Kaserne Mont Royal, Military barracks in Traben-Trarbach, Germany
Kaserne Mont Royal is a former military compound on a plateau above Traben-Trarbach in the Moselle valley, Germany. The site combines above-ground buildings from different construction phases with an extensive underground bunker carved into the rock below.
The facility was built in the 1930s and served initially as a standard military barracks. The underground bunker was added in the 1970s, after which the site was used for military geoinformation work until 2003.
The name Mont Royal refers to the French fortress that once stood on the plateau above Traben-Trarbach, and the barracks inherited both the name and the elevated position. Walking the grounds today, visitors can still sense how the site was chosen for its commanding view over the Moselle valley.
The grounds are large and uneven in places, so sturdy footwear is a good idea before you set out. The underground section is reached through narrow stairs and passages, which may not suit visitors with limited mobility.
Below the grounds lie several bunker levels built during the Cold War whose full extent was kept out of public knowledge for decades. This hidden part of the site was invisible to most people even as they walked above it every day.
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