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Bletcheley Park
Should you be in the UK and want to visit a very special place, I would suggest to visit Bletchley Park where ciphers and codes of countries such as Germany, Japan and Italy were decrypted during the Second World War.
Bletchley Park is located in the town of Bletchley in Buckinghamshire, England and the estate houses a museum where Enigma and Lorenz machines can be seen. The present mansion became the home of Sir Herbert Samuel Leon in 1883 and with its quirky mixture of Tudor, Dutch Baroque and Victorian Gothic styles it truly has become a symbol for the museum itself.
In 1938, with the threat of Hitler’s movements in Europe, the UK government needed a safer location for the Government Code and Cypher School, which at the time was based in London. The position of Bletchley Park at a junction of a major road, rail and teleprinter connections, while being in the middle of a rural landscape, made it an irresistible option. Being the tenth station acquired by MI6 for its wartime operations, Bletchley Park was given the cover name Station X.
We visited Bletchley Park on a chilly spring Sunday morning and despite the cold it was pleasant to see many visitors around the site. Bletchley Park can easily be reached by train, bus or car. There are frequent services from London Euston or Birmingham New Street. From Milton Keynes there are several buses arriving at Bletchley Bus Station. The park is open every day except for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day. Your ticket is an annual pass and secures admission to the site for twelve months, which really is a bargain.
Bletcheley Park is owned by the Bletchley Park Trust, a registered charity. It is very surprising that despite the importance of this place, it receives no public funding and thus the trust relies upon donations to help preserve and revitalise the Park. If you are interested in helping you can indeed pay a visit and maybe even make a donation. For more information visit their website and you can also follow their tweeter feed @bletchelypark.
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