Sea unearths Nazi bunkers hidden for more than 50 years
Three Nazi bunkers on a beach have been uncovered by violent storms off the Danish coast, providing a store of material for history buffs and military archaeologists.
The bunkers were found in practically the same condition as they were on the day the last Nazi soldiers left them, down to the tobacco in one trooper‘s pipe and a half-finished bottle of schnapps.
The bunkers were three of 7,000 built by the Germans as part of Hitler's ‘Atlantic Wall‘ from Norway to the south of France.
But while the vast majority were almost immediately looted or destroyed, these three were entombed under the sand dunes of a remote beach near the town of Houvig since 1945.
They were uncovered only because recent storms sent giant waves cascading over them, sweeping away the sand and exposing glimpses of the cement and iron structures.
They were located by two nine-year-old boys on holiday with their parents, who then informed the authorities.
Archaeologists were able to carefully force a way, and were astounded at what they found.
'What's so fantastic is that we found them completely furnished with beds, 'chairs, tables, communication systems and the personal effects of the soldiers who lived inside,' says Jens Andersen, the curator of the Hanstholm museum.
The discovery of the fully-furnished bunkers was "unique in Europe," said Bent Anthonisen, a Danish expert on European bunkers.
And a third expert, Tommy Cassoe, enthused: "It was like entering the heart of a pyramid with mummies all around. Wat I saw blew me away: it was as if the German soldiers had left only yesterday."
The team working with Cassoe emptied the structures within a few days of boots, undergarments, socks, military stripes, mustard and aquavit bottles, books, inkpots, stamps featuring Hitler, medicines, soda bottles, keys, hammers and other objects.
All of the objects from the shelters have been taken to the conservation centre at Oelgod museum, some 20 miles from the beach to be examined.
The centre's German curator, Gert Nebrich, judged the find 'very interesting because it is so rare.'
'"We don't expect contemporary objects like these to be so well preserved. Maybe it's because they were kept for 60 years in the cold and dark like in a big vacuum," he says, carefully showing four
stamps featuring Hitler's image and the German eagle, found in one bunker.
The Germans left the bunkers in May 1945 after the Nazi surrender.
Historical records show that Gerhard Saalfed was a 17-year-old soldier with the German army when he arrived at the bunker in January 1945.
Germany surrendered on May 8 1945, but it wasn‘t until two days later that he and his fellow soldiers left their remote station.
They shut the steel doors of the bunker behind them on their remote beach and went to the nearest town ten miles away to surrender.
'The remote location of the bunkers and the drifting sands that covered them saved them from being ransacked,“ said Cassoe
Kim Clausen, curator of the Ringkoebing-Skjern museum views a heater retrieved from the bunker
Stamps of the German Eagle of Adolf Hitler and the Swastika were also retrieved
Here are some pictures of what I did in 2004 when I was in Iraq (March - October.) I was augmenting a reserve infantry battalion, 3rd Bn, 24th Marines (abbreviated 3/24. Note that in Marine-land 3/24 sounds like "three - twenty-four" vice "third of the twenty fourth" as in Army lingo.) I ended up as an infantry platoon commander of 30 mortar and Javelin Marines who were serving as provisional infantry vice their official job. I guess that was fitting because I was a former reserve chemical warfare defense specialist (5711) who had been originally commissioned an artillery officer (0802) who had spent the 6 month prior to the deployment becoming a communications officer (0602). Odd, I know, but that's life as a Marine Officer (I guess that's why one of the unofficial mottoes of the MC is Semper Gumby [always flexible]!)
So anyway, here are some pictures from when I was there in 2004. I doubt there will be anything as interesting to take pictures of this time, but only time will tell.
On two different occasions, my platoon provided security while CB's dug up dead Kuwaitis. These were Kuwaitis that Saddam grabbed when they pulled out in 1991. When we stopped ourselves and there was no need for human shields, he killed them, a few at a time, in pits around Iraq. We dealt with two of mass graves that held about 50 people in each.
This is from one of our first big weapons caches we found.
This is pretty amazing . They actually found the exact location of Sgt. York's charge. After 88 years, a group calling themselves the Sgt York Discovery Expedition found 19 of the 21 .45 ACP bullets that were fired. I remember watching the movie, on a Saturday afternoon, when I was about 8 or 10 years old, and have been a great admirer of the man ever since.
