Other "Known" Secret Underground Bunkers
HMS Forward was one of five major underground HQ bunkers constructed in south eastern England at the outset of the last war. The largest by far is that under Dover Castle and this dates back to Napoleonic times before massive expansion in 1939 and 1941. It was later further enlarged to accommodate the needs of a nuclear command bunker during the cold war and now occupies at least four levels. Some of it is open to the public and is administered by English Heritage who have documented it thoroughly.
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Dover Underground Command Centre: This is a colossal area of tunnels with only the "Bastion" level having never seen use, in fact this area has been largely lost having been abandoned during excavation then sealed up preventing access today. The clues to the extent of the tunneling can be seen in the cliff face, top picture. The plans illustrate further just how extensive this multi layered complex is with the bottom two photographs showing the familiar method of military construction.
Surviving Guard House
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Two utility sheds that appear to be built of wartime brick
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The layout plans for Reigate Bunker: Top Left: The sketch made by a local explorer of the site back in the early sixties and dated 20th May 1973. Top Right: The official access plan noting the entrances for The Signals Regiment and one for other operatives. The ablutions and kitchen area are also noted. Above: The official map of the bunker courtesy of the NA; Green area for the Signals Regiment use and Red area for HQ general working space. The newly dug sections as of August 1941 are shown upper left. Curiously the addition of the "Ventilation Shaft" with access to the upper Victorian Fort seems never to have been built, or at least it has not yet been discovered!
Google Earth image with the bunkers approximate site superimposed
The Reigate Bunker.
“On 18th August 1941,
New work is started on extending the HQ South Eastern Command dug out shelter”.
(This implies that the shelter has been built before the war and is in need of alteration. Throughout August about 20 to 30 men from Tunbridge Wells work on this shelter).
By the 21st September 1941.
“Extension to south eastern command deep shelter at Reigate is now complete, and has been handed over to Garrison Engineer. This work consisted of adding an additional 3 chambers to existing shelter (giving an extra area of 2250 Sq Ft). Mining in chalk strata, galleries and chambers driven 9’x 8’, and supported by steel arches covered in arcuate sheeting”.
On 29th September 1941
“The tunnelling comprised an addition to the existing shelter of 234’ of 9’x 8’ gallery. The whole being supported by steel arches covered with arcuate sheeting. In plan the extension is 3 – 50’ chambers connecting parallel galleries.
(All war diary extracts)
The Reigate South East Command bunker built for General Montgomery was next in size having been enlarged in the summer of 1941. Built inside chalk cliffs under Reigate Hill little is known about the bunker and it was probably sealed up and/or demolished in the late 1960’s though the chalk cliff face is still there and just maybe it still exists deep inside? This bunker was huge containing around 18,000 sq ft of internal space; twice the size of the Tunbridge Wells HQ.
Between 18th August 1941 and 21st September 1941 the 172nd Tunnelling Company RE despatch about 50 men to extend the Reigate Bunker by 2250 sq ft in preparation for the arrival of General Montgomery in November 1941 after his command of 12 Corps ended in Tunbridge Wells. If he used this bunker at all, and local speculation says that he did as it was known by the locals as, “Monty’s Hideout”, then it was short lived as General Montgomery assumed command of the 8th Army in Africa nine moths later in August 1942.
The size and importance of this bunker cannot be underestimated and it must have been in constant use throughout the war, official records however have not yet come to light documenting the activities undertaken here.
This bunker is by far the largest of the five with the exception of Dover. With two long parallel galleries separated by twelve chambers it was accessed by three long adits driven into the chalk quarry face each protected by brick block house entrances. The overall cover given by the quarry must have been in excess of 100 ft making the bunker totally bomb proof. With direct and easy access to London it was ideally situated at the point where south eastern England becomes south central and therefore before it lay the entire soon to be contested southern corner of Britain.
The bunker was originally dug into the face of a large chalk quarry on the southern side of Reigate Hill behind the "Yew Tree" pub on the A217 Reigate Hill road. The intriguing comment from the war diary entry of 18th August 1941 that the work done here was only an extension suggests that the bunker had been built before the war, but exactly when is still unknown. Did it date back to the first world war as an emergency seat of government or was it built when war seemed certain in the autumn of 1939?
