“London is like some huge prehistoric animal,
capable of enduring terrible injuries,
mangled and bleeding from many wounds,
and yet preserving its life and movement.”
These are the words chosen by Winston Churchill to describe the Capital in the aftermath of the Second World War. For many today, the image of people sheltering in the London Underground Railways during the German bombing Blitz is synonymous with the fortitude of the city in the face of the greatest assault it ever suffered, but the role of the network is far wider than simply providing a place of sanctuary. In the terms of Churchill’s metaphor, the veins and arteries of that great animal were the roads and railways that – even in the face of such a terrible onslaught and unimaginable damage – kept the city moving. In war, as in peace, the London Underground – less vulnerable than the surface links, but by no means immune – continued to function despite frequent disruption, and the shortage of both personnel and matériel. While journeys on the surface might be subject to countless delays and diversions to avoid bomb damaged or blocked streets, hundreds of thousands of people could still travel to their destinations on the Underground, thus maintaining the commerce and industry of the city itself, as well as the governance of the nation, the Empire, and the Commonwealth in a time of global conflict.
HISTORY
Originally a collection of separate lines run by different commercial interests, the London Underground (LU) only came under a single controlling authority in the 1930s. In some cases, what are single stations “today” were originally adjoining and/or differently named ones belonging to separate lines and/or companies, and it is important to remember that the majority are not in fact deep underground. At the suburban extremities, tracks and stations are on the surface, many of which having been previously run as “ordinary” railways prior to take-over by the LU or its predecessors. The earliest “sub-surface” lines from the 1860s onwards were laid by cutting a deep wide trench, at the bottom of which the tunnel was constructed, before being filled in again. This method was known as “cut and cover,” and usually followed the line of major roads, restricting their use for years, although the technique was still being used in the 1970s (e.g. the Piccadilly Line extension to Heathrow Airport). The stations serving these lines are essentially sited in deep walled pits, often – but not always – roofed-over. “Tube” stations proper were constructed with deep tunnelling techniques from the 1890s onwards, and range in depth from less than 50 feet to almost 200 below the surface, generally served with lifts (elevators) and/or escalators. Most sub-surface and tube stations have surface entrance and/or ticket hall buildings, with a wide variance of scale and design. These factors should be considered with regard to bomb damage and also their suitability as an air raid shelter (ARS), the latter obviously not having been a major design consideration when built. The initial principal reference source was David Leboff’s London Underground Stations {R15}, which although primarily an architectural/design history, in many cases it confirms the damaged stations/lines listed in the aforementioned newsgroup thread (which I have indicated with an asterisk), but also adds about the same number again, along with other notable wartime detail. During the 1930s, the network was expanding rapidly, and an indirect effect of WW2 was the temporary or permanent shelving of such plans, although I have generally not included details unless there are other relevant factors. In some cases, the names of stations have subsequently changed, and I have used the versions that were current during the War.
OFFICIAL POLICY IN WW2
During World War 1, when London first came under aerial attack from German Zeppelin airships and Gotha bombers, although certain disused sections were put to government use (e.g. “Aldwych,” but see also “King William Street”), many members of the public also sought unofficial shelter in the Underground system. Between the Wars, the government policy was that such occupation in the next conflict – when aerial bombing was expected to be far more severe – should be actively discouraged, as it was feared that many Londoners might develop a “deep shelter mentality” and refuse to come back to the surface (it is interesting to note that the 1936 film Things to Come – set in a thinly-disguised London – has civilians fleeing to supposed sanctuary in the Underground system during a surprise enemy bombing attack). With the exception of the converted “Borough” to “King William Street” (qv) branch, official ARS construction was restricted to refuges separate from the Underground system, as well as the small domestic shelters (Anderson and other types). During the light bombing in June 1940 the public shelters did not see much use, but heavy raids on 7 and 8 September led to them being critically overcrowded, with conditions rapidly deteriorating to a dangerous and unhygienic level. Civil disobedience was widespread, with many people seeking shelter in the Underground, and incidents such as those at “Liverpool Street” (qv) led to a reversal of the government policy on the issue.
