11.2 km (Panské Pole parking lot, further 1.8 km) 4.8 kmmass groups by prior arrangement
www.hanicka.cz
The Hanička Fortress belonged to the pre-war fortification system built in the 1930s against the then expanding Germany.
When Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany in 1933 and a massive arms industry began to take off there, it was clear to everyone that Europe was in serious danger. The treaties signed at the end of the First World War, which limited, among other things, the production of weapons were increasingly violated by Germany, and no one doubted what would follow. Czechoslovakia was one of the most threatened states, as the German population in the borderlands in many cases made up the majority of the population of that area and increasingly demanded to join the Reich. Our republic was disproportionately smaller than Germany at the time, and even in the event of mobilization, the number of our units could not withstand the enemy's forces. At that time, our border with Germany was 1,545 kilometers long and ended at Bohumín in the north. The narrow and elongated shape of the republic was disadvantageous for our defense in the event of an attack from the north, and therefore a massive system of reinforced concrete fortifications modeled on the French Maginot Line is being created at this part of the border with Germany. This fortification was supposed to withstand the first onslaught of the enemy, until the arrival of the allies, mainly France and England.
On the most endangered section of our borders, the construction of fortifications, including fortresses, began at the end of 1935 near Bohumín and continued at a respectable pace. The line of fortifications was supposed to follow the northern borders of our then republic from Bohumín towards the west and was supposed to end at the Elbe. The line of independent infantry blockhouses was to be strengthened here by 15 fortresses, which were supposed to be the pillars of our defense at the time and were built in particularly exposed places of our defense. By the autumn of 1938, when most of our border fortifications had to be abandoned without a fight after the adoption of the Munich Agreement, a total of 5 fortresses had been completed. Among them is Hanička fortress.
Guide route
1) basic route - entrance through the entrance building to the underground, machine room, ammunition storage, underground barracks, underground of the artillery block, exit to the artillery block, exit to the surface - time required approx. 50 min.
2) extended route - from the underground of the artillery barracks further under the revolving tower S 78, from there under the infantry barrack S 76, exit to the building, on the surface of the station with interpretation in front of S 76, S 78 and ending in front of S 79 - time required approx. 80 min.
In the garages of the administrative building there are a number of exhibits from the equipment of the Czechoslovak Army from the post-war period. Among the most interesting will certainly be the T 805 - commando, which is a small truck modified for airborne units and should have been able to be transported by helicopter. Also interesting is the Praga V3S with twin 30 mm anti-aircraft guns, which is still in service in some eastern countries, the T 34/85 tank borrowed from HUAĆR Praha, which became a legend of the Second World War, or the OT 810 armored personnel carrier called Hakl after its model and predecessors from the German army. There are many more exhibits to see here, so if you plan to enter the museum underground for a certain hour, leave enough time to see these exhibits that are off the museum tour route. The tour of Hanička - the Kahan Building - according to its last nickname, begins in the entrance exhibition, which is now located in the hall of the administrative building, which covered the original entrance building of the fortress. In the exposition, it is possible to see the weapons used by our army in 1938 and the weapons used by our army after the Second World War. It also includes a small collection of ammunition and uniforms from both periods of our history. The history of our pre-war fortifications is shown by thematically arranged photos, which divide the objects into light, heavy and Hanička fortress. Smaller parts of the exhibition are dedicated to photographs from the French Maginot Line, the SOS units in Orlické hory, pre-war Czechoslovak army and other topics. The exhibition contains a number of three-dimensional objects, parts of pre-war fortifications, including an embrasure to the object vz. 37, the so-called oilseed rape. The interpretation uses a panoramic model of the Hanička fortress on a scale of 1:350, which shows the location of the objects in the terrain and their mutual defense system. Other models show different types of light objects and some heavy objects. The decoration of the introductory exhibition are models of objects R-S 79a, R-S 77, R-S 84, R-S 91 and R-S 68 in a scale of 1:35, on which the periods of presence of the Czechoslovak units are modeled. army and Wehrmacht units. In the introductory exposition, the guide introduces visitors to the history of Hanička, the preparation for a possible defense in 1938 and the modern reconstruction into a wartime workplace of the Ministry of the Interior as part of the OBJECT KAHAN event.
