Underground Air-Raid Bunker

Directly south of where you are standing is the location former underground air raid shelter used by staff on the grounds during the Second World War. Aerial photos of the front of the castle show multiple entrances to the shelter. Underground passages from the medieval period may also have linked to this structure, as brick-lined, domed tunnels below the castle have been documented well into the twentieth century. The entrance passages were directly in front of the staff huts and the bunker itself would have been stocked with food and provisions. Later in the war the bunker would also have been used during attacks by the infamous 'doodlebugs' – V-1 missiles.

During July 1940, air raid alerts were proving something of a problem. Upon hearing an alert, staff were required to take shelter either in the underground passages close to the temporary huts or specific locations within the Castle. It was soon found that a considerable amount of time was being lost in this way, resulting in reduced productivity. Consequently, as much of the work as possible was retransferred from the temporary buildings to the castle.

Before the war, however, it was also well documented that certain underground passages ran below the ground floor of the castle. A newspaper article from 1936 notes that they were brick-lined, domed tunnels, approximately five feet high by three feet wide. The author claims to recall how he entered the tunnels as a child from the south-east corner, continuing up the centre of the east range. He notes that these tunnels were in dilapidated condition and in parts one could go through it only on one's hands and knees.

According to Walter Godfrey, who assisted Sir Paul Latham in the early 1930s during castle renovations, a low vaulted subway existed at Herstmonceux. The subway seems to have been carried right round the main quad under the ground floor rooms, with possible interruptions where there were signs of an original vaulted cellar. Godfrey believed this subway served practical purposes, either for pipes or water drainage.

Portions sed today are used for water supplies, electrical mains, and more.