Soviet Nuclear Bunkers in the Czech Republic

History – In brief

After the end of WWII and the collapse of the Third Reich, the territory now belonging to the Czech Republic fell on the Soviet side of the Iron Curtain. Together with today’s Slovakia, it formed the now disappeared unitary state of Czechoslovakia. Despite laying right on the border with the West – including Bavaria, which was part of West Germany and NATO – communist Czechoslovakia enjoyed a relative autonomy from the USSR, until the announced liberally-oriented reforms of the local communist leader Dubcek in the spring of 1968 triggered a violent reaction by the Soviet leader of the time, Leonid Brezhnev (see here). About 250’000 troops from the Warsaw Pact, including the USSR, landed in the Country. As a result, the Soviets established a more hardcore and USSR-compliant local communist regime, and largely increased their military presence.

Similar to the German Democratic Republic (see here for instance), Hungary (see here) or Poland (see here), since then also in Czechoslovakia the local national Army was flanked by a significant contingent of Soviet troops, who left only after the entire Soviet-fueled communist empire started to crumble, at the beginning of the 1990s.

Consequently, for the last two decades of the Cold War, Czechoslovakia was a highly militarized country similar to other ones in the Warsaw Pact (see here). Its geographical position on the border with the West meant it received supply for a high-technology anti-aircraft barrier (see here). Two major airbases in Czechoslovakia were taken over for use by the Soviets and strongly potentiated (see here).

Soviet Nuclear Depots in Czechoslovakia

Beside conventional forces, also nuclear warheads were part of the arsenal deployed in this Country. Where in the late 1960s Soviet strategic nuclear forces were already mostly based on submarine-launched missiles and ICBMs ground-launched from within the USSR’s borders, tactical forces were forward-deployed to satellite countries, to be readily operative in case of war in Europe. Missile systems like the SCUD, Luna (NATO: Frog) and Tochka (NATO: Scarab) were deployed to the Warsaw Pact, supplying either the local Armies or the Soviet forces on site. Typically armed with conventional warheads, these systems were compatible with nuclear warheads too, making them more versatile, and of great use in case of a war against NATO forces in central and western Europe (see here).

Irrespective of their employment by a local national Army or a Soviet missile force, nuclear warheads were kept separated from the rest of the missile system for security, and invariably under strict and exclusive Soviet control. Bunker sites were purpose built in all components of the Warsaw Pact for storing nuclear warheads – see page 46 of this CIA document, showing with some accuracy the location of the corresponding bases.

Granit– and Basalt-type bunkers were typically prepared on airfields or artillery bases, for short-term storage of soon-to-be-launched nuclear weapons. Instead, top-security Monolith-type bunkers (the triangles on the map in the CIA document) were intended for long-term storage of nuclear ordnance.

Monolith-type bunkers were built by local companies on a standard design in the Soviet military inventory, and were implemented in satellite Countries in the late 1960s. Czechoslovakia received three such sites, which took the names Javor 50, by the town of Bílina, Javor 51, close to Míšov, and Javor 52, close to the town of Bělá pod Bezdězem. All three locations are in the north-western regions of today’s Czech Republic.

The Soviet military started withdrawing the nuclear warheads from satellite Countries in 1989, months before the collapse of the wall in Berlin. As for Czechoslovakia, by 1990 all nuclear forces had been moved back to the USSR. Following the end of the Cold War, Monolith-bunkers – similar to most of the colossal inventory of forward-deployed military installations formerly set up by the Soviet Union – were declared surplus by the Countries where they had been implemented.

These primary relics of the Cold War have known since then different destinies. Some of them have been hastily demolished, and together with their associated fragments of recent history, they have almost completely disappeared into oblivion. Luckily, a few are currently still in private hands, and still in existence (see here and here) – specimens of recent military technology, and a vivid memento from recent history, when the map of Europe looked very different from now. Two can be visited, of which one is Javor 51, in the Czech Republic, the main topic of this post. This has been turned into the ‘Atom Museum’, which has the distinction of being the only Monolith-type site in the world offering visits on a regular schedule (the other open site is Podborsko, in Poland, covered here, which is open by appointment).

Also displayed in the following are some pictures of the now inaccessible site Javor 52 in former Czechoslovakia. Photographs were taken in 2020 (Javor 52) and 2022 (Javor 51).

Sights

Javor 51 – The Atom Museum, Míšov

An exceptionally well preserved and high-profile witness of the Cold War, the nuclear depot Javor 51 is a good example of a Monolith-type installation. These bases were centered around two identical semi-interred bunkers for nuclear warheads.

When starting a visit, you will soon make your way to the unloading platform of bunker Nr.1. The shape of the metal canopy, and the small control booth with glass windows overlooking the platform are pretty unique to this site. The metal wall fencing the unloading area is still in its camo coat outside, and greenish paint inside. Caution writings in Russian are still clearly visible. Concrete slabs clearly bear the date of manufacture – 1968. This site was reportedly activated on the 26th of December, 1968.

Even the lamps look original. Some of the – likely – tons of material left by the Soviets on the premises of this site has been put on display ahead of the massive bunker door.

The opening mechanism of the latter is a nice work of mechanics. Four plugs actually lock or unlock the door. They can be moved by means of a manual crank, or likely in the past via an electric mechanism (some wiring is still visible). The thickness of the doors is really impressive (look for the cap of my wide lens on the ground in a picture below for comparison!).

Each bunker had two ground-level entrances to the opposite ends, each with two blast-proof doors in a sequence. Warheads were transported by truck, unloaded beside the entrance of one of the two bunkers, and carried inside through the two doors, which constituted an air-tight airlock.

Today, you can see the inside main hall of the bunkers from the outside during a visit. This was likely not the case in the days of operation. The opening procedure required a request signal to travel all the way to Moscow, and a trigger signal traveling in the opposite direction. Once past the first (external) door with the warhead trolley, that door was shut, and the procedure was repeated for the second door, giving access to the inside of the bunker.

A security trigger told Moscow when the door was open. It can still be seen hanging from top of the door frame.

Once inside, you find yourself on a suspended concrete platform. The warhead trolley had to be lowered via a crane – still in place – to the bottom of the cellar ahead, i.e. to the underground level. The stairs now greatly facilitating visitor’s motion around the bunker were not in place back then, and descending to the underground level for the technicians was via a hatch in the floor of the suspended platform, and a ladder close to the side wall.

On the platform, an original Soviet-made air conditioning system can be seen – with original labeling – and signs in Russian are on display on the walls.

The platform is also a vantage point to see the extensive array of heat-exchangers put along a sidewall of the central hall – atmosphere control was of primary importance for the relatively delicate nuclear warheads. Each of them traveled and was kept in a pressurized canister. However, also the storage site was under careful atmospheric control.

To the opposite end of the bunker, the inner tight door of the second entrance can be clearly seen, ahead of another suspended platform. The warheads left the bunker for maintenance (they might have left also for use, but this never happened, except possibly on drills) from that entrance, which had a loading platform outside for putting the warheads on trucks (this can be better seen in other Monolith sites, like Urkut in Hungary, or Stolzenhain in Germany).

Down on the lower level, the main bunker hall gives access to one side to four big cellars, where the warheads spent their time in storage, and to the other sides to technical rooms. The pavement in the storage cellars features the original metal strongpoints, used to anchor the trolleys for the warheads to the ground. This was in case of a shockwave investing the site in an attack, to avoid the trolleys moving and crashing against one another. The original hooks with spherical joints to link the trolley to the strongpoints are also on display.

The storage cellars today have been used to display informative panels, with many interesting pictures and schemes. These include some from major sites connected with the history of nuclear weaponry in the Soviet Union (like from the test site of Semipalatinsk) and the US (like the Titan Museum near Tucson, AZ, covered in this post).

A few former technical rooms are used to store much original technical gear. This ranges from spare parts, tools and personal gear like working suits left by the Soviets (most with signs in Russian), to items ‘Made in Czechoslovakia’ or even radiation detectors from Britain and the West, gathered here for display and comparison.

Some of these spare parts are wrapped and sealed in Russian, looking like they were cataloged back in the time of operations.

In the main hall, many rare vintage pictures retrace the presence of Soviet military forces on this site as well as others in Czechoslovakia. Magnified copies of rare pictures portray the trucks, canisters and the very warheads likely involved in transport and storage in Javor 51. Actually, much mystery exists around the deployment of nuclear ordnance by the USSR outside its borders (not only to Czechoslovakia). Historical and technical information today made available, even to a dedicated public, is very limited, making this chapter of Cold War history even more intriguing.

Again in the central hall, cabinets for monitoring the nuclear warheads can be seen hanging from the walls, painted in blue. Each warhead used to be stored in a canister, which was periodically linked to these cabinets to check the inner atmosphere, temperature, etc., in order to monitor the health of its very sensitive content.

A large part of the technical/living rooms has been preserved in its original appearance. You can see parts of an air conditioning system, a big water tank, a toilet, a now empty bedroom for the troops. The bunker was constantly manned inside by typically six people, who operated in shifts. They did not sleep there, nor used the toilet much due to poor drainage. However, these facilities were used in drills, and were intended for the case of real war operations, when the bunker might have been sealed from the outside.

The electric cabinets take a dedicated room, like the huge air filters and pumps (Soviet made), installed to grant survival of the people inside the bunker in case of an attack with nuclear weapons or other special warfare. Clearly, the level of safety in the design of the bunker stemmed from the fact that it was considered by the Soviet as a a strategic target for NATO forces.

The last technical rooms host a big Diesel generator, supplied with air from the outside, and a big fuel tank in an adjoining room. Many labels bear writings in Russian, but the generator appears to be made in Czechoslovakia. The bunker was linked to the usual electric power grid of the region, and the generator was intended for emergency operations, in case the grid was lost or the bunker was isolated.

From the technical area, it was possible to access or exit the bunker, via a human-size airlock. The innermost tight door can be seen painted in yellow, with a locking mechanism resembling that of the major tight doors for the missile warheads. Outside the airlock, climbing three levels of ladders was required to get to the surface. This was the normal access to the bunker for the military technical staff, except when warheads arrived or left the storage (this was made via the major entrances, as explained).

Back outside, the second bunker, Nr.2, can be found at a short distance from the former. Nr.2 is being prepared for an exhibition on technology. At the time of writing, it can be toured except for the technical/living rooms. It is in a very good condition, and allows to get similar details as the previous Nr.1 on the construction of this type of facility – including the heating/air conditioning system.

The blue cabinets for plugging the canister for routine status checking and maintenance can be found also in Nr.2 in good shape.

Clearly visible here are the doors closing the technical areas and the warhead cellars. The latter were monitored for security just like the external airtight doors of the bunker, each with a sensor telling controllers whether the cellar was locked or not.

The airlock is covered in soot, possibly the result of a fire. Ahead of the entrance, the unloading platform is very interesting, having a unique set of light doors which had to be opened to allow trucks to come in. The concrete part of the platform appears slightly off-standard, with a short lateral concrete ramp, giving access to the main platform from one side. Parts of missiles – original – are being gathered in this area for display.

Monolith sites include two bunkers, which are the core of a strongly defended fenced area. In Javor 51, fences except the external one have been removed for the safety of visitors (rusty barbed wire can be very dangerous). These can still be found in other similar installations (see here). Similarly, the troops and technicians working on site lived in purpose-built housing, segregated from local communities. In Javor 51, this housing still exists, but cannot be visited.

Leaving the place, you can visit the nice visitor/gathering center, and even find some interesting souvenirs!

