![]() This massive two-storey structure was one of the last Cold War bunkers to be built in England. RAF Alconbury RAF Alconbury, Cambridgeshire, the Magic Mountain. At this time, if war had broken out, its nuclear armed F111 jets would have been some of the first to engage Soviet forces. This 1920s airfield was redeveloped in the early 1950s for the United States’ Strategic Air Command and in the 1970s was hardened against a pre-emptive attack. RAF Upper Heyford RAF Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire. It has thick external walls to resist blast, heat and radiation penetration, and is equipped with an air filtration plant, standby generators, canteens, dormitories, operations rooms and communications facilities. This complex in Cambridge, one of only two purpose-built Regional Seats of Government built during the early 1960s, making it a rare example of a structure designed to operate after a nuclear attack. Grade IIĮngland was divided into nine regions which, in the event of nuclear war, would have each been governed by Regional Commissioners housed, along with civil servants, in heavily protected buildings. Regional Seat of Government building, Cambridge Regional Seat of Government building, Cambridge. It was installed to provide early warning of an attack by Soviet bombers. This early 1960s radar is the last surviving high power Cold War era radar in Europe. RAF Neatishead RAF Neatishead Air Defence Radar Station, Norfolk. The project was cancelled in 1960 and the missile was adapted as the launch vehicle for European Launcher Development Organisation. This world class rocket research site was developed to test the British-built Blue Streak missile, designed to deliver a nuclear warhead to Moscow. Spadeadam Rocket Establishment Spadeadam Rocket Establishment, Cumbria. During the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, all but one of the 60 missiles were raised to alert. In the late 1950s the United States supplied sixty nuclear tipped Thor missiles that were manned by Royal Air Force crews and an American launch control officer. RAF North Luffenham RAF North Luffenham, Rutland. After the Second World War, highly advanced German rocket research was incorporated into British programmes, with German scientists relocated to this establishment to research liquid propellants alongside their British counterparts. Westcott has been synonymous with rocket research and development since the mid-1940s. Westcott Rocket Propulsion Establishment, Westcott, Buckinghamshire. This work carried high political stakes, because Britain couldn’t be regarded as a nuclear power until it demonstrated it was able to drop an atomic bomb from an aircraft. Orford Nessįrom 1955, this remote coastal spit was developed for the testing of nuclear weapons to make sure that they were safe to store, handle, and ultimately could survive the flight to their final destinations. Some argued that this secured Britain’s position in the world and provided a deterrent against Soviet aggression. It was later transported to the Montebello Islands, Australia, where it was detonated in October. This purpose-built research establishment was central to Britain’s defence strategy when, in summer 1952, an experimental atomic device was assembled here. Building X6 Building X6 – Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Foulness, Essex. Now, thanks to recent research and the decision to list these intriguing sites, future generations will be able to understand and appreciate more fully the country’s experience of the Cold War. Until recently, these often secret establishments were unknown to historians. They bear witness to phenomena such as the development and deployment of nuclear weapons, the ‘special relationship’ between the UK and the US, constant global surveillance, and huge expenditure on science and technology research as well as defence. The buildings of the Cold War are some of our last physical links to this episode of our history.
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