Hanička, Artillery fort in Rokytnice v Orlických horách, Czech Republic
Hanička is a Czechoslovak artillery fort in the Orlické Mountains above Rokytnice v Orlických horách. Its six combat blocks, including the infantry block R-S 76 "Lom" and the artillery block R-S 79 "Na Mýtině", are joined by underground tunnels and barracks. The surface structures are massive grey-brown concrete blocks; the entrance block R-S 79A was destroyed during the 1970s conversion.
The fort was built in the late 1930s as part of a line of Czechoslovak border defenses intended to stop an attack from the north. After the Munich Agreement of 1938, it was handed over to German forces without a single shot being fired.
The name Hanička comes from a small nearby settlement and was used as a friendly nickname for the fort, which surprises many visitors expecting a more military-sounding title. Today the site works as a museum where you walk through the original rooms and corridors and get a real sense of how soldiers spent their days underground.
The fort can only be visited on a guided tour, so checking the available times before you arrive is a good idea. The underground sections stay very cool throughout the year, so bring a warm layer regardless of the season.
Between 1975 and 1993 the fort was covertly rebuilt as a modern anti-atomic shelter, work halted in 1993 for lack of funds. The rebuilt entrance block R-S 79A was destroyed during that conversion, and visitors today walk through the altered entrance object and the underground corridors.
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