VIII Fort, Kaunas Fortress, Lithuania

I came to this place with my host in Kaunas. It was a rainy day and in our walk back home we got totally soaked. I mean, really soaked. Nevertheless, it was fun. Definitely not easy to find the right access to this fort, even for my local friend Thomas. When we finally did it to the entrance, it started raining. So we stayed “indoors” for a while, for no avail. The rain never stopped and we decided to start walk back. Overall it’s not such a big deal. I am just creating this article because, well, I was there. It exist. So it deserves to be mentioned in this blog.

Historic backround (taken from my previous entry about Fort VI):

“Kaunas Fortress (Lithuanian: Kauno tvirtovė, Russian: Кοвенская крепость) is the remains of a fortress complex in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was constructed and renovated between 1882 and 1915 to protect the Russian Empire’s western borders, and was designated a “first-class” fortress in 1887. During World War I, the complex was the largest defensive structure in the entire state, occupying 65 km² (25 sq mi).

The fortress was battle-tested in 1915 when Germany attacked the Russian Empire, and withstood eleven days of assault before capture. After World War I, the fortress’ military importance declined as advances in weaponry rendered it increasingly obsolete. It was used by various civil institutions and as a garrison.

During World War II, parts of the fortress complex were used by the governments of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union for detention, interrogation, and execution. About 50,000 people were executed there, including more than 30,000 victims of the Holocaust.^[3] Some sections have since been restored; the Ninth Fort houses a museum and memorial devoted to the victims of wartime mass executions. The complex is the most complete remaining example of a Russian Empire fortress.“

There is much more there so if you wanna check it, here is the link:  Kaunas Fortress