Getting there and visiting

All in all, the Atom Museum prepared at Javor 51 is a top destination for everybody interested in the history of the Cold War, nuclear warfare, Soviet history, military history, etc.

Credit goes to the owner of the place, Dr. Vaclav Vitovec, who is leading this remarkable preservation effort, and is a very knowledgeable and enthusiastic guide to the site for those visiting. Dr. Vitovec is also the owner of the border museum in Rozvadov, covered in this post.

The Javor 51 site is actually fairly well known at least to a dedicated public, having been visited by historians, scientists and notable figures – including Francis Gary Powers, Jr., who is very active in preserving the history of the Cold War.

The commitment of the museum’s managers is witnessed also by the nice website (also in English), where you can sign-up for a visit on pre-arranged days – as of 2022, all Saturdays in the warm season – or contact the staff for setting up a personalized visit. It is nice to see a good involvement by the local population (the great majority of visitors on regular visits are Czech), including many from younger generations. The exhibits tell much on the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and this is a major topic in the guided tour in Czech. Actually, the Czech Republic has a strong nuclear tradition, with many power plants in use, and a commitment for the development of nuclear energy in the future.

The location is around 25 miles southeast of Plzen, or 60 miles southwest of Prague. Easy to reach by car. The exact address is Míšov 51, 33563 Míšov, Czechia. Full info on their website. Visiting on a normal scheduled visit is on a partly-guided basis, meaning that you will get an intro (in Czech) of around 40 minutes, than you will be allowed to access the bunkers and visit on your own, for all the time you like. You might end up spending more than 2 hours checking out the site and everything is in it, if you have a special interest for the topic. Dr. Vitovec is fluent in English, and can provide much information upon request.

Javor 52 – Bělá pod Bezdězem

The Monolith-type site Javor 52 has been willingly demolished, likely by the Government of the Czech Republic, as it was the case for most other similar (or more in general, Soviet-related) sites in Poland and Germany.

However, it was hard to get completely rid of any trace of an installation so bulky and reinforced. Therefore, some remains can still be found and explored.

Some technical buildings still in use close to the bunkers may have been there from the days of operation.

Getting close to the bunker area, traces of the multiple fences originally around the site can be found, either in the trees or in the vicinity of unmaintained roads. Wooden or concrete posts with fragments of barbed wire are clearly visible. Also reinforced concrete shooting points can be spotted in the wild vegetation.

As typical, two bunkers were erected on site, and similarly to Javor 51 (see above), in Javor 52 they are aligned, with the entrances all along the same ideal orientation.

The bunkers in Javor 52 have been interred, so that they are now hardly noticeable from the outside, except to a careful eye. Looking inside the eastern one, it is possible to get a view of the open doors of the main airlock, providing a distant view of the inner main hall.

Descending through the lateral human-sized airlock is not possible except for a short length, from a concrete manhole on top of the bunker.

The western bunker is in a better general condition, and the main hall still retains a pretty unique writing in Russian. The ladder descending from the suspended platform has been substituted with a posthumous, regular ladder. Much metalwork has disappeared though, including the heat exchangers, the crane, and the tight doors.

Between the bunkers, a concrete pool can be found – still watertight! – with a function which is hard to guess. A pool for civil use was installed in Stolzenhain (and reportedly also in Javor 52, but I had not the time to watch out for it), but this was in the low-security of the site, far from the bunkers.

Getting there and moving around

Access to this place is possible without violating any property sign, but is clearly not encouraged. Going unnoticed is made tricky by the presence of a public facility nearby – a shelter for foreigners and some education activity. Parking out of sight is possible along the road 27235, north of the complex and to the west of the road – trailheads and corresponding parking areas can be found there. Check out some satellite map to find a way to the exact location of the bunkers – their respective entrances are approximately here (eastern bunker) and here (western bunker).

I visited the site in 2020, and the entrances appeared very dangerous and easy to seal in a permanent way. I do not have any further update, but would suggest to go prepared to find definitively interred and totally inaccessible bunkers.

Javor 50 – Bílina – Quick note

As of 2020, the site of Javor 50 is in a peculiar state of ‘conservation’. The place is closed to the public, but entering would be basically unimpeded, since the external fence to the former military base is mostly collapsed and interrupted. The Soviet quarters insider still have much to offer – including writing in Russian, a scheme of the base, and much more. Likely, the bunkers are also still in a relatively good shape.

Much surprisingly though, somebody is living there with watchdogs, in miserable conditions, keeping visitors out. It is likely that an official visit may be booked by getting in touch with the municipality, since it appears that the site is not used for anything. However I was not successful in connecting with anybody there, therefore I have no suggestion on this point. The of the main entrance is here.

Soviet and East German Relics North of Berlin

For the full span of the Cold War, the communist German Democratic Republic has been a highly militarized region.

Due to its position right on the European border between NATO countries and the USSR-led eastern bloc, this relatively small state was kept in high consideration by the Soviet military staff in Moscow. In the re-organization of Soviet forces following the end of the Great Patriotic War (i.e. WWII), of the four Soviet groups of forces stationed in all satellite countries outside the Soviet border, one was specifically named ‘Group of Soviet Forces in Germany’. This group was headquartered in Wünsdorf, the former location of the German OKW south of Berlin (see this post), and had under its command a force of some hundred thousands troops, divided in two tank armies, an entire air army, three mixed armies and a supplementary artillery division. Supplies were in no shortage either, with some tens of fully operational airbases/tank polygons, academies and housing for all the troops and respective families.

Despite the very significant Soviet presence, the GDR invested a huge capital of its own in the development of a full-scale military strength. The East-German National People’s Army (NVA) received top-tier technology from the USSR, and did of course manufacture military supply of all sorts. Sustaining this army, together with the enormous para-military organization of the internal Ministry of Security – the ill-famed STASI – and other governmental organizations, military expenses undoubtedly contributed to the economical crisis hitting the GDR in the 1980s, setting the scene for its final demise.

The region north of Berlin was particularly rich in military and governmental installations, some of them highly classified, their history shrouded into mystery. You can find some information in dedicated posts on this website (see this post, also here and here).

In this chapter, some more items of interest are featured. Four of them are abandoned tokens from Soviet occupation. A nice belle-epoque villa on the shore of the Röblingsee in Fürstenberg, where the headquarters of the 2nd Guard Tank Army was headquartered since Stalin’s era to the withdrawal of Soviet forces in the 1990s, is the first of them. The second is a unique, forgotten Soviet monument, to be found less than two miles south of Fürstenberg. Two more are memorials and cemeteries, for Soviet troops who perished in the last stage of the Great Patriotic War (WWII) around Berlin.

Other three points of interest are instead GDR-related. The first is the former academy for future leaders of the communist party, established in Wandlitz in the years of Stalin, and initially led by Erich Honecker, later to become the omnipotent leader of the GDR for two decades. In the same area north of Berlin – and precisely in Waldsiedlung, today a nice clinical campus in the countryside – are the former private houses of the members of the central committee of the communist party of the DDR – personalities like Walter Ulbricht, Erich Honecker, Erich Mielke and Egon Krenz lived here with their families. Finally, you will find a glimpse from the so-called ‘Honecker bunker’ in Prenden. This big and highly classified installation was prepared in case of war, to protect the leadership of the GDR and ensure safe communication with Moscow.

Photographs were taken in summer 2019 and 2021.

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Sights

Soviet 2nd Guard Tank Army Headquarters, Fürstenberg/Havel

Among the Soviet forces permanently stationed in the GDR in case of war, there used to be two entire tank armies, the 1st and 2nd. The former was headquartered in Dresden, whereas the 2nd – named ‘Red Banner’ – in Fürstenberg/Havel.

The headquarter in Fürstenberg is basically an old villa, possibly dating to the late 19th century or a slightly more recent time. The villa is somewhat unusual in the panorama of todays Fürstenberg. This is a nice and lively touristic town, where many Berliners come to find a retreat in nature, less than 1 hour driving from home. Thanks to tourism-related activities, the area has got rid of the Soviet/East German grayness, and is now a typical village in the German countryside, graced with a creek and a small lake, where canoes and small boats are always roaming around.

In stark contrast with this, the villa is today completely abandoned, with overgrown vegetation almost hiding it from the main road. Access to the premises is easier from the back, where you first meet a typical Soviet prefabricated wall, and service buildings with evidence of a communist design – the usual yellow paint and railings on the windows with the stylized ‘radiant dawn of communist revolution’.

Getting closer to the house, you meet an access door, possibly going to a bunkerized area underneath. The house is in a really bad shape, with rotting walls, plants growing on the balconies and roof. The inside has been made completely inaccessible. A typical East German light is still hanging from the back wall.

To the front, a temple-like decoration contours the main door. It is difficult to say whether this decoration was there since the beginning, since it appears rather different in style from the rest of the villa.

A highlight of this site is the statue of Lenin still standing ahead of the front facade. The statue is in a relatively good shape. It looks like the man was portrayed during a discussion.

The concrete sculpture was accurately made, as witnessed by the facial expression and details in the embroidery of the tie.

On the front side, the villa used to be reachable with a large flight of steps climbing uphill, with Lenin on top. Today this perspective is gone, for vegetation has totally invaded the steps, and the front of the house is not visible from the street.

Getting there and moving around

The villa is located in central Fürstenberg on Steinförder Strasse (possibly) 44, on the southern side of the road. The house and its large garden estate are abandoned, but all other houses around are not. Getting closer without being spotted is easier from the backstreet. Technically speaking, the latter is accessible for residents only, so you may park somewhere else and come closer by foot. Visiting may take about 30 minutes with time for the pictures, for the house is not accessible inside.

It should be remarked that this site is probably not public, and at an unpredictable time it may be either restored or demolished – so checking it out may be not possible for long.

Soviet Monument, Fürstenberg/Havel

A rare example of Soviet commemoration monument can be found very close to Fürstenberg. Apart from the monumental sites in Berlin (see here), a number of smaller Soviet monuments are to be found around the GDR – impressive ghosts of a bygone era.

Among the best preserved are that in the former tank base of Zeithain (see this post), and this one in Fürstenberg.

The monument is composed of two parts, basically two concrete curtains facing each other on the sides of a small apron.

The smaller panel to the south is the most intriguing. It is apparently a celebration of an economic plan of the Soviet Union. It is all about the growth in production in several areas of industry and farming, likely resulting from careful planning by the top of the Soviet government.

Between a citation from Lenin and a stylized image of the Kremlin, several panels cite one by one the increases in production of anything from oil to weapons, from milk to corn.

To the back of the monument, the only remaining feature is a remarkable head of Lenin, with yet another citation. It is likely that other features have been removed by vandals, as empty frames can be seen aligned along this face of the monument.

The larger panel to the north is a celebration of the march to Berlin during the Great Patriotic War, likely related to specific actions of the Guard Tank Armies. The central slab features an image of the Soviet monument in Treptower Park, Berlin – one the most famous commemorative monuments in the Soviet Union, as witnessed by numerous images to be found still today in many museums in the former USSR (see for instance here).

Close by, reproductions of decorations and captions of what happened on some days of 1944 and 1945 are reported.

On the left panel you can see a reproduction of the march to Berlin, from the battlegrounds in the USSR, through central Europe and Germany. It is likely that some metal parts of the monument once used to connect the ‘points of interest’, but these have disappeared due to vandalism.

On the right wing of the monument the names of Heroes of the Soviet Union possibly from the Guard Tank Armies are cited one by one. Close by, the image of the ‘Soviet Motherland Calling’, pretty usual in Soviet war iconography, can be found together with other typical emblems.

