Workers from an electricity distribution operator made the discovery in Earl Sterndale, in the Peak District.
Western Power Distribution said it was a rare find for Derbyshire.
“Unexploded World War Two devices are relatively common in some of the cities in our region but are a more unusual discovery in Derbyshire villages,” the company said in a statement.
“The bomb squad made a preliminary assessment of the find and cordoned off the area with a police guard.
"They then returned the following day, confirming the bomb was live and detonating it safely.
“Thankfully, our work to dig and lay new electricity cables is usually much less explosive!”
Earl Sterndale is the only village in Derbyshire to have had its church damaged by a German bomb,during a raid in 1941, the company added.