National Gallery in Wartime

This is the story of how the paintings moved to Wales, but the gallery stayed 'open for business', a photographic record of the paintings' war, and a celebration of the wartime spirit when Londoners found solace in art and music. On Wednesday 23 August 1939, the National Gallery closed its doors to the public, not knowing when they would open again. The paintings were to be secretly evacuated in a relocation that took only eleven days. The last shipment left Trafalgar Square on 2 September, the day before war was declared. At first the majority of the collection was stored in a number of private houses and public buildings, predominantly in Wales. However, by May 1940 - as the conflict progressed and the risk of bombing in Wales increased - it was felt that the paintings were no longer safe, and they were dispersed further.Ministers briefly considered transporting the entire collection to Canada, but Churchill immediately vetoed the plan stating, 'hide them in cellars or caves, but not one picture shall leave this island'. The paintings were eventually stored in Manod Quarry, a slate mine covered by 200 feet of solid rock in the mountains above the village of Ffestiniog. This book tells the story of the National Gallery's war for the first time. Extensive and eloquent archive photography, alongside press reports and Gallery correspondence, provide the basis for a story that captures the public's relationship with the collection.