Getting there and moving around

This monument is not maintained nor protected. It is open air, unfenced and freely accessible. It will be hopefully restored or moved to a museum, as the weather and vandals are taking their tolls. It can be reached along the road 96 about 1 mile south of Fürstenberg, immediately to the west of the road. A small unofficial parking area can be found ahead of it, making a quick visit really easy.

Soviet Memorial and Cemetery, Rathenow

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The Soviet memorial in Rathenow is one of a number of smaller military cemeteries for Soviet troops in the region around Berlin. Soviet soldiers perished in the area in the thousands in the final stage of WWII (1945), when the Red Army entered the northeastern part of todays Germany from Poland, pushing towards Berlin and fighting against the agonizing but still fierce German Wehrmacht.

Apart from the gigantic and formal monuments in Berlin (see this chapter), more modest shrines are scattered around the German capital city, all built roughly in the same period, between the end of the war in Europe and 1950, in the years of Stalin.

The Rathenow site is a small town cemetery, a proportionate, down-scaled version of its larger counterparts in Berlin – especially Schönholzer Heide (see here) – and can be found in the center of the sleepy town of Rathenow. A central obelisk with a commemoration plaque is topped by a golden five-pointed star, the symbol of the Red Army.

A number of soberly designed grave stones for as many Soviet troops are aligned in rows, creating an elegant perspective. Most of the graves bear complete names, as well as the birth and death years. Similar to the war cemeteries dating also from WWI (see for instance here and here), the very young age of most of the troops in the final struggle around Berlin is readily apparent.

Despite being fenced and of course not left in a state of disrepair, the green areas immediately outside of the perimeter of the monument in Rathenow are somewhat neglected, perhaps reflecting a fading interest for this monument.

Getting there and moving around

The Soviet monument in Rathenow can be reached at the crossing of Ferdinand Lassalle Str. with Friedrich Ebert Ring, in central Rathenow. The monument is very compact and can be toured in a few minutes.

Soviet Memorial and Cemetery, Blumberg

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The monument in Blumberg, in the northern outskirts of Berlin and really close to town, is smaller than the one in Rathenow (see above), but shares the general arrangement with it.

A central pillar with a commemoration slab is surmounted in this case by a statue of a Soviet soldier, holding a Red Banner flag.

Ahead and around the pillar, gravestones put flat on the ground are aligned in a perspective. However, the overgrown vegetation is basically hiding these lines of tombs, so that even from a small distance the central monument appears as an isolated item, put in the middle of a grassy area.

Actually, the major difference with other monuments of the kind lies in the rather remoteness of the one in Blumberg. It is a listed historical landmark, and therefore at least minimally cared for, but on the other hand, it is located relatively far from todays nearest settlement, hidden in the trees, and out of sight for anybody except people going there specifically for it. This makes it rather mysterious, a silent memento of old memories.

Getting there and moving around

The monument is conveniently located just out of the A10 highway (the external ring of Berlin), in the settlement of Ahrensfelde. You may reach Chausseedreieck and drive to its western dead end, where you can conveniently park. From there a grassy path points south into the trees, and in less than 150 yards you will find the monument. The size of the monument is small, hence no further walking is needed. A mosquito repellent is highly recommended in the warm season.

Free German Youth Academy & Joseph Goebbels Manor, Wandlitz

Deep in the countryside about 25 miles north of Berlin, about 3 miles from the small touristic village of Wandlitz, you can find a couple of highlights from the troublesome past of Germany, sitting side by side, close to the small Bogensee lake.

The first is the country estate of Joseph Goebbels, the famous minister for education and propaganda in the years of the Nazi dictatorship. This villa has been built in the war years, and often used by its owner, also for receiving guests. Goebbels obtained the estate as a birthday present from the Nazi Party.

Incredibly, the manor, built in a typical German country style, was not demolished after the war – so unlike other residences belonging to Hitler or his fellows, it is still there to see. It survived denazification, Soviet occupation and 40 years in the GDR as part of a school (see below).

The outside is the only part you can see. The appearance is sober, with simple lines and not much vertical elevation – it nicely integrates in the natural setting.

Access to the courtyard is from a small road, now part of the inner network of the larger complex surrounding the manor.

This complex is actually the other peculiar item you can find in Wandlitz. This enormous academy was built in 1951, on behalf of the Free German Youth (FDJ), a youth-training organization founded and originally run by Erich Honecker, later to become the general secretary of the communist party of the GDR in the 1970s and 1980s.

The academy was designed by Hermann Henselmann the same architect who designed Karl-Marx-Allee in the Soviet sector of Berlin – one of the most iconic ‘Stalin’s-style’ perspectives in the world. The complex is composed of two large opposing buildings, on the short sides of an internal courtyard. These hosted common areas, lecture rooms and a theater.

Along the longer sides of the courtyard are buildings with bedrooms and services for around 500 students.

The academy was for the future staff of the communist party, and in later years of the Cold War it was attended also by international students from communism-leaning nations, or sometimes even from NATO countries.

Following the collapse of the GDR, the building went on hosting educational institutions until the early 2000s, owned by the regional government. It was then mostly shut off, with some ancillary buildings still hosting institutions connected with the administration of the natural preserve around. It was put up for sale, for a while, but all potential customers failed to present satisfactory conversion plans. An expensive and inconvenient ghost from a forgotten era, as of 2019 its fate has not been sealed yet.

Today the place is not completely abandoned. Basic preservation works are being carried out, thus avoiding the roof to collapse or the walls to rotten. The names of the blocks are likely not from the GDR years. Similarly, a board with notices and maps dating from later than 1989 can still be seen, a witness of the post-GDR activity.

The garden is not growing totally wild, and some architectural addition must have been tried in a recent past – like a small modern fountain ahead of the common building to the southwest of the complex. The buildings are still supplied with electrical power – there are lit lights above some doors – and it is discretely guarded to avoid vandalism.

Getting there and moving around

Accessing the area is possible following the L29 from Wandlitz. About 1 mile from the village, the road changes its name to Wandlitzer Strasse. There is a local road with limited access taking to the east. You may park there, and proceed along the road by foot for about .5 miles to reach the heart of the complex. This is surrounded by private houses. There is no fence, but there are proximity sensors which trigger an inspection. I was reached by a warden on a car soon after my arrival. He spotted me, but did not come close, likely noticing I was just taking pictures outside.

The site is rather mysterious and well worth a quick visit for interested subjects. Touring the site will not take more than 45 minutes, taking all the pictures.

Private Homes of the Members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the GDR, Waldsiedlung

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Similar to other top-ranking figures in the Soviet chain of command – like Stalin and others in his communist entourage, who did not spend much of their time in public or close to crowded places in central Moscow – the masters of the communist party in the GDR had their homes in the trees north of Berlin, relatively far from the city center and from the governmental buildings.

Actually, many of them lived together in a rather compact residential district, called Waldsiedlung. Access to the area was obviously controlled, but once inside the place was somewhat similar to a holiday settlement, with smaller single or two-family houses located along quiet alleys in a rural setting. The architecture is far from lavish – all houses are very similar to one another, and are designed in a plain typically East-German style from the post-WWII era.

Today, the settlement in Waldsiedlung has been converted into a campus for clinical studies. However, the original architecture of the place has been left mostly untouched, and explanatory panels telling quick information about the history of the residence have been planted ahead of most of the housing once occupied by old communist big brasses.

The office by the gate, and the metal gate itself, are totally original, as can be seen from historical pictures.

Among the first buildings past the gate is a former congress center/clubhouse/gathering facility for the inhabitants of the residence.

Moving on to the northern part of the settlement, the modest house of Erich Honecker and his wife Margot can be easily found. The two-storey construction has a patio on the backyard. A mystery wooden hut can be found next to the latter.

The Honeckers were forced to leave this house in the turmoil following the collapse of the wall and the starting of the reunification process. Honecker fled to the Soviet Union in seek for protection, quickly departing from the Soviet base in Sperenberg (see here). He was trialed in absentia, in connection to the order issued to the GDR border guards to used deadly force against people trying to pass the ‘anti-fascist wall’, and the ensuing deaths. He remained in the USSR until also that dictatorship collapsed, and he was forced to escape to South America, where he died soon after.

To the far end of the same alley is the house of Walter Ulbricht and his wife Lotte. Somewhat larger than Honecker’s house, it is however not much more evolved in adornments or architectural fantasy.

On another alley, parallel to the previous one, is also the house of Erich Mielke, the uncontested head of the ill-famed STASI, since its early years to the end.

The man was captured and trialed for an old case of homicide, after the shut-off of the STASI monstrous machine. He died soon after.

Today even these smaller buildings have been converted for a new function in the clinical campus. Therefore, they cannot be toured inside. However, strolling in this inconspicuous, quiet village where a huge concentration of power used to be seated, provides a strange feeling.

Getting there and moving around

The Brandenburg Clinic, which has now taken over the Waldsiedlung residence for the members of the GDR government, is on the road N.273, between Bernau and Wandlitz. The clinic in Waldsiedlung is rather busy, and the parking ahead of it may be crowded. However, since the place is guarded and access regulated, that is the only credible parking option also for a historically-themed visit. You can access the area by foot undisturbed, and take photographs of the exteriors. There are explanatory panels ahead of many of the former residential homes.

Honecker Bunker, Prenden

Geographically very close to the academy in Wandlitz (see above) – less than 1 straight mile away – the bunker in Prenden is the central piece of a network of bunkers and military hardware, designed an built on behalf of the National Defense Council (NVR) of the GDR from 1973 onward, and named ‘komplex 5000’. The purpose was protection of the leadership of the GDR in case of a crisis or attack from the West.

The bunker is Prenden, technically listed as ’17/5001′, was a control center of incredible sophistication, designed to withstand nuclear blasts, and with direct communication with other sub-nodes of a larger communication network, thus granting safe communication and broadcasting ability, allowing to lead the country in case of a crisis. The bunker was intended to host the general secretary of the communist party, i.e. Erich Honecker, when the bunker was commissioned in 1983 – hence the unofficial name ‘Honecker bunker’.

The premises of Prenden are now largely in private hands, but some parts are apparently publicly accessible – the original fence has been completely torn down. The bunker itself is sealed, and can be accessed only on a few days per year with a guide.

The official entrance to the area is through the original GDR-made gate. This is closed however, for it is now the entrance to a small private industrial complex.

Traces of the original fence, as well as piping and vents for underground rooms, can be found around the hill on top of which the installation is standing.

Some service buildings in typical communist style can be still found, despite demolition works having taken place. Proximity sensors and signs delimit the private property area.

The three-storey building on the southwestern corner of the complex used to be the ‘front office’ of the bunker. Today, it is in a really bad shape.

Inside, traces of the original furniture and services can still be found, albeit much deteriorated.

Access to the bunker is on the underground floor. You may notice the prison-like railings ahead of the access stairs. A feature that might make you jump when you are exploring alone – if walking in a forgotten communist government building, deep in the silent German countryside, was not enough… – is the lit bulb hanging over the entrance to the bunker – really unexpected!

Besides the building, a shelter-garage for trucks and cars is still in a relatively good shape.

Getting there and moving around

The Prenden bunker is not publicized, but it can be neared easily with a car, about 1 mile south of the small village of Prenden, along Utzdorfer Strasse. The gate can be clearly spotted, but it will be likely closed, and there are obvious ‘no trespassing’ signs and labels of private companies. You may park outside and proceed along the side of the property to the back of it, where the abandoned building mentioned above can be found. Whether this is still on private land or not is not very clear. There are proximity sensors between the abandoned building and the rest of the complex, likely to trigger inspection if you get too close to the (surely) private part of the complex.

