The Coats Mission was a special British army unit established in England in 1940 for the purpose of evacuating King George VI, Queen Elizabeth and their immediate family in the event of a German invasion of Britain during the Second World War.
The force consisted of:[2] Initially, two of the Guy armoured cars in each troop had their guns removed and additional seats installed to carry members of the Royal Family.
[2] Several country houses in remote locations, reportedly including Newby Hall, North Yorkshire; Pitchford Hall, Shropshire; Madresfield Court (Earl Beauchamp's home in Worcestershire); and a fourth, unnamed house (possibly Bevere Manor, Worcestershire) were designated as refuges.
It was also a safe house for King George III in the late eighteenth century, in the event of an invasion by Napoleon.
[7] The mission was disbanded in 1942 and the task of evacuating the Royal Family in an emergency was transferred to a detachment from the Household Cavalry Composite Regiment.