Wolf’s Lair (Hitler’s Bunker in Poland)
Wolf’s Lair or Wolfschanze was Hitler’s headquarters for the invasion of the Soviet Union, here he spent most of his time from 1941 to 1944
General information
In 1944, a group of German officers made an assassination attempt on Hitler here. The chief executor, Klaus von Stauffenberg, arrived at the headquarters from Berlin on July 20 for a staff meeting. He had with him a briefcase containing explosives. He placed the briefcase near Hitler and then went out to answer a pre-planned telephone call. Meanwhile, one of the officers who was in the way of the briefcase moved it to another location. Several people were injured or killed in the explosion, but Hitler escaped serious injury. Von Staufenberg and about 500 other people allegedly involved in the assassination attempt were executed.
.
On January 24, 1945, when the Red Army was very close, the Germans blew up the headquarters, and most of the bunkers were severely damaged or destroyed altogether. Nevertheless, you can still see huge slabs of concrete, some as thick as 8.5 meters, and mangled rebar. All this looks especially impressive in winter under a thick layer of snow, and there are not many tourists in this period.
.
A large map of the complex with notes in English is located at the entrance to the territory (Hitler’s bunker, apparently, was deliberately assigned number 13). A booklet (there are English and German versions) offering a self-guided tour of the stakes is available at a kiosk in the parking lot. A Russian-speaking guide can be hired for 60zl.
.Wilczy Szaniec; Tel: 89 752 4429; www.wolfsschanze.pl; admission for adults/discounted 12/6zt; from 08.00 until dark.
.