Venturing in the building is definitely not safe, and the bunker entrance is usually closed. Official visits to the bunker are possible on guided tours arranged irregularly about once per month (please browse the internet for more info on visiting, cause I could not find an official site of the place to link here).

The Border Forts of Czechoslovakia Against Nazi Germany

The Maginot line – a line of forts running along the French border with Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium – is a widely known example of military engineering from the inter-war period (see this chapter). The adopted construction technique, based on reinforced concrete pillboxes with walls several feet thick, half interred to decrease visibility from above, field cannons and anti-tank defensive guns, witnesses the great consideration given to tanks and aircraft as attack weapons.

Due to the fast movements typical to the new strategy of the German army since the beginning of WWII, the Maginot line is mainly remembered for having not been involved in any major action, and having being largely bypassed. As a matter of fact, the German opted for a bypass also because the line was in place, so it was not as ineffective as it is often thought.

What is possibly even less known is that similar defensive lines were built in earnest in other European countries, before and even during WWII, after the Maginot line had failed to stop the invading German army. The enormous Salpa line, built by Finland against the Soviet Union, was probably the last and most effective to be completed (see this chapter). The Stalin line, prepared by the Soviets against Germany in Belarus, is another example. Another country who invested much in this type of deterrent was Czechoslovakia.

To understand the drivers of the design of the huge line of forts envisaged by the Czechoslovakian government of the mid-1930s, one should take a look at a map of Europe from the time. After the defeat of WWI Germany had managed to keep significant parts of todays Poland. The border between Germany and Poland ran close to Gdansk – aka Danzig in German -, and the province of Lower Silesia with the town of Wroclav – Breslau in German – were undisputed German territory. This means that todays border between the Czech Republic and Poland used to be actually a border between Czechoslovakia and Germany in the years before WWII.

With the turmoil preceding the infamous Munich Agreement and Nazi Germany claiming the right to control ‘Sudetenland’ – a large part of the peripheral territories of todays Czech Republic – in 1937 the Czechoslovakian government quickly started the construction of a huge system of forts to protect the border.

The concept was pretty similar to that of the Maginot line, with extensive underground tunnels to shelter soldiers and ammos, facing to the surface with reinforced concrete bunkers with different purposes, including observation, artillery shelling with field cannons, mutual protection with short range anti-tank cannons, machine guns and grenade-throwing tubes. There were also bunkers for accessing the tunnel system with resupply. About 10’000 light fortifications were actually built, more than 200 heavy fortified positions and a handful of heavy artillery positions.

The geopolitical situation in Europe got worse quickly in 1938, with the annexation of Austria in spring and finally the Munich Agreement, which caused the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. As a result of this internationally approved de facto German invasion, the works on the defense line were halted by the Wehrmacht. A relevant part of the hard construction had been completed, but most of the bunkers were still unarmed or lacked some software – air filters, ammo supplies, everyday items for the troops, etc. – and were not serviceable.

Most of the ironworks, including especially all heavy-metal turrets, were salvaged by the Germans. Some of the cannons found their way to the Atlantic Wall. The most massive concrete bunkers were used to test new weapons. As a result, the majority of the most sizable structures are still today in a partly damaged shape.

Some of the bunkers came to life again in the 1970s, when re-founded Czechoslovakia, that time a satellite country of the USSR living under a repressive and hard communist dictatorship, started a low-paced conversion of some of the structures into nuclear shelters for top ranks of the military and political hierarchies.

Notwithstanding these incidents, todays Czech Republic is duly proud of the significant work which was carried out in the difficult late Thirties. Very much was done for the little time available, and the quality of the design and construction is remarkable. While most of the sites are open only rarely, there are some where you can step inside and enjoy an interesting visit. This chapter covers with photographs and text five larger fortified complexes along this anti-German defensive line, from a two-days visit taken in August 2018.

Map

The following map shows the highlights of each of the five sites listed in this chapter. Please zoom in for greater detail. For the Bouda fort I could not spot and pinpoint on the map all the pillboxes you can easily visit from the outside – this are covered by vegetation.

Navigate this post – click on links to scroll

Sights

Stachelberg

The Stachelberg site is located about three miles north of the small city of Trutnov. The fort should have consisted of a main entrance and peripheral shooting positions, some of them linked by underground tunnels, to defend the area of the Giant Mountains. Construction works were terminated much before completion, so the surface bunkers forming the ensemble are actually not connected. Yet the major installation, a bulky infantry positions with provision for anti-tank artillery, provides access to an extensive system of half-prepared tunnels, which gives you a clear picture of the size and capacity of the complex.

The site is open to the public, and the ticket office can be found right inside this huge major bunker. From the outside, the volume of this pillbox is particularly stunning. Also interesting are the anti-tank obstacles, which used to be placed along the border line and between the forts, to trap invading columns in a position where anti-tank guns could be most effective.

This multi-level bunker is also place for a little museum on the fortifications, mainly based on explicative panels and scaled models of weapons and of the entire bunker complex. It covers the history of the fortifications, and explains most technical features of their construction. There are no weapons or other software – they were either not installed before the construction works were stopped, or salvaged by the Germans.

The tunnels can be visited on a guided tour only, starting from inside the main bunker with a descent of several tens of feet along a flight of stairs, originally made at the time of construction. The tunnels unfold on the sides of a major, perfectly straight initial track. Some of the lateral halls, intended to store ammos as well as for sleeping the troops, are very large and close to completion, whereas others are just sketched.

The tunnels were dug in the rock with the help of explosives. The next step in the construction works would have been a layer of concrete from the pavement up to the ceiling of the tunnels. This is present today only close to the entry point, at the bottom of the access stairs.

There are at least other five smaller pillboxes which have been preserved to some extent in the Stachelberg complex. They are accessible with different timetables, and do not provide access to the underground – by design, some of them should have.

One of the pillboxes has been colored in a very bright camouflage. I could not find out whether this used to be the standard, but it looks pretty unusual and not really mimetic… There are also refurbished connecting trenches between the smaller bunkers.

The concrete base of a never built bunker can be found not far from the parking area.

Getting there and moving around

Getting close to the complex is really easy, the area is very scenic and a popular destination skiing, and for nature trail hiking in summer. There is a parking on road N.300 from where the museum-fort can be reached with an almost flat, 0.3 miles track.

The complex can be toured on the outside without restrictions. The main bunker has opening times, and the underground part can be toured only with a guide. The guide speaks Czech, but you are provided a leaflet with explanations in English, upon request. The tour takes about 30 minutes, and is offered on a regular basis, with several entries per day. They warn you about the inside temperature, but I found it pretty easy to bear with normal summer clothes. Website here, but you will need some Google translation to find the info you need.

Voda, Brezinka and Lom

These three forts are actually parts of the same system, built on the eastern end of the town of Nachod-Beloves, the major center in a local valley ending in Poland. Three items in the complex are typically accessible to the public.

The one closest to the town, on the bottom of the valley, is the Voda bunker. This is very convenient to reach, and is basically composed of a preserved typical infantry pillbox with provision for machine guns. The bunker has been painted in a credible camouflage. On one end it is possible to note the damage inflicted by the Germans, when they took out the metal observation turret. This kind of treatment – and damage – can be observed on a great many bunkers of the line.

Inside, the bunker has been turned into a local museum on the armed forces. There were border guards operating in the area, involved in skirmishes before and after the end of the war. The weapons originally intended for the fort are not in place, but there is an interesting collection of weapons, uniforms, motorcycles and other gear from the army corps operating around there over the years.

The Brezinka fort is possibly one of the most famous of the entire defensive line. The reason for that is that it was recently restored to look like it should have looked, if only it was completed back in the late Thirties. In the restoration process, weapons and system parts from other locations in todays Czech Republic were brought to the Brezinka site.

The visit of the interiors is really exceptional, even compared to the forts of the other defensive lines in Europe. The fort really looks like it could be put in operation today!

The first part of the visit of this two-levels artillery bunker will take you downstairs, where you can find the sleeping quarters for the troops with a food storage.

Close by, there are two rooms for the electrical generator and for the ventilation system. Here you can see the electrical compressor, with backup manual handles, and the huge air filters. These are multi-stage filters, where each stage was designed to stop different poisonous components in the air. The system is working, so you are given a demonstration of the compressor – interesting to get an impression of the incredible noise this system produced!

On the same floor there is also a telegraph system, which was used to communicate with other bunkers in the complex in case of failure of the telephone link. This system was capable of transmitting Morse signals to the other pillboxes next to it, projecting the signal into the ground and using it as a medium – there were no cables! This allowed it to work even if a direct electrical link was lost.

The upper floor is even more surprising, cause basically all weapons have been restored to their original positions. The Brezinka bunker featured two main firing chambers. The one pointing uphill features two heavy 7.92 mm machine guns Zbrojovka Brno Mark 1937, a very widespread and reliable weapon, with an operational range of 1’000-2’000 ft at 500-300 rounds per minute. These were used to target infantry movements along the border line, pinpointed by anti-tank obstacles. Fire direction was from the observation turret or via an optical aim system. The latter was extremely precise, but more expensive than the machine gun!

In presence of an impenetrable smoke curtain or at night, an open-loop aiming system could be used. This consisted of a board with a precise sketch of the view of the outside from the firing point, mounted on top of the machine gun. A calibrated needle pointer was used to align the machine gun with respect to the target, by simply pointing the needle on the intended target on the board!

The third machine gun is a light ZB vz. 26, a very popular light 7.92 mm machine gun. This was used for close defense of the fort access. There are also grenade throwing tubes for the same purpose.

The other firing chamber points downhill, and is supplied with a machine gun as in the first chamber, plus the assembly of an anti-tank cannon and another machine gun. The cannon is a 4.7 cm Skoda KPUV vz. 38, with an up to 1-mile range at 35 rounds per minute. It could pierce a 50 mm armor from 0.7 miles apart, and was a very effective weapon. This very cannon was already in place before the German invasion, and was taken by the Wehrmacht to the Atlantic Wall in Norway. It has been returned to its original location in recent times.

There are other two metal-reinforced embrasures in the bunker for other two ZB vz. 26s. On the same floor you can find a kitchenette and toilets for the troops, ammo storages, and two observation turrets. The latter feature a working movable floor, to allow tailoring to the height of the observer. The turrets were fitted with a periscope, and were used to direct fire. They weighed 21 tonnes each, and could withstand direct close fire from anti-tank guns!

Finally, the room of the commander and the telephone room – with an original machine from the Thirties – conclude the tour.

The Lom object, five minutes uphill with respect to the Brezinka fort, is another infantry bunker. It has not been refurbished to the level of Brezinka, but nonetheless it is used to showcase construction pieces, weapons and memorabilia from WWII years. The armored turret was taken away by the Germans.

Between the Brezinka and Lom bunkers you can find a section of anti-tank obstacles. The concrete base used to support them can be spotted in several places here and other sites of the defensive line.

Getting there and moving around

These bunkers, and especially Brezinka, are surely among the most interesting of the kind to visit, considering also their counterparts in France, Finland and Belarus.

The Voda site is easily accessible by car. The Brezinka and Lom bunkers cannot be reached by car. You can park on a street close to the trail-head and take the trail. Unfortunately, the road going uphill, albeit not uneven, is extremely steep and about 1 mile long. You should definitely take this into consideration when planning your excursion, even if you are physically well-trained. Very few beverages are available at the Lom site, which is five minutes farther uphill from Brezinka. Nothing is sold at Brezinka.

It is a pity they didn’t prepare a better access road, cause the site is surely worth a visit, and may appeal to the specialist and to the general public – especially children! – as well.

