I was a student at Welbeck College from 1965 to 1967. Like many before and after me many hours were spent exploring all the tunnels in the estate. Most memorable was the large tunnel leading from the college in the direction of Worksop. At the college end was a large storeroom where seed potatoes were stored. There was a railway line running downhill and we used to ride a simple trolley. Great fun in the pitch dark! All along the tunnel walls were wooden boards with numbers painted on. We understood that these were to identify ammunition stored there in WW2. The tunnel up the main drive on the RHS was also interesting. At the top end is the riding school which was used by Batchelors foods to store various foof items. We also explored some deeper tunnels which appeared to be for drainage purposes although dry at that time. One very long one went under the sports field to the cricket pavilion. The underground corridors were used to access storage rooms, classrooms and to access some dormitories. The main route had a railway track which we understood was for wheeling food from the kitchens to the state rooms for large banquets.At the bottom of one of the stone spiral stairs was a grille in the wall. We understood that on the other side was another top security room. The story goes that this was where gold plate was stored and that if the grille was obscured, resulting in an inrease of air pressure, the police would be on site in a matter of minutes! The underground ballroom was used as a gym although occasionally the Duke would use it for private functions. I remember once that a concert by the renowned classical guitarist ???? Williams was held. We could not access the state rooms officially but climbing the lift shaft gave some interesting opportunities!! Hope this is of interest to those of you interested in the subject.
Welbeck Abbey and its subterranean tunnels
in County of Nottinghamshire Chat
Posted
I was a student at Welbeck College from 1965 to 1967. Like many before and after me many hours were spent exploring all the tunnels in the estate. Most memorable was the large tunnel leading from the college in the direction of Worksop. At the college end was a large storeroom where seed potatoes were stored. There was a railway line running downhill and we used to ride a simple trolley. Great fun in the pitch dark! All along the tunnel walls were wooden boards with numbers painted on. We understood that these were to identify ammunition stored there in WW2. The tunnel up the main drive on the RHS was also interesting. At the top end is the riding school which was used by Batchelors foods to store various foof items. We also explored some deeper tunnels which appeared to be for drainage purposes although dry at that time. One very long one went under the sports field to the cricket pavilion. The underground corridors were used to access storage rooms, classrooms and to access some dormitories. The main route had a railway track which we understood was for wheeling food from the kitchens to the state rooms for large banquets.At the bottom of one of the stone spiral stairs was a grille in the wall. We understood that on the other side was another top security room. The story goes that this was where gold plate was stored and that if the grille was obscured, resulting in an inrease of air pressure, the police would be on site in a matter of minutes! The underground ballroom was used as a gym although occasionally the Duke would use it for private functions. I remember once that a concert by the renowned classical guitarist ???? Williams was held. We could not access the state rooms officially but climbing the lift shaft gave some interesting opportunities!! Hope this is of interest to those of you interested in the subject.