Fortress ground
The Boden fortress , in Swedish Bodens fästning , is located in the municipality of Boden in the Swedish province of Norrbotten County .
Until the end of the 19th century, Norrland was of little military importance. The rough terrain and the unfavorable climatic conditions made an invasion from the north seem unrealistic. The situation changed as a result of the rich ore finds in Lapland and the development of traffic in the north, especially through railways.
In the 1890s, the Swedish General Staff suggested building a fortress to defend Norrland. The Norrland railway junction Boden appeared to be a suitable location due to its geographical location: About 150 kilometers from the Russian border and 30 kilometers from the coast, the crossing over the Luleälven in the hill country around Boden could be blocked.
In 1901 the construction of the fortress began. Five forts , battery positions and entrenchments were built in a 25-kilometer circle around Boden . After a few years it became clear that the estimated costs had been exceeded many times over and that there was too little manpower to man the fortress.
The further development of the war (the emergence of air and armored weapons) meant that Boden's fortress quickly lost its strategic importance. After the Second World War , parts of the fortress were gradually shut down. The Svedjeberget battery position was converted into a museum in 1989 and the last of the five major forts abandoned in 1998.
The town of Boden, however, developed into an important military training center with a number of associations, staffs and schools.
Coordinates: 65 ° 47 ′ 29 ″ N , 21 ° 39 ′ 26 ″ E