Only cash is accepted in all these sites. The Brezinka site is accessible only with guided tours. Tours were offered every 20 minutes in late August when I visited. You are given a detailed leaflet in English or German, in case you can’t speak Czech. The guided tour of Brezinka takes about 50 minutes.

The Lom site can be toured in 10 minutes, whereas the Voda bunker is worth a 20-30 minutes self-guided visit. Explanations are partly also in English and other languages in the Voda bunker.

Information on these three forts can be found from this website.

Hanicka

The Hanicka site features an extensive underground tunnel system, actually connecting the main entrance to some major peripheral forts. The ensemble includes one of the few most imposing firing units in the entire defensive line.

But what makes this site even more unique is the fact that, after having fallen into oblivion since the end of WWII, in the 1970s it was selected to be developed into a nuclear-proof governmental bunker – codenamed ‘Kahan’. The ensuing modifications altered greatly the appearance of the entrance bunker, and most of the systems you can see today in the underground part are actually dating from the 1980s.

The works on the conversion were carried out at a slow pace, and were actually not completed before the end of communism in Czechoslovakia, the collapse of the Czechoslovakian federation and the birth of the Czech Republic in the early 1990s. The bunker was soon opened to the public as a unique specimen of military building engineering from both WWII and the Cold War.

The tunnels can be be visited only with a guided tour. The original entrance to the tunnel, modified in the 1980s, is the starting point of the visit. The entrance to the bunker looked totally different before it was developed into a nuclear shelter. The modifications at the level of the entrance included the construction of a soft service building, with room for storages of trucks, armored vehicles and other material.

In the first hall giving access to the tunnels you can find weapons, communication systems, scale models of the site, maps and much more from both the ‘two lives’ of the bunker, in the 1930s and 1980s.

Access it through a thick, typical soviet nuclear-blast-proof gate. Inside, you see the nuclear-proof system allowed to seal a section of the entry tunnel close to the gate. The bunker was designed to allow long-term survival and operations for 300 people also in case of total insulation from the world outside.

A modern energy production system was put in place and can be seen together with water and gasoline tanks. The structure of the bunkers was not altered significantly, but the various systems date clearly from more recently than the Thirties.

There are also extensive sleeping quarters and a medical facility to the far end of the main tunnel, which was built in the side of a hill.

You finally come out in a former infantry bunker, reached climbing upstairs to the top of the hill. Here the embrasures and reinforcing panels of the firing chambers are still in place.

The next part of the visit will take you to some other smaller bunkers, visible only from the outside.

The visit ends in front on the major RS-79a bunker, a top of the line artillery bunker. This was provided with three embrasures for field guns. The size of this installation is really striking. You cannot visit inside this bunker.

It was somewhat damaged by weapons testing by the Germans, and never refurbished. You can see a nuclear-proof door substituting one of the original embrasures.

Back to the parking, it is possible to see from the outside an infantry bunker and examples of anti-tank barriers. This bunker is a rare example of a totally undamaged fort of the line – even the metal turrets are original and have been left in place by the Germans.

Getting there and moving around

The Hanicka complex can be explored outside with no restrictions, but the inside can be toured only with a Czech-speaking guide. They provide you a leaflet in English. The visit lasts about 60 minutes. Info on their website.

The entrance is via the original entrance bunker, modified in the 1980s. Reaching this point from the parking on road N.319 is a bit demanding, cause you need to walk on an unpaved road going uphill with a relevant grade for about 0.7 miles, then you have about another 0.7 miles walking on an easy, flat road. Differently from Brezinka (see above), they have a facility selling food, beverages and souvenirs close to the entrance. It’s a pity they just did not prepare a good road and a parking nearby the entrance.

Anyway, this site has much to offer and the visit is highly recommended, both inside and outside, for children and adults as well.

Bouda

The two nearby forts of Bouda and Hurka share a basically similar construction, and represent possibly the best examples of almost-complete forts in the defensive line. They are articulated around a straight tunnel, mined in the side of a mountain. The section of the tunnel next to the main entrance bunker features a narrow gauge railway, used to transport ammos and various supplies to the storage units inside. Deeper in, there is provision for sleeping quarters for the troops. To the far end of the tunnel you can get access to a group of fortified installations and artillery bunkers.

The Bouda installation can be visited thoroughly. The site is very big but more remote to reach than Hurka. Besides the access bunker, where the ticket office can be found, you can see a specimen of a metal turret. None of the original turrets has been left in this site, all have been salvaged by the Germans.

Soon after the beginning of the tour, you will see the terminal of the narrow gauge railway. The double track goes through a short incline. At the base of the incline the main tunnel starts.

Not far from the entrance you meet slots for sealing doors and related actuation systems. These were installed by the Germans and used to test their reliability and the effectiveness of their weapons on them. They had some cannons installed further in along the tunnel, and shooting on the armored doors they had installed.

The railway turns single-track, until you reach a major storage for weapons with a loading platform. One of the storage chambers has been reused to display a collection of weapons used in the forts and the corresponding armored embrasures.

Further on you visit a group of chambers originally intended to be fitted as sleeping quarters. The dividing walls and metal frames have been demolished at some point – or may be they were never installed – but some of them can be seen, original or reconstructed. In this area there is also a memorial to Czechoslovakian troops.

Further in the tunnel you reach another set of chambers, one of them with pieces of armored constructions and other heavy material from around the site. Then you get access to the stairs leading to a heavy artillery bunker.

What you see here is the cylindrical concrete box where the actuation mechanism and reinforced cupola should have been installed. The size of the construction suggest the total intended size of the field cannon assembly, really big! This should have been very similar to some of the installations in the Maginot line (see this post). There is also a firing chamber for lighter weapons where nothing remains except some metal coating.

The guide will lead you back to the bottom and inside the main tunnel, and ascending along another stairwell you can reach an observation bunker with provision for light weapons. This bunker is in a better shape, and significant traces of the original soft construction are clearly visible.

Damage is due also to weapons testing carried out by the Germans, clearly visible from the outside.

Upon reaching the surface, you will be directed along a walk through the exteriors of the bunkers in the fortress, including the incomplete heavy artillery bunker, with the large concrete pit from visible above.

Finally, you access one of the bunkers, which appears pierced and heavily damaged from the outside. On the inside the firing chamber is fairly well conserved, with the original embrasures for machine guns still in place. The wall is pierced presumably by a shell or mine.

This very bunker was used also for testing high-yield explosives, and as a result of a huge explosion it shifted sideward of a few feet, without collapsing and with no alterations to its general shape – really sturdy! You can clearly appreciate the shift by going down in the stairwell!

You will then return to the main entrance with the ticket office where the visit will finish.

Getting there and moving around

The bunker parking can be found very easily driving north of the road N. 11 between Cervena Voda and Cerkovice. The area is popular for nature trail hiking, and the fort is also a popular attraction. Following the road signs, you will be driven to an observation tower on top of a mountain.

From there, the entrance to the bunker can be reached only by taking a trail which descends along the northwestern side of the mountain. The distance to cover by foot is a good 1.5 miles, so this should be taken into consideration when planning your trip. You have to go uphill on your way back to the parking, so the trail is more demanding when you are leaving. There are signs on every crossing, so you should not get lost. By the way, the walk is really nice, going in the trees with some bird-eye views on this beautiful countryside!

Once at the entrance of the bunker you can find refreshments and souvenirs. The bunker can be visited only with a guide. They are offering three options for the visit, each of them adding something to the other, yielding a difference in time. I took the most complete tour, and it took about 180 minutes.

You are provided jackets for staying inside – even though the temperature is not extremely low, especially if you are wearing technical trekking clothes, which are recommended for the preliminary trail to the entrance. The jackets are dirty, so it’s better to bring one of your own, as they almost force you to have something to cover in!

The tour is offered in Czech, with explanations in English provided on all panels and on a leaflet you can borrow inside. There is a fee for taking pictures, but both this and the entry ticket are rather cheap. Further info on their official website.

Hurka

The Hurka fortress is an installation pretty similar to the Bouda site, at least considering the inside part. After some years of closure following WWII, the Hurka site was converted into an ammunition depot in the 1960s. The modifications inside include some demolition work on the soft walls and frames, so the structure is mainly composed of large vaults.

The tunnels can be visited only with a guide. The visit starts from the original gate of the underground facility, where all supplies could be placed on a narrow-gauge convoy. An external loading platform can be spotted, together with specimens of anti-tank devices and of the reinforced observation turrets.

Inside, an incline leads to the initial part of a long straight tunnel. The exhibitions provide an impressions of an ammo storage, and there are also weapons and armored embrasures from the fort.

An interesting exhibition prepared in one of the halls is about the activities of the agents of the Czechoslovakian government in exile during WWII. This included launching paratroopers over the territory of the former Republic, tasked with establishing contact with dissident anti-Nazi movements, and carrying out high-risk, top-priority missions. A pretty famous mission they were tasked with was the assassination of Reinhard Heydrich, a top-ranking SS, since 1941 responsible for the administration of the annexed territory of todays Czech Republic. A bloodthirsty, feared and hated figure, he died in hospital soon after having being shot in June 1942 in an operation codenamed ‘Anthropoid’. All the spies involved in the operation were later killed, and terrible retaliation actions were taken by the Nazis on the local population. An international movie was produced on this subject in 2016.

You don’t get access to the firing positions from inside, but you can visit them from the outside on your own and with no restrictions.

A pretty rare feature is a ‘top of the line’ artillery bunker, with three shooting embrasures on one side. This bunker is today standing severely damaged from German fire, inflicted during weapon testing. The bunker was actually de-interred by the Nazis to expose its walls, and perforation cannons were tested on it. Among them, the so-called Röchling shells, with a high perforation potential, adopted operationally but used very rarely in action by the Germans.

The other artillery positions are scattered on a grassy area on the side of a hill dominating a local valley. You can see the damages inflicted by fire testing, and the empty boxes of the metal turrets salvaged by the Germans.

Getting there and moving around

The tour of the underground starts from the original access bunker, which can be reached just north of Kraliky on road N.312. Convenient parking outside. The underground can be accessed only with a guide. The ticked office offers also food and beverages. More info on their official website.

The firing positions can be toured on your own. They can be accessed driving about 0.3 miles north along the same N.312 road to the top of the hill, and turning left on an unpaved road. You will soon see a bar with a prohibition sign for cars. You can park nearby on the grass and proceed by foot, you will meet the fortification with an almost flat walk of 0.15 miles. There are signs with multi-language explanations close to each of the bunkers. The place is really nice, and the walk is highly recommended.

Forts of the Maginot Line

Soon after the end of WWI, the government and the top-ranking officials of the victorious French Army set plans for a defensive system along the eastern border, which would protect the nation from future invasions. The ambitious plan was initially based on a line of reinforced concrete forts placed along the border with Italy, Germany, Luxembourg. Construction started in the last 1920s, and the defense system was named after Henri Maginot, ministry of war at the time and a major advocate of the project, who died well before its completion in 1932.

Construction works continued till at least 1935 on the Italian and German sectors. Soon after, in 1936 due to the re-negotiations of the alliance with Belgium, the line was partly extended along the border between France and Belgium, but it never reached completion, thus failing to seal that sector of the border – which might have been possible only by reaching the coast of the Channel.

When the first thunders of war resounded in Europe in 1939, the forts of the Maginot line were reinforced further. The German Army planned an attack accounting for the presence of the line, and when the invasion of France was enacted in May 1940, a small diversionary army was sent against the French forts, while most of the Wehrmacht moved quickly through the forests of southeast Belgium – the Ardennes – finally entering France in the region of Sedan, next to the western extremity of the French defensive line. So the immense defensive system was outflanked in about three weeks, and an armistice between France and Germany followed soon in June 1940.

