World War II Bunker (Details from Notice Board)

During World War II, Churchill had created a 'staying behind' resistance force called the Auxilliary Units. Their mission was to attack the invading forces from behind their own lines by destroying aircraft, fuel dumps, railway lines and depots.

Operational Patrols had between 4 and 8 men, often farmers or landowners who had an excellent local knowledge and the ability to live off the land.

Each patrol was self-sufficient in case of invasion. They were provided with an underground Operational Base (OB), usually build in local woodlands, with a camouflaged entrance.

British Resistance Historians believe this would have most likely been a Special Duties wireless bunker as it is too small for a standard sized OB.

The entrance shaft is made from hollow concrete blocks, and enters into a small chamber with a doorway leading on to the main chamber. The small chamber would have been disguised as a poacher's den, to give the occupants some time to destroy code and wireless equipment, should they be discovered.

Bunkers were well concealed, habitable and weatherproof. A standard design consisted of an underground chamber roofed with corrugated iron. The walls were brick, with a shaft at one end leading to to the main entrance. The shafts were concealed by camoyuflaged trapdoors. The bunkers were so well hidden that anyone walking over them would not notice that the ground beneath their feet had been hollowed out.