Central Government War Headquarters
Central Government War Headquarters, Underground government shelter in Wiltshire, England.
This large underground complex lies hidden beneath the countryside of Wiltshire, with tunnels stretching over a kilometer and containing many rooms, corridors, and facilities that create a quiet and calm atmosphere like a secret city carved beneath the earth.
Built during the 1950s and finished by 1961, this shelter was designed to protect the UK government during a nuclear attack, remaining ready for about 30 years through some of the most tense periods of the Cold War before closing in the early 1990s.
The complex includes a BBC studio where the Prime Minister could have addressed the nation from underground, along with murals and paintings that tell stories from the Cold War years and reflect the serious atmosphere of those times when fears of nuclear conflict were high.
The underground city was equipped to support thousands of people for months, with offices, kitchens, a medical center, water tanks, fuel storage, and heated air kept around 68°F (20°C), making it a self-sufficient fortress capable of running the government without ever needing to surface.
Old electric buggies once moved quietly through the tunnel roads, and one vehicle marked with the word ALIEN has sparked stories about secret projects and mysterious visitors, adding a layer of intrigue and myth to this hidden place that still fuels curiosity and speculation today.
Location: Wiltshire
GPS coordinates: 51.42000,-2.22000
Latest update: December 3, 2025 13:49
This collection brings together underground military sites, strategic bunkers, and highly secured installations across the world. Many of these places were built during the Cold War, when nuclear threats pushed governments to create protected command centers deep under mountains or in remote areas. Some remain active today, serving national security purposes, while others have been decommissioned but preserve their massive concrete structures and tunnels. Though their existence is known from public sources, access remains strictly forbidden. The sites include the Raven Rock Mountain Complex in Pennsylvania, carved deep into the Appalachian Mountains with tunnels stretching for miles through solid rock, and the Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station in Colorado, where rooms rest on massive springs inside the Rocky Mountains to absorb shocks from potential attacks. In Russia, the Skalisty submarine base serves nuclear submarines through underground piers carved directly into rock along the Barents Sea. RAF Menwith Hill in North Yorkshire spreads across a wide area marked by white geodesic domes that protect satellite antennas, while the Svalbard Global Seed Vault lies embedded in arctic permafrost, storing millions of plant seeds behind thick concrete walls. These places show how governments sought to protect command systems, military operations, and even biological reserves by building deep into mountains or along remote coastlines, creating installations that remain largely hidden from public view.
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