The Maginot line is composed of 108 major forts – ‘ouvrage’ in French – plus many more smaller installations. These bunkers had often different characteristics depending on the region, and were interred to an extent depending on the local characteristics of the terrain. Typical features of these forts are turrets with cannons and periscopes. Larger forts have usually two separate entrances for the troops and for supplying goods – shells, grenades, kerosene for the electric generators, food, medical supplies, etc.. These forts could house more than 1’000 troops each. Larger bunkers were often connected by a network of underground tunnels with smaller observation or firing positions, or reinforced barracks. There was also a dedicated telephone communication network all along the line.

Many forts of the line never sustained attacks, while some did. Some were even used in the closing months of the war by the US Army, as strongpoints during field battles against the retreating German Army.

Today, many forts of the line are preserved as national monuments. Some of them are open as top-ranking museums, some have been entrusted to local societies of enthusiasts which allow to visit them on a regular or limited basis. Some are usually shut and inaccessible except by arrangement.

This chapter is about a few forts of the Maginot Line in northeastern France visited in 2016. These highlights provide an insight on the typical construction of these defensive installations. Featured are many photographs taken during these visits.

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Sights

Ouvrage de la Ferté

This smaller fort is probably the one in the Maginot Line which saw the most intense action. Located in the beautiful countryside north of historical Sedan, on the border with Belgium, this fort is where the invading Wehrmacht inflicted a first major blow, entering French territory in Spring 1940. It was in the focus of a direct German attack between May 18th-19th, 1940, and no one of the French soldiers in the fort survived.

This installation, located on top of a hill, is composed of two main blocks, connected by an underground tunnel. The interior can be visited only on a guided tour, while the exteriors can be walked freely. The visit starts in the visitor center,  with a very nice animated movie telling the story of the fort, and of the momentous events of May 1940 it was involved in.

Then you are taken to the entrance of the bunker nearby. Getting closer, you are shown original defensive obstacles originally placed along the perimeter of many forts of the Maginot Line. There are six lines of rail beams stuck vertically in the ground, to stop tanks and vehicles, plus lines of barbed wire against attacking troops.

The entrance is through a bunker – Block 1 – emerging from the side of a hill. On top there are thick metal turrets for observation and rifle/machine gun firing. The entrance is through a smaller drawbridge, leaning over a dry moat. This is a distinctive feature of many similar forts of the line. An attacker close to the main door would find himself on the line of fire of anti-tank and lighter arms shooting through sealed loopholes in the wall of the bunker, and vulnerable to grenade attacks, which could be slipped through specially built inclined tubes. From the apron ahead of the bunker you can spot in the distance another concrete bunker part of the same group, about 1 mile away to the southeast. It cannot be visited.

Once inside you can see the shooting chamber opposite the wall close to the main door. Original light weapons are still in place – an anti-tank cannon and a machine gun. Close by there are the dormitories for the troops, the office of the commander and other service rooms, including bulky filters for the ventilation system.

During the fight, a grenade exploded inside the bunker, and this produced an extensive damage. Some non-structural walls collapsed, and what remains can be seen today. The ensuing fire was the final cause of the French disaster during the German attack, as the gas masks of the French troops were not designed against carbon monoxide resulting from a usual fire – most soldiers died from asphyxia.

The guide will drive you to the other block, walking along the connection tunnel. Block 2 features a revolving turret, which could be also retracted for sealing the bunker when necessary. When extracted, it exposed the barrels of various light weapons. This turret can be accessed if you are sufficiently agile. It was put out of combat by applying explosives which stuck the revolving mechanism – the turret has since then assumed a slightly banked attitude.

The guided tour ends after exiting through the door of Block 2. Moving around on top of the construction, you can see the clear signs of the German shelling on top of the turrets. Also the print left by a pack of explosive stick to the side of the revolving turret, but causing little damage, can be clearly spotted.

Between the two blocks, on the side of a local road crossing the site, a further concrete bunker with a small door – this time totally inaccessible – can be found. Opposite the road, there is a monument to the French soldiers who were killed in the attack.

Getting there and moving around

This site is really worth visiting also for those with a general interest for history, and it offers a very good insight on the specific features of the Maginot Line for technically minded people as well. The guide is very knowledgeable, and provides explanations in English also during visits in French. The place is managed as a modern museum, website here. The guided tour will last approximately 45 minutes. Allow more for touring the outside on your own and taking pictures. It can be reached along the road connecting Villy and La Ferté-sur-Chiers, less than 20 miles southeast of Sedan.

Ouvrage Simserhof

This is one of the big forts – ‘gros ouvrage’ – of the Maginot Line, located close to the German border. It was dug in the side of a hill, with two separate gates. The lower one at the foot of the hill was for supply, where the top one, close to the top of the hill, was for the troops. Both gates are reinforced concrete bunkers with loopholes for light artillery to defend the apron ahead of the entrance.

The place has a modern visitor center. The visit – only possible with a guide – is articulated in two parts. The first is a tour of the lower level, which used to be the storage for ammunitions as well as anything needed to supply the activities going on in the fort. This level has been converted into a dynamic exhibition, with sounds, a narrating voice, some visual effects. It is toured conveniently sitting on a cable car. The second part is a classic guided tour of the top-level, and it will start from the top entrance.

The inside of the fort is huge, and the tour is pretty extensive. You are shown the firing chambers besides the entrance, many tunnels, dormitories, living quarters for the troops, medical rooms, the rooms for the electrical generators, and many other service rooms. Remarkably though, you are not shown the artillery installations in the peripheral blocks.

Getting there and moving around

The museum is a prominent tourist attraction in the area. The visit to the lower level is more for children and people with a very general interest for 20th century history. The original setting was changed deeply to host a modern dynamic exhibition, which may not appeal to more technically minded subjects. The visit to the top part lasts about 1.5 hour, and is maybe too hard for kids. Many technical details are provided here and many items shown. Yet the fact that you cannot access any artillery position – at least when I visited – is a bit disappointing. Everything in French only when I visited. Info and timetables for visiting from their website. The closest sizable town is Saarbrücken, Germany, about 30 miles northwest of the site.

Ouvrage du Four à Chaux

This is an intermediate size fort, which hosted around 600 men in the days of operation. The visit – only possible with a guide – is very interesting, as the fort has many characteristics typical to larger installations of the Maginot Line – like Simserhof, see above – but it is more compact and easy to visit. Furthermore, during the visit you are shown all areas of major importance, covering the housing part, as well as the artillery control and firing part.

Much like larger forts, there are two entrances at two different levels on the side of a hill. You get inside through the top one, for troops. Access is by a drawbridge over a small artificial dry moat. From there, you are shown a series of long corridors and tunnels, along which you can find the dormitories and technical rooms.

A special feature is an escape tunnel, built vertically and reaching the top of the hill from the core of the fort. The tunnel is actually made of two twin parts, where the first was designed to be filled up with debris coming from the top of the hill in case of an attack, leaving the other free. This way escape was possible even after the emergency exit had been specifically targeted you enemy fire, causing the debris to fall inside. Further features include the big filters of the ventilation system.

The firing control area can be reached following a corridor going gently uphill. Here you are shown the technical situation rooms from where war operations were coordinated. Several panels and cutouts provide an idea of the structure of the fort.

Then you get access to the ammo storage. Here ammunitions for bigger calibers were put in canisters which were moved thanks to a rail hanging from the ceiling. Larger used shells were conveyed from the cannon to a storage area throwing them on a slide.

One of the retractable turrets is still perfectly working. The guide will operate the mechanism, showing how the turret can be moved up and down, and also how it can rotate. A closed circuit camera shows the turret from outside, thus allowing to better appreciate the effect of the mechanisms you see standing inside. This part is very interesting, and provides a good idea of how the fort worked during a battle.

The guide will finally drive you to the exit through the lower entrance originally for resupply, which is reached going down an inclined tunnel, used to load trolleys full of ammunitions moving them from the storage level to the operative quarters of the fort.

Close by the exit you can find an American M41 tank used as a gate guardian!

Getting there and moving around

The visit of this fort takes about 2 hours and it is very interesting. The museum is possibly less famous than others in the Maginot Line, which makes it more enjoyable, as groups are smaller and the staff is more dedicated. On the other hand, opening times are more limited, you can find information on their website. The visit was in French, but the guide answered my questions in English, plus you are provided a detailed paper guide in English – and probably other languages as well – for the time of the tour. The fort is on the premises of the town of Lembach, about 20 miles north of Strasbourg in the northeastern corner of France, right on the border with Germany.

Casemate Esch

This smaller reinforced artillery position is only rarely open to the public. Yet even from the outside it makes for a pretty unique sight. Actually this installation found itself in the middle of a storm in January 1945, when the 14th Armored Division of the US Army was stopped by the German army in the area of Haguenau during operation ‘Nordwind’, conceived by the Wehrmacht to repeat the success of the offensive in the Ardennes of May 1940. Many found shelter in this fort as a fierce tank battle raged all around.

Heavy damage resulting from intense shelling can be clearly spotted on this relatively small reinforced concrete building. A M4 Sherman tank has been placed on top of the bunker as a memorial.

Getting there and moving around

The barracks can be visited only on Sunday during the warm season. A view of the outside may be interesting, especially if you have already an idea of what a Maginot fort looks like from the inside. The place can be spotted easily on the side of D-28 less than 1 miles southeast of the small village of Hatten, some 15 miles north of Strasbourg. Information through the website of the larger Schoenenburg fort. For the outside, a tour of 15 minutes should be enough.

Abri de Hatten

This site is actually an extremely interesting WWII and Cold War museum, centered on the reinforced barracks in the village of Hatten, part of the Maginot Line. Inside the barracks, which can be toured on your own, you can find some of the original rooms rebuilt with their original furniture, especially a dormitory, a kitchen, medical facilities, air filters and power generators.

Due to the big size of the bunker, some rooms have been used to host extremely interesting exhibitions. These are about the life in the area in the times of the German occupation. Pictures and rare original artifacts with Nazi insignia are part of the collection. A unique German map of the world from 1941 is displayed – showing with the Swastika as the national flag of Germany, and many borders in Europe looking very different from now!

A room is dedicated to the wreck of a Messerchmitt Me-262 Schwalbe, the worlds first operative jet engined fighter. This aircraft was downed nearby the fort in the closing days of WWII. The two jet engines make for an interesting sight, plus there are many components of the avionics system originally on board this very aircraft, really futuristic at the time.

Another room showcases detection and communication gear from the Cold War years, and from both sides of the Iron Curtain. This recalls the fact that, soon after WWII, France decided to keep the largely untouched Maginot Line as a defensive installation against the Soviets. Having grown obsolete after nuclear stockpiles had begun to be produced also in France, the line was finally decommissioned by the early 1960s.

The premises of the reinforced barracks are scattered with further interesting items, including cannons of several makes and bores, anti-tank, anti-aircraft and heavier field cannons, from France, Germany, the US and the Eastern Bloc.

There are a MiG-21 and a Mil helicopter from the communist German Democratic Republic (GDR), a French Dassault Mirage, several antennas, a Soviet surface to air missile, more trucks from the GDR. There is also what appears to be a partly authentic border control booth with national insignia from the former border between possibly West Germany – maybe somewhere in Berlin – and the GDR.