Today, a small lane with an iron fence and the tell tale signature of wartime brickwork marks the entrance to the site. It has almost ceased to exist. In the summer of 2008 we explored the area thoroughly and could not find any remaining structures accept, in the dense undergrowth a brick built sentry box standing to the right of the lane about twenty yards from the main road. It seems that in the 1970’s new housing developments have resulted in the quarry face being pushed further back into the hillside and the ground around the location of the three block house entrances heavily re landscaped so it seems likely that the actual tunnels were collapsed or sealed by property developers back in the 1970’s.
It seems then that “Monty’s Hideout”, aka the Reigate South Eastern Command Bunker has ceased to exist and with it all records except for the plans reproduced here; how it functioned and exactly what it was used for so far eludes us.
“On 18th August 1941,
New work is started on extending the HQ South Eastern Command dug out shelter”.
(This implies that the shelter has been built before the war and is in need of alteration. Throughout August about 20 to 30 men from Tunbridge Wells work on this shelter).
By the 21st September 1941.
“Extension to south eastern command deep shelter at Reigate is now complete, and has been handed over to Garrison Engineer. This work consisted of adding an additional 3 chambers to existing shelter (giving an extra area of 2250 Sq Ft). Mining in chalk strata, galleries and chambers driven 9’x 8’, and supported by steel arches covered in arcuate sheeting”.
On 29th September 1941
“The tunnelling comprised an addition to the existing shelter of 234’ of 9’x 8’ gallery. The whole being supported by steel arches covered with arcuate sheeting. In plan the extension is 3 – 50’ chambers connecting parallel galleries.
(All war diary extracts)
The Reigate South East Command bunker built for General Montgomery was next in size having been enlarged in the summer of 1941. Built inside chalk cliffs under Reigate Hill little is known about the bunker and it was probably sealed up and/or demolished in the late 1960’s though the chalk cliff face is still there and just maybe it still exists deep inside? This bunker was huge containing around 18,000 sq ft of internal space; twice the size of the Tunbridge Wells HQ.
Between 18th August 1941 and 21st September 1941 the 172nd Tunnelling Company RE despatch about 50 men to extend the Reigate Bunker by 2250 sq ft in preparation for the arrival of General Montgomery in November 1941 after his command of 12 Corps ended in Tunbridge Wells. If he used this bunker at all, and local speculation says that he did as it was known by the locals as, “Monty’s Hideout”, then it was short lived as General Montgomery assumed command of the 8th Army in Africa nine moths later in August 1942.
The size and importance of this bunker cannot be underestimated and it must have been in constant use throughout the war, official records however have not yet come to light documenting the activities undertaken here.
This bunker is by far the largest of the five with the exception of Dover. With two long parallel galleries separated by twelve chambers it was accessed by three long adits driven into the chalk quarry face each protected by brick block house entrances. The overall cover given by the quarry must have been in excess of 100 ft making the bunker totally bomb proof. With direct and easy access to London it was ideally situated at the point where south eastern England becomes south central and therefore before it lay the entire soon to be contested southern corner of Britain.
The bunker was originally dug into the face of a large chalk quarry on the southern side of Reigate Hill behind the "Yew Tree" pub on the A217 Reigate Hill road. The intriguing comment from the war diary entry of 18th August 1941 that the work done here was only an extension suggests that the bunker had been built before the war, but exactly when is still unknown. Did it date back to the first world war as an emergency seat of government or was it built when war seemed certain in the autumn of 1939?
Today, a small lane with an iron fence and the tell tale signature of wartime brickwork marks the entrance to the site. It has almost ceased to exist. In the summer of 2008 we explored the area thoroughly and could not find any remaining structures accept, in the dense undergrowth a brick built sentry box standing to the right of the lane about twenty yards from the main road. It seems that in the 1970’s new housing developments have resulted in the quarry face being pushed further back into the hillside and the ground around the location of the three block house entrances heavily re landscaped so it seems likely that the actual tunnels were collapsed or sealed by property developers back in the 1970’s.
It seems then that “Monty’s Hideout”, aka the Reigate South Eastern Command Bunker has ceased to exist and with it all records except for the plans reproduced here; how it functioned and exactly what it was used for so far eludes us.
The above photographs were taken in the mid sixties by one of our readers, Steve Jackson. He explored the bunker armed with a torch and camera and took the trouble to photograph the tunnels shortly before the entrances were collapsed to prevent further access and vandalism. They are probably the only record of how the site looked in existence and we are indebted to him for allowing us to reproduce them here.
