Fort VIII of the Warsaw Fortress

Casemates before the start of construction work to redesign the area in summer 2010

The Fort VIII of the Warsaw Fortress (also called Fort "Służew") belonged to the outer defensive perimeter of Warsaw defenses of the 19th century . The partially preserved structures of the complex are under monument protection and are to be integrated into a future residential development on the site.

location

The radicals of Fort VIII are in Warsaw district Ursynów on the edge of a hill between the wide Vistula and the narrower valley of Służewiecki-stream. The height above sea level is 107 meters here. The complex originally comprised 26 hectares with the outside areas and was oriented with the front to the south. Nearby, the road ran from the village of Służewiec (now the southern part of the Mokotów urban area ) via Jeziorna to Góra Kalwaria . The facility is surrounded on two sides by the main roads Rosoła and Dolina Służewiecka. Nowoursynowska Street runs along the east flank and the spacious grounds of the Warsaw University of Natural Sciences adjoin to the south (former esplanade ) .

history

The fort was built from 1883 according to plans by General Edward Todtleben . The last work was not completed until 1889 - at a time when the fortification could no longer have withstood the advanced artillery technology ( explosive shells ). The fort was modernized as early as 1891. During construction, supply roads were also laid out in the area. Fort VIII was the southernmost defensive position in Warsaw. The subsequent forts were the smaller auxiliary fort VIIA "Służewiec" in the west and Fort IX "Czerniaków" in the northeast .

Fort VIII has the usual pentagonal shape of an artillery fort in Warsaw and initially had two walls - for infantry and artillery - and a dry moat. There was capon forehead and shoulder . A wall was later removed. The modernizations that took place up to 1909 concerned an additional reinforcement of the brick ceilings of fortress components with a concrete cover. There were also additional accommodations and stables. The fort's wooden buildings were decorated with Russian decorations. The last of these wooden buildings was only demolished in 1990. In the course of the razing of the Warsaw fortifications decided in 1909, the caponiers were blown up in 1913. Apart from disarming, there was no further destruction. The trench has been backfilled over the years.

Second World War

In September 1939 the fort played no part in defending the city . After the city was taken, it was occupied by German troops, who presumably had stables here. After the Second World War, the fort was taken over by the Polish army and used until 1990. There were also new utility buildings. In place of the stables built in the 1940s between the wall and the barracks, terraced houses for 32 families of soldiers were built in the 1980s. At the same time, the last ramps and artillery positions were removed.

Allotment garden settlements emerged in the west, south and east of the fort's outer areas. In 2005, work began on building a fun pool in the northeast area of ​​the no longer existing wall. For unknown reasons, construction was stopped a year later, shortly before completion. The barracks (long used as a garage for the residents), ruins of the blown capons, underground cooling rooms and partially destroyed, unusually spacious buildings in the central throat area of ​​the fort have been preserved from the fort.

Sales and new construction plans

In 2006, the Polish subsidiary Turret of the US-American Alter Group acquired most of the interior fort facilities and the rear exterior area from the Polish agency for military real estate ( Agencja Mienia Wojskowego ) from Michael Alter . The real estate development company is planning to build on the site with a residential area while at the same time renovating and incorporating the existing structures. The trench, which has largely been filled in, is to be exposed again. The buildings to be constructed should be nine (inside) and four stories (outside of the fort) high.

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  Casemates from the west

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  Post-war officer's houses inside

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  Allotment garden settlement on the former glacis

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  Investment ruin of a fun pool

References and comments

1. ^ Franz-Edward Todtleben (1818-1884) was an officer and student of Tsar Alexander II.
2. ↑ From the dimensions it could be at the rear ruins a traditor or Kehl case have acted
3. ↑ according to Article Turret foots renovation in return for building rights  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.   from July 11, 2006 at Biznespolska.pl (in English)
4. ↑ according to Article Turret i Zielony Ursynów of October 28, 2006 in Gazeta.pl forum (in Polish)

Web links

Commons : Fort VIII (“Służew”)  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• old map section
• Satellite image on Google Maps

Coordinates: 52 ° 10 ′ 0 ″  N , 21 ° 2 ′ 26 ″  E