There is a small memorial building dedicated to a group of soldiers of the French Army which after the armistice with Germany in 1940 were integrated in the Wehrmacht, and later sent to fight on the side of the Germans against the Soviets on the European Eastern Front. Due to the very harsh conditions of that sector of the front, many would never come back.

There are also two further buildings in the museum. The first is about the Maginot Line, with a comprehensive – and very interesting – collection of models of its various types of forts and reinforced structures. The second is on WWII, with remains of a downed Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, German transport vehicles, and many artifacts and weapons.

Among the most peculiar items on display there is a parachute for pigeons. These birds were extensively used for communication between occupied France and Britain. British birds were parachuted in France. If they fell in the right hands, they could be loaded with a message and launched. Their instinct would then guide them back to their home base across the Channel. Some of these birds even received military decorations for their bravery in this vital service!

Finally, a small collection of heavy army vehicles are kept in operative conditions by a local society of enthusiasts. These include US half-tracked vehicles, trucks, an American M60 and a Soviet T-34 tank!

Getting there and moving around

This unique, one-of-a-kind collection can be visited on a self-guided basis. Depending on your interest, a visit may take from 45 minutes to more than 2 hours. A website with some visiting information is here. There location is on Rue de l’Abri, immediately to the west of the village of Hatten, 15 miles north of Strasbourg. Most explanations are in French and German, plus scant signs in English. Please note that they accept only cash.

Fort de Mutzig – Feste Kaiser Wilhelm II

While not a part of the Maginot Line, the history of this fort is interesting, for it was erected by the Germans at the end of the 19th century, when the regions of Alsace and Lorraine – now part of France – had been lost to the German Reich following the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. It was designed and built as the most technologically advanced fort of its time. The construction was based on concrete instead of masonry, which made it capable of withstanding heavy shelling from the most modern and powerful howitzers of its age. It was made of three sectors, erected on top of a hill not far from Strasbourg, and was part of a defensive line built around that city against the French. It was dedicated to Kaiser Wilhelm II.

This immense structure featured two batteries of four heavy 150 mm howitzers and fourteen 105 mm cannons in specifically designed turrets, plus lighter observation and firing turrets. About 1’000 men stationed in the fort, which saw limited action in WWI and was ceded to France in 1918. Correspondingly, it changed name to Fort de Mutzig. At the beginning of WWII, it was regained by the invading German Army, which occupied it but later sent the cannons to the Atlantic Wall. It was bombed by the Luftwaffe in the closing days of WWII, but it basically went through the turbulent first half of the 20th century without sustaining any major damage. It was later abandoned and re-opened as a museum, frequently updated as more sections are restored.

It is today one of the largest and best preserved examples of early concrete forts – actually a good example of WWI military architecture, as construction techniques remained very similar until after WWI.

Visiting is possible only in guided groups. The visit will take you to the northern sector, where you can see the firing chamber for defending the gate, and a series of rooms including the living quarters of the troops stationed there. There are a the dormitories, a medical room and even a bakery. Most writing from the time is in German, and most machines bear the name of a German brand! You can visit the original toilet – even there, no privacy was allowed, to prevent the troops from committing suicide by always keeping a watch on them.

Inside the many empty rooms, there are exhibitions of artifacts like models of the turrets, reinforced observation posts and weapons from the original supply of the fort.

Interestingly, the original electric generators have been carefully restored together with the power-plant control panel – very nice, really from an older age!

The tour of the exterior will take you to the top of the fort, where observation and firing turrets can be seen from the outside.

Finally, a battery of four 150 mm howitzers is approached and visited.

Getting there and moving around

The fort can be reached on top of a hill about 12 miles west of Strasbourg. The road going uphill starts between the villages of Mutzig and Dinsheim-sur-Bruche. The guided tour – the only way to visit – takes about 1.5 hours. The visit will be extremely interesting for the general public and more technically minded people as well. Website with information here.

Aalto’s Highlights in Finland

Possibly one of the worlds best-known architects from the 20th century, Alvar Aalto – together with his wife Aino, also an architect – enjoyed a great popularity since the beginning of his working career. He began with experimental works mostly based on mixing and harmonizing many styles from different ages and countries – especially Italy, a Country the Aalto couple visited for the first time during their honeymoon, and which they fell in love. In the last 1920s with the birth of the functional style Aalto became a herald of this new architecture, which he mixed with an instinctive and very personal vein, resulting in something really original and easily identifiable. Aalto’s creations usually feature a great care for any detail, making any room in his buildings natural to use for its intended function.

Aalto’s work is of course well represented in his Finnish mother country, a nation which always acknowledged him as a great artistic personality and which he never left for long.

This short post presents some of the highlights of Aalto’s production in Finland. While far from complete, the sites listed here may offer already an idea of the diversity of the functions of Aalto’s buildings.

Photographs were collected on a visit to Finland in August 2017.

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Sights

Villa Mairea, Noormarkku

Surely one of the best known creations of Alvar Aalto, this beautiful mansion was built in 1938 for the Gullichsen family, owner of a successful wood pulp business and paper factory. This was not the only work commissioned to Alvar and Aino Aalto by this family.

This residential building was designed in Aalto’s typical interpretation of functional-organic architecture. The great variety of the materials and the attention to all details both inside and outside is also typical to this architect, which in this case could work without any relevant budget constraints.

The mansion is immersed in a young forest, in the hilly countryside north of Pori, close to the western coast of Finland.

The front façade features a small covered porch leading to the door.

Access to the slightly overhead garden is through a pergola on the northeastern corner of the house. The garden features a large swimming pool, a fireplace and a dinner table.

The large windows can be removed completely to transform the large ‘double living room’ occupying most of the ground floor into an open space communicating directly with the garden and nature around.

The windows are pretty heavy though, and this technological feature was used only rarely.

Visiting

The villa is still property of the Gullichsen family, and sometimes used for vacation or party time by the owners. Tours are arranged through a local guide by permission of the owners on a semi-regular schedule. You will need to make a reservation through their website for visiting, picking one out of the available dates. Payment is due on the day of visit, credit cards accepted. Parking is possible close to the villa. Unfortunately, on regular tours it is not possible to take pictures of the inside, and only the ground floor can be visited. Anyway getting a view from inside will add value to your visit, so it is highly recommended. The guided tour of the inside takes about 45 minutes.

Finnish Glass Museum, Riihimäki

This beautiful museum traces the history of Finnish glass design. While not an ancient tradition in this Country, Finland has reached in the 19th and 20th century a great fame in this field.

A first part of the museum is dedicated to the evolution of the techniques for glass manufacture.

Then follows a huge collection of glass artifacts produced in Finland in various ages and for different purpose. Among them, there are also some very famous designs by Alvar and Aino Aalto, as well as other Finnish designers.

Visiting

The museum is a famous attraction and can be reached quite easily. All information here. The visit may take 1 to 2.5 hours depending on your level of interest. The sight of all those glass artifacts is captivating even for those with little interest for design and art!

Säynätsalo Town Hall

Another well-known masterpiece, the complex in the small town of Säynätsalo was built in the years 1949-52 to host the local town hall, a public library as well as some private business. Red bricks cover the exterior, which is articulated in two main buildings designed around an inner courtyard for pedestrian access.

The inside of the city hall building presents a series of smaller rooms on the main level, aligned along a corridor opening on the courtyard. Anything from the chairs to the door handles and lamps was designed by Aalto, making the ensemble really harmonious.

The upper floor is present only in a square-based corner tower, and here you find the main hall. It is very tall, but lighting is through narrow windows and together with the colors of wood and brick, it induces a sense of calm, warmth and concentration.

Visiting

Today the town hall is not used for this function any more. Actually there are some small businesses like a bistro and a bed and breakfast in it. Yet the place is preserved mostly as it was, and a good part of the main level and the former town hall can be visited. Visits are offered on a regular basis at least in summer. Website here.

Muurame Church, Muurame

The church of Muurame is one of the last ‘eclectic’ works of Aalto (1929), in an age when modernism was already spreading among avantgarde architects. The inspiration from Italian architecture is pretty evident, testifying on the close bond between Aalto and the Italian architectural heritage.

The location on top of a small hill is pretty suggestive.

Visiting

Not well signaled unless you come very close, the exact address is 7 Kirkkotie, 40950 Muurame. The place is only open for ceremonies. I was very lucky as I happened to pass by when a marriage was just going to be celebrated, so I could get a quick view of the sober, elegant interior. The exterior can be neared without problems all the time. Official website in Finnish here.

Jyväskylä

The town where Alvar Aalto spent his youth did receive much in return from its illustrious citizen. Surely one of the most prominent examples of social architecture is the main campus of the local University – today one of the three top-ranking educational institutes in Finland.

Several buildings were designed as the backbone of this campus between 1951 and 1958. The inspiration came again from classical architecture, especially Greece, as Aalto’s view was that of reproducing the basic plant of an acropolis. Among the buildings in the campus probably the most notable are the library and the teacher’s training school nearby.

A very nice scenery is constituted by the sports ground, with a series of low-profile buildings around it forming a really proportionate ensemble, like the stage of a theater.

Another notable building by Aalto is the city theater, completed after the death of the architect based on his design, and the former building of the Police department nearby, conceived to somewhat deceive the role of the institution making it look somehow less ‘martial’ than its usual function may imply. An older design close to the city center is that of the building of the Trade Unions, closer to the eclectic period of the designer.

Finally, a unmissable highlight in town is the Alvar Aalto Museum. Designed by the architect, it hosts a nice collection of prints, drawings as well as pieces of furniture tracing the evolution of Aalto’s style with many interesting details.

Jyväskylä benefits from a generally fortunate setting – here are some photographs of the lake and some new buildings in town.

Visiting

A visit to Jyväskylä with the museum and a walk along a trail touching all Aalto’s works may take from a half to a full day. A website suggesting a trail with links to the pages of the corresponding attractions is here. The University campus is still in use, like the theater and the building of the Police – today an office building. As a result, visiting the interiors may be tricky. Despite that, a walk in the campus and in the city center together with a visit to the Alvar Aalto Museum may fully justify a detour to this lovely town.

Rovaniemi

The town of Rovaniemi was totally destroyed by the retreating German Army in the closing stages of WWII – the so called Lapland War. As a result, construction work could be carried out without the constraints typically bound to the presence of an older neighborhood. Alvar Aalto was tasked with the design of a new city center, featuring a city hall, a theater – ‘Lappia-talo’ – and a public library.

The buildings were erected in multiple stages between the Sixties and the Eighties, after the death of the architect. The ensemble is very harmonious and nice to walk, not intimidating as mostly usual for similar buildings especially in the US.

A possibly more famous building in Rovaniemi – not by Aalto – is the Arktikum, built in 1993 and hosting some local museums.

Visiting

The civic center is still used for its original function. At the time of my visit it was closed for Sunday. A website in Finnish with information on the history of Aalto’s building in the northernmost region of the Country, including his works in Rovaniemi, can be found here.

Helsinki

Aalto’s contribution to Finland’s capital city has its most visible example in the Finlandia House, or ‘Finlandia-talo’ in the local idiom. This long and flat building is located close to the parliament and was built in 1971, among the last works of the architect. It is a ‘social event’ building, hence it hosts a theater, conference rooms and areas for exhibitions.

The inside is on two main floors. As usual with Aalto’s buildings, despite the size, which for the case of the Finlandia house can be appreciated from outside looking at the length of the eastern façade, you don’t feel disoriented nor overwhelmed especially once inside.

All details of the furniture have been designed with the building. Unfortunately, I could not visit the upper floor thoroughly for a congress was taking place there.

