Welbeck Abbey and its subterranean tunnels


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That sounds great to me, thanks for the offer.

Any body that end of the country want to start the ball rolling and try to get something organised.

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1960 Inside the tunnel

According to this 1907 article , there were 11 miles of tunnels !! From the bit I have read (and I may be wrong) but the tunnels were built in trenches with brick arches and then the brickwork covered

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

The trouble with this place is that it is a clearly unique 'Stately Home'. Originally guarded by the incumbents, passed on to the military, then obviously being hidden from the public once again by a family trying to recover their inheritance. I wonder how long that will last.

I'm surprised that English Heritage haven't had more to say about it, must be one of the most interesting places in the country, secret passages everywhere, I can't think of anywhere else quite like it, it surely must be a public icon.

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  • 2 months later...

I didn't realise that the Army were no longer using the Abbey.

I note that the descendants of the family are now living in part of the house, but the building is so massive, I can't imagine what most of it is used for, I would imagine that it will soon become unmanageable and in need of so much money spending on it that the whole place could be at risk.

This makes me wonder whether their only option would be to do a deal with English Heritage or the National Trust, and with such a unique building, opening up the tunnels and underground rooms to the public would be the obvious thing to do, as the only place with such structures, it could be a winner.

I'm intrigued as to how MickeyT got in there without being detected, the Subterrania Britannica people are well known and not popular and their internet information exchange is making landowners very wary of the possibilities of trespass, mainly due to the dangers involved.

In reply to how i got in there. It would be difficult for me to explain unless i knew you had local knowledge other than that i would be quite happy to give an unofficial guided tour if enough people were interested for free.

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  • 8 months later...

In reply to how i got in there. It would be difficult for me to explain unless i knew you had local knowledge other than that i would be quite happy to give an unofficial guided tour if enough people were interested for free.

Hi All

I went down some of the tunnels a couple of weeks ago and I'm planning on another trip soon. I would be very interested in any tours that you may be planning in the near future. I've been on the estate many times over the last couple of years but not managed to find the semi-submerged greenhouse although I have an idea where to look. There are a few more areas of interest on the estate that I would like to explore further one day too and any first-hand knowledge I can get would be very useful indeed. I have recently found some web site links with photos of the estate for anyone who is interested.

http://location-collective.co.uk/location-detail.html?id=4649

http://location-collective.co.uk/location-search.html?inpSearchText=4648

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In reply to how i got in there. It would be difficult for me to explain unless i knew you had local knowledge other than that i would be quite happy to give an unofficial guided tour if enough people were interested for free.

Hi MickyT123

Are you planning any of your tours in the coming weeks?

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Hi,

One of the tunnels comes out at SK568754 which leads towards the lake. There were originally glass domes used as skylights but these have been concreted over. The entrance is still in excellent condition though and is used as a workshop.

I've always doubted the tunnel to Worksop railway station due to length needed and logistics (crossing the Ryton and Chesterfield Canal for starters) I think if he had a link to the railway it would have been somewhere on the Nottingham line near Creswell.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Went down tonight. Very misty down the tunnels as it was raining a little. Foggy and dark, very creepy. Had to go after work tonight as only time possible. Too dark to take a video but some of the pics from my phone just about came out. Deff need a good quality camera or video camera with a good flash and a bright light to light up the tunnels fully. Would love to take a video of the tunnels as they won't be open for ever and they won't last for ever, a few big cracks in the roof can clearly be seen. I used a Duracell Daylite which is only just ample to see where to go but not good enough for photos. A few close up pics of the old gas taps and the gas burners which they controlled in the centre of the roof are not to bad. Some of the gas taps had little doors that were rusted solid and others were rusted away. Small vents were situated between the gas burners and the skylights which were 15ish paces apart. Contact me for any more info as to time and place of next tunnel outing or if you want the photos. I think the onsite security were quite active tonight but managed to dodge them quite easily. 4x4 was driving about with spot lights blaring and I noticed an infrared illuminator hiding in the woods, so someone was spying on something.

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I stick to footpaths so I don't trespass but from there you can see quite away around the estate. The security are usually only interested in people walking on the estate and grounds around the main house. The tunnels extend quite away out and into wooded areas. I popped into a wood just a few yards in from the footpath to take a leak and nearly fell off the top of a tunnel entrance into a 12" high cutting. There are a few large cuttings that are not part of the tunnel system on the estate in the wooded areas so its best to stick to the footpaths really. These open cuttings used to form an open carriage-way around the estate that the duke could travel around but most have been filled in now. I've found that when you spot some of the really old type of iron fencing then be careful as it was put in place for safety. Looks like even the 5th duke was interested in Health & safety.

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trespassing on such sites was covered on the news in the past week.

Main concern being theft and damage being caused.

Brickwork and slabs laid hundreds of years ago being removed

to gain access or even stolen to be broken up for other uses.

One protected building suffered arson attacks destroyin structure

and contents.

Though I am sure that Nanocki is not one of these people,

and has a keen interest in the history and recording the sites

before they dissapear.

Perhaps the answer is to find a way to safely allow access

by the latter people to deter the former?

Regarding photgraphy of such sites, flash is a poor option,

and it would need time exposure, which would give results

if there is any light available at all.

try taking a tripod and using long exposures till you get

the desired results.

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I personally would like to photograph/video the tunnels in the interests of history but don't have the necessary equipment or skills at the moment, so any volunteers are welcome, and also get involved in any future plans to restore them. I would be interested to know if the estate could apply for a grant for the restoration of the estate and tunnel system. Some of the old buildings have already been converted for commercial use, such as the riding school which is used by Award Publications, by the Welbeck Project (www.welbeckproject.com). At some point the tunnel I have been down will either need restoring and making safe or blocking off completely for safety reasons. This tunnel may even have been forgotten about but it was used in the past by the college students to walk through for years. The brickwork on the side of the cutting walls outside the tunnel entrance is falling off in places but is generally ok on the walls inside the tunnel but some large cracks are evident in the ceiling with one area of the brickwork blistering off. With one end of the tunnel open to the elements the tunnel fills with mist on rainy days thereby rusting anything metal. It is such a shame to see these historic structures crumble away and trees growing into the cuttings as nature start to take back the land. The grand scale of the cuttings, tunnels and buildings on the estate is truly staggering to see and can only be appreciated fully first hand. The craftsmanship of the work is also second to none.

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