The 12th Corps underground HQ, Tunbridge Wells. See the main article for full details of this site.
One of three entrances to the underground site
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Bottom of an entrance stairway
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The layout plan of the Sarre bunker. The brick lined rooms are of particular interest; what kind of equipment was placed inside these special rooms?
Abandoned Nissan huts could once be seen at Sarre.
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The central corridor in a very dangerous state of collapse
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One of the brick lined rooms with reinforced steel joist roof. What were the alcoves for?
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The Signals room with large alcoves perhaps for transmitters and receivers. The two steel pipes leading up to the surface may have carried cables to antennas above ground.
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Brigade underground HQ at Sarre, Kent
A war diary extract mentions the following:
10th October 1941 No. 3 section marched out of billets at Tunbridge Wells, entrain at Tunbridge Wells station and proceed to Sarre, where they are to construct a system of deep shelters for Bde HQ.
This bunker is located in an old stone quarry in the village of Sarre, on the Isle of Thanet, East Kent. It is the smallest construction of the five and is referred to as a “Brigade HQ” and probably saw extensive use during the war.
Today the site is inaccessible but once had until recently five abandoned Nissan huts standing nearby. Dug into sandstone the tunnels were dry but frequent rock falls made entry extremely dangerous. This bunker is unusual in that only one tunnel was steel lined in characteristic military fashion. The remainder were brick lined with the central corridor left unlined in bare rock. Interior photographs show signposted rooms for Signals operators and Clerks, there were four cable conduits rising through the roof to the surface, perhaps to antennas.
Though a Brigade HQ would be of a smaller construction than HMS Forward, one wonders if this bunker was used for something much more specialised. The brick lined rooms might suggest that the equipment used here was sensitive to damp ie: electronic equipment, and that the four feed conduits to the surface allowed cables to be connected to extensive above ground equipment such as high radio telecommunications masts.
In keeping with many of these underground military sites their exact function has yet to be determined.
A war diary extract mentions the following:
10th October 1941 No. 3 section marched out of billets at Tunbridge Wells, entrain at Tunbridge Wells station and proceed to Sarre, where they are to construct a system of deep shelters for Bde HQ.
This bunker is located in an old stone quarry in the village of Sarre, on the Isle of Thanet, East Kent. It is the smallest construction of the five and is referred to as a “Brigade HQ” and probably saw extensive use during the war.
Today the site is inaccessible but once had until recently five abandoned Nissan huts standing nearby. Dug into sandstone the tunnels were dry but frequent rock falls made entry extremely dangerous. This bunker is unusual in that only one tunnel was steel lined in characteristic military fashion. The remainder were brick lined with the central corridor left unlined in bare rock. Interior photographs show signposted rooms for Signals operators and Clerks, there were four cable conduits rising through the roof to the surface, perhaps to antennas.
Though a Brigade HQ would be of a smaller construction than HMS Forward, one wonders if this bunker was used for something much more specialised. The brick lined rooms might suggest that the equipment used here was sensitive to damp ie: electronic equipment, and that the four feed conduits to the surface allowed cables to be connected to extensive above ground equipment such as high radio telecommunications masts.
In keeping with many of these underground military sites their exact function has yet to be determined.
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Deep Shelters were built for the air raid protection of vulnerable crews such as those at coastal guns sites, anti aircraft gun sites and in some cases secure hospital areas. They were built in large quantities and many are now lost. The best example and one that is now open to the public for viewing is at Fan Bay near Dover and was built to protect the personnel of the six inch Fan Bay gun battery that overlooked the English Channel here. In fact all active coastal defence sites had some kind of crew protection from off shore shelling or air raids and where the geology was suitable, deep shelters were constructed; the Dover area has the greatest concentration and newly discovered ones are often reported in the local press.
It should however be noted that these are the “known” underground HQ bunkers and one can only speculate that together with numerous deep shelters others might still be awaiting discovery.
With thanks to: English Heritage Dover. Reigate Museum. Dover Museum. National Archives, Kew.
Plans and selected underground photographs are where known, Public Domain.
Thank You to Steve Jackson for the use of the Reigate Bunker Photographs.
Page design, layout and stamped photographs copyright Steve Sullivan, September 2020
Plans and selected underground photographs are where known, Public Domain.
Thank You to Steve Jackson for the use of the Reigate Bunker Photographs.
Page design, layout and stamped photographs copyright Steve Sullivan, September 2020
