Poland - Eastern Europe - page 412

The Wolf's Lair
Hidden among the beautiful Mazurian lakes is a fascinating and creepy
place that you should certainly seek out if you're in the area. Near the little
town of K7trzyn, north of Mrºgowo, lies the bombed-out remains of Hitler's
eastern command base, the “Wolf's Lair.” It's best known as the site of a
1944 attempt on Hitler's life that very nearly succeeded and might well have
changed the course of history.
The Wolf's Lair was in fact a large camp of reinforced-concrete bunkers,
some with walls as thick as 8m (25 ft.). The top Nazi leadership, including
Hitler and Hermann Goering, maintained their own personal bunkers. Addi-
tionally, there were bunkers for communications and troop commands, a
train station, an airstrip, and even a casino bunker. Hitler was a frequent vis-
itor to the Wolf's Lair from its initial construction in 1941 until 1944, when
it was abandoned just ahead of the Russian advance as the war drew to a
close. In January 1945, the Germans dynamited the bunkers to prevent them
from falling into enemy hands. This is what you see today. The bunkers have
been preserved in their original “destroyed” state, and you're more or less
free to walk among the jarring, jagged concrete ruins sitting incongruously
amid beautiful forest.
The details of the assassination read like a spy thriller. The would-be
assassin, an officer of aristocratic bearing named Claus Schenk von Stauffen-
berg, by 1944 had come to see the war as unwinnable. He and other like-
minded officers believed that if Germany had any hope of avoiding total
annihilation, Hitler had to be stopped. On July 20, 1944, Von Stauffenberg
was dispatched to the Wolf's Lair to brief the Fuehrer and other top Nazi
leaders on troop levels on the Eastern Front. He arrived at the meeting with
a time bomb hidden in his briefcase. Just before the meeting started, he
placed the briefcase near Hitler, activated the bomb, and immediately left
transportation advice. The bus station itself maintains a relatively user-friendly
timetable.
WHERE TO STAY
Olsztyn has a range of nice hotels, with most concentrated in and around the Old
Town.
Expensive
Hotel Warmi^ski A crisp and clean, high-rise business hotel, nicely situated
between the train station and the Old Town, about a 10- to 15-minute walk from
both. The service is impersonal but efficient. Amenities include local rarities like a
massage and fitness room, covered parking (for a fee), and in-room Internet access
(LAN connection). The buffet breakfast is a treat, with a full range of Polish appetiz-
ers like salted herring, pâté, and homemade sausage on hand. The chef will whip up
an omelet on the spot. The hotel occasionally runs special offers that include a buffet
supper in the room price.