The Hatten Bunker

An impressive fortification forming part of the Maginot Line

Built in 1930 as part of the Maginot Line, the Hatten Bunker provided shelter for the crews manning the casemates. More than 220 soldiers could live here at any one time. The bunker included the latest equipment of the day including food storage rooms, kitchens, bedrooms, toilet blocks, wells, heating facilities, an infirmary, a machine room, poison gas protection and close quarter defence equipment. Specially arranged scenes and reconstructions of the original rooms give visitors a very accurate impression of what life was like in these bunkers. The bunker includes a 60 m long facade with two doors and four firing slits for machine gunners. The ditches located all around the bunker have been designed to trap debris in the event of shelling or bombing, and to make access all the more difficult for the enemy.

A major collection of military equipment

Outside, a huge collection of French, German, American and Soviet military equipment is on show, dating from 1940 up to the present day. Visitors can admire vehicles, fighter aircraft, helicopters and armoured vehicles from the Second World War and the Cold War.