Visitors undertaking our private tours of London can often find they mix a lot of familiar sights with some that are less well-known. This can be particularly true when tracing important periods in the city’s long and varied history.
A case in point is a very significant time in the modern history of London: the Second World War. Not only was the British war effort commanded from London and many famous parliamentary speeches delivered, but the city endured a notorious extended campaign of bombing by the German Luftwaffe, known as the Blitz.
This means that war history in London includes places famous for their events, as well as various museums and memorials. There are even some famous sites that have wartime connections that not everyone knows about.
What Are The Most Important Sites Associated with WW2 In London?
Among the most obvious places to find out about the war in London are:
· The Imperial War Museum
· The Churchill War Rooms
· The Cenotaph in Whitehall
· HMS Belfast
· The RAF Museum
· The National Army Museum in Chelsea
The Imperial War Museum speaks for itself, featuring artefacts and information on all wars, not just the Second World War. The Cenotaph is also not just about the 1939-45 conflict, as it is a memorial to the fallen in all wars, being established after the First World War. It is there, on Remembrance Sunday each year, that the act of remembrance is carried out.
However, the Churchill War Rooms are a place of specific significance. This was the secret underground headquarters in Whitehall from which Winston Churchill and his government conducted operations during the war.
Preserved as it was in the 1940s, the war rooms provide a fascinating insight into what living and working there was like. The facility was established just before the war, amid growing fears that efforts to prevent another major conflict would not succeed (which turned out to be justified). It was situated below a reinforced building in Whitehall to make it bomb-proof.
It includes the Churchill Museum, which features various artefacts about the man himself, who had a varied political career with various twists, turns and even two changes of party allegiance before he became Prime Minister in the heat of the crisis in 1940.
What World War 2 Warship Is Based In Central London?
HMS Belfast offers a different insight, as it saw action in the war. Launched in 1938, this cruiser was involved in the naval blockade of Germany and saw direct action in instances such as the Battle of North Cape in 1943, which saw the sinking of the German battleship Scharnhorst.
The RAF Museum in Hendon is particularly noteworthy because of the Battle of Britain. Not only does it contain many British aircraft from the war, such as a Spitfire and a Lancaster Bomber, but also the German Messerschmitt BF 109 and a Stuka dive bomber. American visitors may be particularly interested in the P-51 Mustang and the Boeing B-17 Fortress.
While these are some of the most obvious war-related sights to see, there are many other, less obvious places to visit.
What Other Famous London Sites Have Wartime Links?
For example, you would normally visit Buckingham Palace because of an interest in the royal family. But the Palace itself was among the buildings hit, even though the prime target for German bombers was the docklands in the east of the capital. This happened on several occasions.
This may have actually been advantageous for the royals, as they were seen as being able to empathise with members of the public all over Britain who had suffered bomb damage to their own homes.
Other famous places with wartime connections include Bushy Park in south-east London, where General Dwight Eisenhower had his headquarters as the plans for the D-Day landings were finalised. The building is long gone, but the site is signposted.
That is not the only American connection with D-Day to be found in London, as there is a memorial chapel to US servicemen who took part in the landings in St Paul’s Cathedral.
What London WW2 Sites Are Worth Seeing?
Some places associated with the war are not well known, but well worth seeing.
· The Churchill and Roosevelt Statue on New Bond Street
· The anti-aircraft gun at Mudchute Farm children’s play area in Canary Wharf (no longer loaded!)
· The Animals in War Memorial in Hyde Park
· The Bomber Command Memorial in Green Park
· The Women of World War 2 Memorial in Whitehall
· Winston Churchill’s statue in Parliament Square
This long list of sites, from a warship and museums to memorials and anti-aircraft guns in kids’ play areas, shows that London has a huge array of sites connected with the war that a dedicated tour can encompass.
