Hidden beneath Her Majesty’s Treasury, in the heart of London, sits a piece of history and a tribute to the man who led Britain during World War II — Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

The Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms may be hard to find, but it still draws about 300,000 visitors a year, said John McPherson, a spokesman for the attraction.

The war rooms were the nerve center for British military planning as the German Luftwaffe bombed London in 1940 and 1941 and later when Nazi "buzz bombs" pounded the United Kingdom. As many as 500 people worked there, and there was enough room for up to 45 people to sleep.

"What tends to be people’s favorite part of the exhibits are the war rooms," McPherson said. "You are walking in the footsteps of Winston Churchill. It is a place where history happened."

Former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher had the war rooms reopened in 1984 for the public to enjoy, McPherson said.

War room visitors get an interactive audio tour of the British war effort’s command bunker. Visitors can type in the number of the exhibit to hear the information, and even listen to a conversation between Churchill and Truman and an argument between the prime minister and war planners.

The maze of underground rooms includes sleeping quarters for the former prime minister, his cabinet and his wife, Clementine Churchill; other living amenities; and a map room.

Churchill took naps in the war rooms, but there is no evidence he ever slept there overnight, McPherson said. The prime minister preferred to go on the roof of the Treasury building and watch the air raids, McPherson added.

Visitors also can learn about the Transatlantic Telephone Room, where Churchill discussed war plans with President Franklin D. Roosevelt and President Truman on a secure line.

Two of the rooms — the map room and cabinet room where much of the war-planning took place — were left in their original condition between 1945 and 1984. The other rooms were reconstructed using photos and the memories of the men and women who worked there, McPherson said.

The War Room and Museum are connected, but are actually two different exhibits. Photography is allowed in the War Room section, but not permitted in the museum, since items there are on loan.

The museum is a guide to Churchill’s life, from his early service in the government to his second stint as prime minister in the 1950s. It offers short films on Churchill and a 30-meter-long board that chronicles the life of one of the U.K.’s most renowned leaders.

Getting thereLocation: Clive Steps, King Charles Street, London SW1A 2AQ (look for the Treasury building). The nearest Tube station is Westminster.

Admission: 12 pounds for adults, 9.5 pounds for seniors and students. Children younger than 16 are free. Discounted tickets can be booked online

Web site:http://cwr.iwm.org.uk/.