Abandoned Nazi Underground City in Poland Reopens as Museum
PNIEWO,poland – A sprawling network of underground tunnels,shafts,railway stations,and combat facilities built by Nazi Germany is now open to the public as an army museum. The subterranean complex, known as Festungsfront Oder-warthe-Bogen, or the Ostwall, is located in the Międzyrzecz Fortified Region near the Polish village of Pniewo and was abandoned in 1945.
The 19-mile network is now a “dark tourism” destination, offering visitors a glimpse into the planned long-term habitation for soldiers. “The Nazis planned this complex for long-term stay for soldiers, so everything is constructed to make it more habitable,” explained Mikolaj Wiktorowski, a guide at the museum, in an interview with CNN Travel.
The museum, which opened in 2011, has recreated scenes of life underground for members of the Third Reich, utilizing mannequins in uniform positioned in administrative rooms, sleeping areas, and bathrooms.
Construction on the Ostwall began before World War II as Adolf Hitler sought to fortify Germany’s eastern frontier against Poland and the Soviet Union. Originally envisioned to stretch 50 miles, with construction planned until 1951, the project was halted in 1938 when Germany shifted its focus to France. The invasion of Poland in 1939 led to the project’s complete abandonment.
Despite being unfinished, the Ostwall is considered one of the most advanced fortifications ever built, capable of housing tens of thousands of soldiers in its central section.
in the 1980s and 1990s, the tunnels served as a venue for raves and weddings hosted by a counter-cultural group known as the Bunker People, whose graffiti remains on the walls. “The graffiti are the soul of this place,” Wiktorowski told CNN Travel. “Without them, we would just have bare, lifeless walls.”
