Historic England research records

Historic England Research Records

Number 11 Group Operations Room
Hob Uid: 1431113
Location : Greater London Authority Hillingdon Non Civil Parish
Grid Ref : TQ0653783505
Summary : The underground operations room bunker at RAF Uxbridge, built in 1938. During the Battle of Britain in 1940 this building was crucial as it was the nerve centre for directing operations of the hard pressed 11 Group under Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park, protecting London and the south-east from the Luftwaffe. The bunker was constructed on two levels. The building was closed in 1958. It retains its original air filtration system and power supply and the internal plan remains much the same. The plotting room with its tote board showing deployment of units was restored in the mid 1970s and opened as a private museum viewable by appointment. On 31 March 2010, RAF Uxbridge formally closed as a military base.
More information : The underground operations room bunker at RAF Uxbridge, built in 1938. During the Battle of Britain in 1940 this building was crucial as it was the nerve centre for directing operations of the hard pressed 11 Group under Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park, protecting London and the south east from the Luftwaffe. It retains its original air filtration system and power supply and the internal plan remains much the same. The plotting room with its tote table has been restored by the Ministry of Defence, partly based on Winston Churchill's description of his visit here. (1) The bunker was built on two levels. It was was closed in 1958. The plotting room with its tote board showing deployment of units and adjacent viewing platform used by King George VI has been restored in the mid 1970s and opened as a private museum viewable by appointment. Subterranea Britannica's newsletter and website describe the bunker in detail from a site tour made in 2001. (2) See source for details. (3) On 31 March 2010, RAF Uxbridge formally closed as a military base. Please see source for further details. (4) This website contains details of the mixed-use development planned for the former RAF Uxbridge site. See source for details. (5)

Sources :

Source Number : 1
Source :
Source details : English Heritage Thematic Listing Programme, May 2003: "Survey of Military Sites and Structures Summary Report" Annexe 1, unpaged.
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Source Number : 2
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Page(s) : 31-32
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Vol(s) : 24, 2002

Source Number : 3
Source :
Source details : Nick Catford and Bob Jenner. 2001. "Subterranea Britannica: RAF Uxbridge Battle of Britain Ops Room" <> last updated 21-OCT-2001, accessed 12-JUL-2005.
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Source Number : 4
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Source details : Squadron Leader R J Willis. (2010). Closure of RAF Uxbridge [accessed 31-AUG-2011]
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Source Number : 5
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Source details : VSM Estates Limited. (2011). RAF Uxbridge [accessed 31-AUG-2011]
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Monument Types:

Monument Period Name : Mid 20th Century
Display Date : Built 1938
Monument End Date : 1938
Monument Start Date : 1938
Monument Type : Operations Block, Bunker
Evidence : Subterranean Feature

Monument Period Name : Mid 20th Century
Display Date : Closed 1958
Monument End Date : 1958
Monument Start Date : 1958
Monument Type : Bunker
Evidence : Subterranean Feature

Monument Period Name : Second World War
Display Date : Battle of Britain
Monument End Date : 1940
Monument Start Date : 1940
Monument Type : Operations Block, Bunker
Evidence : Subterranean Feature

Monument Period Name : Late 20th Century
Display Date : Restored mid 1970s
Monument End Date : 1976
Monument Start Date : 1973
Monument Type : Museum
Evidence : Subterranean Feature

Components and Objects:

Related Records from other datasets:

External Cross Reference Source : National Monuments Record Number
External Cross Reference Number : TQ 08 SE 62
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Related Warden Records :

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Associated Activities :
Activity type : ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY
Start Date : 1995-11-14
End Date : 1995-11-14

Historic England Research Records

Number 11 Group Operations Room