Wolfsschanze
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Führerhauptquartier Wolfsschanze (English: Wolf's Lair, Polish: Wilczy Szaniec) was the codename used for a major Eastern Front military headquarters of Adolf Hitler during World War II.
The remains of the complex are located in Poland at the hamlet of Gierłoż (German: Forst Görlitz) near Kętrzyn (German: Rastenburg), although at the time of operation this area was part of the former German province of East Prussia, a territory which was assigned to the People's Republic of Poland after 1945. It consisted of a group of bunkers and fortified buildings in a thickly wooded area, surrounded by several rings of barbed wire and defensive positions. The complex was served by a nearby airfield. It was built for the 1941 Wehrmacht offensive against the Soviet Union and was abandoned in 1944 as Soviet troops approached East Prussia. Hitler arrived on the night of June 21, 1941 and departed for the last time on Nov. 20, 1944. He spent over 800 days there during World War II.
The Wolfsschanze was the location of the failed assassination attempt on Hitler which was carried out by Claus von Stauffenberg on July 20, 1944.
The whole complex was severely damaged by the demolitions carried out during the German retreat because Hitler thought it was too valuable to allow the Soviets to use. Clearance of the large minefields around the site set up by the Germans was carried out from 1945 to 1956 by the Polish Army. Nowadays the complex is a museum, open all year long. Despite the damage, the site remains to this day a notable tourist attraction. A monument to the July 20 plotters can also be found on the site.
One of Hitler's self-given nicknames was Wolf – he began using this nickname in the early 1920s and was so addressed only by those in his intimate circle up until the fall of the Third Reich. The names of his various headquarters scattered throughout continental Europe (Wolfsschanze in East Prussia, Wolfsschlucht in Belgium, Werwolf in Ukraine, etc.) reflect this.
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