The building has a historical significance, for it was here that the Helsinki Accords involving the US, USSR and most European Countries of the time – including those belonging to the Soviet sphere of influence – were elaborated and signed in 1976, forcing an evolution of espionage and repression systems in communist Countries.

Further buildings by Aalto include the House of Culture – or ‘Kulttuuritalo’ -, inaugurated in 1958. It is composed of two main blocks with a theater and offices. The blocks are fused together by a covered passage and a low building with a connecting corridor, so they appear as an ensemble.

Originally built for the questionable cultural and propaganda activities of the local Communist Party, the complex has been used for long now as a popular rock concert venue.

An example of business architecture is the Headquarter of the Social Insurance Institution – known with the abbreviation ‘Kela’ in Finnish. The effort of the designer to avoid creating an imposing, bulky and intimidating building inspite of the narrow streets around, and the need to host rooms and offices for about 1000 people, is evident. The façade is broken and made partly modular, the height of the building is reduced as much as possible, and the horizontal lines of the windows tend to evidence the horizontal dimension. The volume is made lighter by including an open porch at the level of the entrance. The warm tones of the materials produce a sense of calm, yet preserving the sobriety of the appearance, where there are no decorations nor any curved line.

Visiting

The Finlandia House is located in central Helsinki and used for congresses, concerts and exhibitions. Having a walk around and inside is possible without particular restrictions except during official events. It is also possible to take a guided tour of the venue, information here.

Similarly, part of the House of Culture can be accessed most of the time without prior notice, but full visits are offered at least in summer on a regular basis. Information here.

As far as I know, the ‘Kela’ building is not open to the public, but it is possible to have a look around and come close to it without restrictions. The location is nearby the northwestern corner of the Olympic Stadium.

Paimio Sanatorium

Probably the best-known work of Aalto’s production, the hospital in Paimio is unanimously regarded as a milestone in the history of modern architecture. The hospital was built in 1933, and used as a sanatorium for tuberculosis and later as a general hospital.

Today it is a rehab center owned by the University of Turku, which is not far away on the coast and where Aalto had his studio. Visiting the inside is usually not possible, but you can walk around the complex without being disturbed. The location deep in the countryside, far from any crowded town and away from traffic, is really suggestive and peaceful.

The central building for patients is the most distinctive – a tall, flat and narrow wing where the rooms are aligned along a long angled façade looking south. The main wing is connected to other blocks – for surgery, administration, etc. – through a central volume where the entrance to the building is also located.

The complex of the hospital is completed by a series of residential buildings for the staff. These are small examples of residential functional architecture, not designed to be luxurious, and still inhabited today.

Visiting

As far as I know, visiting is not possible inside. The outside can be toured de facto, even though I guess the land around the hospital belongs to the hospital, so you’d better avoid attracting too much attention. The hospital is a bit tricky to find, cause it is not advertised as an attraction and it is well out of the village of Paimio. The GPS coordinates to reach the entrance are 60°27’53.0″N 22°43’54.4″E.

Monino – Central Museum of the Russian Air Forces

Probably the most famous air museum in Russia – and formerly in the whole USSR – the Central Air Force Museum in Monino doesn’t need a presentation for aviation enthusiasts from every part of the world. As a matter of fact, still today this is probably the world’s largest collection of military and experimental aircraft manufactured in the Soviet Union.

Similar to many air museums in western Countries, this aircraft collection has been located on the premises of an active airbase since it opened its doors back in 1958. For this reason, in the years of the Soviet Union and even for some time after its collapse, the collection couldn’t be visited without prior permission. A specially restrictive visiting policy was applied to foreign visitors, due to the technological content of the exhibition. Today things have greatly improved in this respect, and visiting is absolutely free for everybody, both Russians and foreign tourists, like it is the case for most similar sites in the West.

To be sincere, I expected something like what you can find in former peripheral Countries of the Soviet bloc – an array of rotting fuselages, landing gears, rusty jet engines and no information around. It turned out I was totally wrong. What caused my inaccurate prevision was I had failed taking into account the singular passion and nostalgia that Russians show still today for their Soviet past, at least when it comes to military power and technological glory. In this respect, many other more ‘western’ and politically correct neighbor Countries in Europe, like Italy and France, have a much colder attitude towards aviation and their own past aeronautical endeavors.

So, at Monino the conditions of the aircraft both inside and outside are extremely good, especially if you consider the harsh weather that aircraft bodies have to sustain in the terrible Russian winters. From photographs on the web you can rapidly realize most aircraft are covered in snow in winter, so visiting may be also not much rewarding in that season. I visited in September, and except for a Soviet-grey, cloudy day I could enjoy a normal visit.

From the technical viewpoint, the collection is composed of many aircraft and engines up to WWII, hosted indoor, plus a huge outdoor collection of aircraft covering the majority of military models deployed by the Air Force of the Red Army over the years of the Cold War, in their respective roles – strategic bombers, fighters, …

Also some really rare prototype aircraft are part of the exhibition – some of them, like the Tupolev Tu-144 and the Sukhoi Su-100, are unique and very famous. There are also some iconic (gigantic) Mil helicopters, and some liners. There is much information around for less experienced enthusiasts, almost all placards both in Russian and English – a very rare sight in English-unfriendly Russia! If you can speak or understand Russian – unlike me – you can also have guided tours with former Air Force staff, which are reportedly much interesting.

The following photos were taken during a visit in September 2015.

Getting there

One of the reasons for so few interested people actually include Monino in their visit plan is the fame of the place as almost unreachable, inconvenient and expensive. This fame is due to the many companies on the web chattering about permissions, passport requests, tickets in advance, many hours to get to the place and so on. These companies usually ask for many hundreds dollars for taking you on the trip.

These are genuine tourist traps. There is no need for any permission, the place is not any more an active base (since long) and you are not asked any document. Plus, getting there with the local railway system serving the greater Moscow area is very easy – the train has Monino as destination – and the totally inexpensive trip takes about 1h 20min, only due to the countless stops.

First of all, note that I don’t speak russian nor can I read the Cyrillic alphabet. Nonetheless, I managed to get to this place about 20 miles from center Moscow to the East without troubles and traveling solo.

Trains going to Monino depart Moscow Yaroslavskaya in central Moscow rather frequently, about two to four times per hour – accurate timetable available briefly googling for local trains from Moscow to Monino. The terminal is the local railway terminal, placed right behind the main cottage-like building of the railway station (from where you can go as far as Vladivostok…). You can buy a ticket from one of the countless automatic vendors – in Russian, impossible for me – or from one of the countless ticket offices – this was my option. I got a ticket for both ways – you just have to say “To Monino and back”, even though Russians are not friends of English, this request was immediately understood by the officer. The fare is very cheap. The line I considered terminated at Monino, reached after many many stops and about 1h 20 minutes later. Note that the railway ticket is required also for leaving the station on arrival, so you’d better keep it safe.

If all you had seen before in Russia is St. Petersburg and central Moscow, you might be a bit shocked, and feel like you had leaped in the past and well back into the Soviet era – large and cheap concrete buildings, partially paved roads, many elderly people walking around along silent streets and more bicycles than cars around. Sure the village is nothing special and far from monumental, but it’s not dark nor scary or unsafe. Plus you can notice signs of its past vocation, as ghost insignia and abandoned control booths typical to a former military installation can be spotted immediately close to the railway station and around the village, together with a Lenin’s statue still proudly placed in a small square on your path to the museum.

The only problem is that there are no signs for reaching the museum – not any until you are in front of the gate -, which is about .7 miles from the station to the other end of the village (South). You can take a (rare) taxi, or enjoy the walk. The latter was my option. The road is extremely straightforward. Actually it’s basically straight. If you don’t have a digital map, you can simply print the Google map of Monino with a satellite view of the buildings – this again was my option – and this is definitely enough to get to the place. I prepared this small map with the path I’ve followed and some notable sights.

The ticket to the museum is less than 3 dollars, very cheap.

For going back you just reverse the plan. Travel time in total for the trip both ways may be 3h 10min, including train and transfers between the gate and Monino station by foot. Adding about 3 hours for visiting the museum with a relaxed pace, a visit to Monino from central Moscow may take about 6 hours, so you may plan something more than half day for this visit.

Opening times can be obtained from the official website http://www.monino.ru, some Google-translation is needed if you like me don’t know Russian.

Sights

Including descriptions of all aircraft in Monino would be impractical and probably uninteresting. For this reason I will include only photographs and some comments. For an almost-full list of the aircraft in Monino, with something about each of the preserved exemplars, I would recommend the book in English A guide to the Russian Federation Air Force Museum at Monino by Korolkov and Kazashvili, published in the US.

In the blue-roofed building of the ticket office some early aircraft engines and panels about the history of aviation in Russia are presented.

Then you can enter the neighbor hangar, with some unique aircraft from up to WWII. These include an exemplar of the world-famous Ilyushin Il-2 Sturmovik.

The rest of the exhibition is hosted on the other side of the road. Immediately past the gate on one side you have probably the world’s largest helicopter, the twin-rotor Mil Mi-12. Facing this monstrosity, some iconic bombers, including the Tu-4, i.e. a licence-built Boeing B-29, and a prototype Tupolev Tu-22M, with ancestral engine fairings later replaced on the production version. Also notable are a Tu-22, Tu-128 – a really massive interceptor – and two very famous Soviet prototypes, the Myasischev M-50 and the Sukhoi Su-100, with its characteristic Concorde-like deflectable nose.

In a hangar nearby it is possible to find some further experimental aircraft, including rocket-propelled aircraft, high-atmosphere balloon capsules and other curious items.

Placed on an off-limits grassy area nearby the hangar there are some very uncommon aircraft awaiting restoration, and on the other side a good collection of Mil and Kamov helicopters, including the Mil-24A featured in the third chapter of the John Rambo series, a Mil-10 flying crane helicopter and a huge Mil-6 which used to work as a flying command station.

Nearby is the ‘Yakovlev alley’, where most aircraft from this high-tech design bureau are presented.

Approaching the far end of the exhibition grounds you can spot some of the Soviet ‘big ones’, including an Antonov An-22 Anthei, an Ilyushin Il-76, an Il-62 and a very rare Tupolev Tu-114 turboprop with counter-rotating propellers. This was among the fastest-flying propeller-driven aircraft in history.

Recently added to the collection, on one corner of the exhibition are two truly iconic Cold War veterans, a Tupolev Tu-142 and a Tu-22M Backfire, both retired production exemplars.

Other interesting items are a rare Beriev Be-12 huge seaplane, a pretty old Ilyushin Il-18 and a Il-2, and obviously the world-famous prototype Tupolev Tu-144 supersonic liner.

Before taking to the ‘MiG alley’ and ‘Sukhoi alley’ reaching to the exit, three unique prototypes should not go unnoticed, namely the Lavochkin La-250 supersonic interceptor, with a 1956 variable incidence delta wing, the high altitude Myasischev M-17, a twin tailed, ultra-high aspect ratio wing, the Buran flight emulator, created to reproduce the flight dynamics of the ill-fated Buran orbiter in terminal maneuvers, and the Bertini-Beriev VVA-14 ekranoplane. The latter was off-limits when I visited, and could be spotted sitting derelict in the backyard, awaiting restoration.

Approaching the exit you can notice a full array of MiGs, including some more rare to find in the West, like the MiG-25 ‘anti-Blackbird’ Mach-3 interceptor, and various Sukhoi designs ranging from early prototypes to the more modern exemplars. Among them a Lisunov Li-2, a licensed Douglas C-47, was undergoing active restoration when I visited.

Finally, some photos of the ‘pleasant village’ of Monino, a former militarized village.