Churchill War Rooms

Overview

The Churchill War Rooms is a museum in London and one of the five branches of the Imperial War Museum. The museum comprises the Cabinet War Rooms, a historic underground complex that housed a British government command centre throughout the Second World War, and the Churchill Museum, a biographical museum exploring the life of British statesman Winston Churchill.

Construction of the Cabinet War Rooms, located beneath the Treasury building in the Whitehall area of Westminster, began in 1938. They became fully operational on 27 August 1939, a week before Britain declared war on Germany. The War Rooms remained in operation throughout the Second World War, before being abandoned in August 1945 after the surrender of Japan.

After the war, the historic value of the Cabinet War Rooms was recognised. Their preservation became the responsibility of the Ministry of Works and later the Department for the Environment, during which time very limited numbers of the public were able to visit by appointment. In the early 1980s the Imperial War Museum was asked to take over the administration of the site, and the Cabinet War Rooms were opened to the public in April 1984. The museum was reopened in 2005 following a major redevelopment as the Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms, but in 2010 this title was shortened to the Churchill War Rooms.

Details

Location" Location: Clive Steps, King Charles Street, London SW1A 2AQ UK of GB & NI - England
Visitor Centre but booking recommended Visit Type: Vistor Centre, but booking recommended
Co-ordinates" Co-ordinates: 51.502210, -0.129330
Web" Web: https://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/churchill-war-rooms external_link_dark

Map

Nearby Locations

LocationDistanceDirection
Tower Bridge UK of GB & NI - England2.32 milesE
Tower of London UK of GB & NI - England2.33 milesE
Eltham Palace UK of GB & NI - England8.55 milesESE
Lullingstone Villa UK of GB & NI - England16.97 milesSE
Windsor Castle UK of GB & NI - England20.47 milesW
Knole House UK of GB & NI - England21.77 milesSE
Tilbury Fort UK of GB & NI - England21.93 milesE
St Leonard's Tower UK of GB & NI - England27.29 milesESE
Rochester Castle UK of GB & NI - England28.25 milesESE
Upnor Castle UK of GB & NI - England28.98 milesESE
Copper Rivet Distillery UK of GB & NI - England29.27 milesESE
Hadleigh Castle UK of GB & NI - England31.87 milesE
Sutton Valance Castle UK of GB & NI - England37.18 milesESE
Houghton House UK of GB & NI - England40.38 milesNNW
Bodiam Castle UK of GB & NI - England45.16 milesSE
1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield UK of GB & NI - England48.53 milesSSE
Pevensey Castle UK of GB & NI - England51.26 milesSSE
Blenheim Palace UK of GB & NI - England57.74 milesWNW
Bishop's Waltham Palace UK of GB & NI - England60.38 milesSW
Wychwood Brewery UK of GB & NI - England61.39 milesWNW
Information correct as of 21/08/2020