FLOOD ALLEVIATION MEASURES (FAM)
Around the time of the Autumn 1938 Munich Crisis, preventative measures were taken in case bombing breached the rail tunnels running under the River Thames. This involved nothing more sophisticated than plugging the tunnels with concrete, which obviously meant that they could not be used until the threat of war receded and the obstructions were removed. On the day Poland was invaded in September 1939 – and pre-empting the British declaration of war – more practical plans were initiated, with the installation of remotely controlled flood barriers at the most vulnerable points on the network, with additional sites being addressed soon afterwards. Although trains running under the Thames were halted during air-raids when the water-tight doors were closed, this allowed normal services at other times. Similar measures were taken at stations in the vicinity of water mains (e.g. “Tooting Broadway”), principally to block street access with concrete plugs, although some underground interchange facilities between different lines were unaffected. Despite appearances, these heavy steel doors were not proof against blast, and were normally left open, the consequence of not doing so being highlighted after the incident at Bank (qv). {R15/R14/HO 186/639}
DEEP-LEVEL SHELTERS (DLS)
After the bombing of mid/late-1940, in the October of that year it was decided to build a number of large deep-level shelters adjacent to existing Tube stations, eight on the Northern Line – “Belsize Park,” “Camden Town,” (both replacing the early considerations of “Mornington Crescent” and “Warren Street”; “Leicester Square” was similarly ruled out at an early stage) “Goodge Street,” “Oval,” “Stockwell,” “Clapham North,” “Clapham Common” and “Clapham South” (all qv) – and three on the Central at “Chancery Lane” and “St Paul’s” (both qv), and midway between “Bethnal Green” (qv) and “Liverpool Street.”
Although all were connected to their Tube station proper, access was normally via separate double spiral staircases and lift shafts at each end. In order to avoid a repetition of the devastating effects of the direct hits at “Bank,” “Balham,” and “Trafalgar Square” (all qv), the heads of the staircases were protected by heavy concrete blockhouses, all of which survive with the exception of those at “Chancery Lane.” Construction of the first ten shelters began on 27 November 1940, but in mid-1941 it was decided that no more would be built, although the existing ones would be completed. The shelters at “Oval,” “St Paul’s” and “Bethnal Green” were not fully constructed, but the others were finished by 1942 and subsequently enjoyed a variety of uses. Each shelter was built to hold approximately 8,000 people at a cost of £35-42 per person, although the original estimate was 9,600 at £15 per head. The shelters were divided up into different sections, each named after a famous historical figure to make it easier for the users to find their way around.
After the cessation of hostilities it was planned to link the shelters together to form an “Express Tube” system, alleviating existing lines, although this was not eventually done (the diameter of the shelter bores were the standard for running tunnels, and not stations, indicating that these were ones the express lines would bypass). Although a similar high-speed track had been planned in the 1890s (see “South Kensington”), the later scheme may have had its genesis in a 1936 visit by a London Passenger Transport Board (LPTB) team to New York, where such lines had been utilised to great effect. {R15/R14/R16/R02/R12/Rc/Rg/Rd} See also “Gants Hill.” {R10}
The deep-level shelters were an “open secret,” with the one at “Goodge Street” and the station proper featuring in a 1968 story in the BBC TV drama series Doctor Who (The Web of Fear) in a studio mock-up form so convincing that London Transport even complained about “unofficial filming” on its property! A number of scenes in Stephen Poliakoff’s film Hidden City were set and shot in the real DLS itself, although it is not named in the narrative. Many of the DLSs are currently leased to a variety of companies for secure storage purposes.
“The tunnel shelters, completed in 1942, are all similar. Each lies directly beneath its Underground station… Each shelter consisted of two parallel, 1,200-foot tunnels, divided into an upper and lower floor, and furnished with iron bunks. There were extensions at right angles for first-aid posts, wardens’ rooms, ventilation equipment and lavatories – which posed a particular problem, since the shelters were below the level of the sewage system:
“At each shelter, eight lavatory tunnels were driven 12 feet in diameter. Closets are of the Elsan type. At the far end of each lavatory a hopper has been installed into which closets are emptied. To keep out bottles, boots, clothing etc. all of which have been found to give trouble in other shelters, it was necessary to install a wire screen. The hoppers are connected by piping to a closed ejector placed in the bottom of the staircase shafts, and the contents of the ejector periodically forced out by means of compressed air through a rising main, 6 in. diameter, up to sewer level in the street above.” (The Engineer, 18 September 1942) {R16}
HO 196/11 – THE PHILLIPS REPORT
A report dated 26/03/42 was produced by a Dr Phillips for the Ministry of Home Security’s Research and Experiments Department entitled Notes on damage to railway tunnels by high explosive weapons, Section 1 – Tube railways (Section 2 dated 06/04/42 dealt with non-Tube railway tunnels). In his report, Phillips assessed bombing incidents that had affected LU Tube tunnels, quantifying the damage caused in relation to the size of the explosion, the proximity to the tunnel, and the nature of the tunnel itself. An appendix to the report detailed all such incidents to date, and while all station names were omitted – presumably for security reasons – most can be “mapped” back to the corresponding event.