Battle of Britain House, also known over time as Franklin House and Kokyo, was a private mansion in Ruislip that was used by the United States military to train agents for undercover missions in occupied France during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After the war, the house was dedicated as a memorial to the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

squadrons involved in the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

, and became a residential college and headquarters to the Ruislip & District Natural History Society. The house was destroyed by fire in 1984 and demolished; in 1993 the site was cleared to allow it to be reclaimed by nature.

History

The house was built by Josef Conn in 1905, after he had received a lease from

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...

, the owners of much of the land in Ruislip, to build within Copse Wood. At the time of building, it was possible to view the reservoir of what would become

Ruislip Lido Ruislip ( ) is an area in the London Borough of Hillingdon in West Greater London, London, and in the historic county of Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and ...

, and the church of Harrow on the Hill, St. Mary's.Bowlt 1994, p.135 Meyer Franklin Kline, an American shipping magnate, took over the lease from Conn in 1920. He first renamed the house "Kokyo" to reflect his company's presence in Asia, followed by "Franklin House", after

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

. During his ownership, Kline had various ornaments from the Far East placed around the gardens, and had furniture built for the house using wood taken from the luxury cabins of his ships. At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, Kline was in America and leased the house to a German national. The unnamed German was forced to relinquish his ownership due to regulations brought in by the British government. It was provided to the United States military to enable agents of the Clandestine Operations Division to be trained before embarking on sabotage missions in occupied France, its location within Copse Wood making it ideal for this purpose.Bowlt 1994, p.136 The house was planned to be purchased as part of a war memorial scheme in which young people from Britain and the

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

would take part in exchange visits. Due to financial problems, the scheme could not buy the house, and it was instead purchased from King's College in 1948 by

Middlesex County Council Middlesex County Council was the principal local government body in the administrative county of Middlesex from 1889 to 1965. The county council was created by the Local Government Act 1888, which also removed the most populous part of the coun ...

to become a welfare centre for young people. The house was renamed the Battle of Britain House, as had been part of the original plan, and featured plaques in the dining room with the badges of each Royal Air Force squadron active in the battle. The house was officially opened on 1 March 1949 by

Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admir ...

Sir James Robb. The house continued as a residential college run by Victor Stanyon, and from 1951 housed the headquarters of the Ruislip & District Natural History Society. It was destroyed by fire in 1984 and the ruins were demolished. Following a number of attempts to sell the site for development, it was agreed in 1993 to allow the ground to be returned to nature.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * Bowlt, Eileen. M. (1994) ''Ruislip Past''. London: Historical Publications

External links

Entry within British History Online
{{Authority control Former buildings and structures in the London Borough of Hillingdon Houses completed in 1905 History of Middlesex 1905 establishments in England Demolished buildings and structures in London Buildings and structures demolished in 1984