There are 98 steps to the underground. The underground is located at a depth of 20 to 36 meters below ground level and there are almost 1,500 meters of corridors and halls. All corridors, shafts and halls are original, only the equipment comes from a modern reconstruction. ( In 1938, most of the equipment was not here yet. ) There are three diesel generators for the production of electricity in case the modern war site loses its electricity connection from the surface, the original filter house now forms a diesel storage room with a massive 36,000 liter tank. The overall technical provision is completed by the cooling hall, which was supposed to cool the massive aggregates. From the front technological part, we move through the massive pressure seal to the next part of the underground, our own shelter. The energy control room is located here, from where the entire underground would be controlled by the dispatcher and his assistant. The hall of ice water was used to cool the spaces that were to be occupied by the modern crew. Due to their long-term stay in a small underground space, there would be warming and this had to be solved somehow. Another location is the barracks halls, divided into individual rooms designated as quarters and offices. The longest of the halls measures 40 meters. Some halls are partially equipped. In the fifth hall, there is a completely unique water treatment plant, which was supposed to be able not only to clean the water, but also to rid it of all contaminants. Under the artillery block R 79, where you will be the deepest underground (36 meters), three halls were originally built, intended as ammunition stores and the headquarters of the building. Now you can see a modern infirmary and a dining hall. Under the revolving R 78 cannon turret are other halls, which are used as the headquarters of a modern shelter. The sanitary facilities of this part of the shelter can also be seen here, which completes the overall character of the underground equipment. The tour of the interior of the museum ends on the battle floor of the surface building R-S 76, which can be reached by 126 steps. You can climb to the surface through the lower - rear floor and protective ditch of the building.
Building R-S 76, nicknamed "at the quarry", is probably the best-preserved fortress building in the entire Czech Republic. Original armored embrasures for light and heavy machine guns and armored bells and domes that survived the raid on the Kovošrot can be seen here. Each of these armor elements is a unique specimen that cannot be seen on any other of the fortresses. A bell for a light machine gun, which protected the immediate surroundings of the cabin and from whose canopy the immediate surroundings of the building could be observed. Artillery observation bell with one window, overlooking the area of Bartošovice and Žamberecké les, where a line of separate infantry blockhouses stretched, and a cupola for two heavy machine guns, which were supposed to protect the object of the rotating and retractable gun turret built nearby. Each of these elements is cast in resistance IV., the wall thickness is 30 cm of quality cast steel and each weighs almost 52 tons. A ventilation bell was also preserved in the ceiling plate of the building, which was supposed to be used to supply air to the auxiliary filter room located on the lower floor of the building.
Object R-S 78, nicknamed "na pasek", is the second surface object that can be visited as part of a guided tour. The original shaft for mounting the rotating and retractable gun turret is currently filled with a massive reinforced concrete plug. Thus, a unique option for installing a mock-up of a rotating retractable tower is emerging here. Two armor elements have been preserved in the ceiling plate of the building, the bell for the light machine gun and the cupola for the "solo" heavy machine gun, which is again quite a rarity on our fortifications. There are two ventilation bells, one of which was damaged in the past and currently houses a perfectly cast replica. The object R-S 77 "Observatory" is located nearby, but the guided tour does not go there. Unfortunately, it is one of the buildings that has been seriously affected by modern reconstruction and is completely filled with soil. In the ceiling plate of the building, only the cupola for the twin heavy machine guns has been preserved, which can also be seen on the R-S 76 building. The other two bells were torn out in the 1950s by the priest Kovošrot.
Object R-S 79 codenamed "in the clearing" is the largest concreted object on our pre-war fortifications. Its volume of concrete was then a respectable 5,598 m3, and three rapid-fire 100 mm howitzers were to be mounted in three special embrasures, which should fire into the area of Bartošovice and Žamberecké les, where a line of separate infantry blockhouses stretched. During the occupation, in 1940, German artillery fired at the building, which damaged it, and the remains of shelling are still visible on the building today. In the fifties of the last century, the left armorial bell was torn out of the Kovošrot church. The modern reconstruction of the war workplace of the Ministry of the Interior also took its toll. One embrasure was torn out and replaced with a gas-tight door, for better material handling. Originally, two tall steel chimneys were erected here, with which air was to be sucked into the newly built shelter. However, since this is the only artillery object that can be visited in such a well-preserved state, renovations began in 1998. Over time, this object should reach the state it was in after 1945.
Barrier-free access is available in the technical garages, the entrance exhibition with a story about the history of Hanička and on the surface objects, where the guide will introduce you to the history and equipment of the individual objects.
The maximum capacity of one tour is limited to 50 people regardless of entrance fee!