Churchill War Rooms in pictures

The Churchill War Rooms
The Churchill War Rooms

Peer into the War Cabinet Room, where Churchill and his inner circle plotted the war in round-the-clock meetings.
The Map Room
The Map Room

Trace the progress of Allied ships though the tiny pinholes dotted across the maps in the bunker’s informational hub.
Corridors within the Churchill War Rooms
Corridors within the Churchill War Rooms

Over the course of the war, hundreds of men and women, both civilian and uniformed, spent thousands of vital working - and sleeping - hours in the bunker.
Churchill at his desk in the Map Room
Churchill at his desk in the Map Room

The lights in the Map Room were switched off for the first time in six years on 16 August 1945.
Churchill's Red Box
Churchill's Red Box

Churchill could always be seen with this red box full of state papers.
Interactive Lifeline at the Churchill War Rooms
Interactive Lifeline at the Churchill War Rooms

The interactive Lifeline exhibit allows visitors to access information from every year of Churchill’s life.

Second World War Art

HMS Glorious in the Arctic, 1940, by Eric Ravilious
HMS Glorious in the Arctic, 1940, by Eric Ravilious

Eric Ravilious became one of the War Artists Advisory Committee’s first official war artists in 1940. This watercolour is typical of Ravilious in the stylised simplicity of form, as well as in the use of texture and cross-hatching for both sky and sea.
Convalescent Nurses Making Camouflage Nets, 1941, by Evelyn Dunbar
Convalescent Nurses Making Camouflage Nets, 1941, by Evelyn Dunbar

Evelyn Dunbar was commissioned to paint the experiences of the Women’s Land Army, the Auxiliary Territorial Service and the nursing services. Women adapting to unfamiliar tasks amidst the circumstances of war is a recurring theme in her paintings.
Glass-blowers 'Gathering' from the Furnace, 1943, by Mervyn Peake
Glass-blowers 'Gathering' from the Furnace, 1943, by Mervyn Peake

Glass blowers are gathering molten glass as part of the production of cathode ray oscillation tubes. By 1943 7,000 tubes were being produced each week. Mervyn Peake was fascinated by the manufacturing process and by the balletic skills of the workforce.
Southern England, 1944. Spitfires Attacking Flying-Bombs, by Thomas Monnington
Southern England, 1944. Spitfires Attacking Flying-Bombs, by Thomas Monnington

Before being employed as a war artist, Monnington had worked at the Directorate of Camouflage. In this painting, modern war machines fly through a scene taken from a Constable painting, relegating the countryside to a backdrop to their deathly conflict.
Parachute Drop, 1943, by Henry Carr
Parachute Drop, 1943, by Henry Carr

Henry Carr painted scenes of London during the blackout and undertook official portrait commissions. Later employed as a war artist, he followed Allied forces through North Africa. This painting shows paratroopers in the process of landing in Algeria.
VE-Day Celebrations Outside Buckingham Palace, 1945, by Leila Faithfull
VE-Day Celebrations Outside Buckingham Palace, 1945, by Leila Faithfull

Leila Faithfull was commissioned to paint WVS subjects in 1940. She later requested to travel to Italy, Egypt or Palestine but was declined. This work from 1945 shows civilians gathered under the trees outside Buckingham Palace, celebrating VE-Day.

Main menu

Skip to content

Secondary menu

IWM London
London
Open daily 10am - 6pm
Last admission 5.45pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December

Admission is free
Special exhibitions may charge an admission fee
- What's On
- Visiting Information
IWM Duxford
Cambridgeshire
Open daily

Summer 10am - 6pm
Last admission 5pm

Winter 10am - 4pm
Last admission 3pm

Closed 24, 25 and 26 December
- What's On
- Visiting Information
HMS Belfast
London
HMS Belfast is currently closed and will reopen on 18 May.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused. For further information see Visiting Information
- What's On
- Visiting Information
Churchill War Rooms
London
Open daily 9.30am - 6pm
Last admission 5pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December
- What's On
- Visiting Information
IWM North
Manchester
Open daily 10am - 5pm
Last admission 4.30pm
Closed 24, 25 and 26 December

Admission is free
- What's On
- Visiting Information

Calendar

Today May 16th 2012

Churchill War Rooms Private Tours
Churchill War Rooms
Dates between 1 January 2012 and 1 December 2012
A private tour of the Churchill War Rooms offers you an unparalleled opportunity to step back through history.
Double Cross: The D-Day Spies
Churchill War Rooms
18 September 2012
7pm - 9pm. Part of the Churchill Lecture Series.

In this talk, bestselling author Ben Macintyre tells the story of the intelligence officer based in St James’s and the double agents Bronx, Brutus, Treasure, Tricycle and Garbo.
What Were We Fighting For?
Churchill War Rooms
2 October 2012
7pm - 9pm. Part of the Churchill Lecture Series.

Award-winning author Ken Follett focuses on one key moment in each of the three major wars covered in his Century Trilogy - the First World War, the Second World War, and the Cold War.