their propaganda against him:
It likely didn't , work nor change anyone's mind. Indeed international and national socialists both are always quick to accuse their opponents of what they themselves are doing.
The museum recounts Churchill's life and career in politics and the military, complete with his foibles and mistakes and all. It gives an excellent picture of the man and his incredible work ethic, life and legacy.
Did you know that Churchill was a pilot? He learned to fly in 1913:
Did you know that Churchill was awarded honorary American Citizenship?
Now you do. Back when Civus Americanus Sum had some weight behind it.
You definitely get a very good sense of Churchill the man, his legacy, and his massive impact on history.
The museum is a very well done and is worthy of a visit when you are in London.
2 comments:
One of the more recent commentaries was that the Germans were more advanced in military technology but the British (and Americans) were better at letting the technology percolate into appropriate applications.
What wins wars is not what is in the labs but what makes it to the front-line.
Eaton Rapids Joe: In some ways that's correct (but American and British technological achievements are then overlooked) , but often the German technology was often over-complicated and prone to suffer breakdowns (see Tiger and Panther tanks), or very late in coming to fruition so it arrived too late to make a difference (ME-262 and the Sturmgewehr for example). Hitler's obsession with wonder weapons led to a major diversion of resources from practical weapons that would likely have been far better to have been in the field in quantity.
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