In the last year of the Second World War, while the Allies were preparing to land at Anzio to move up the peninsula, the supreme command of the German forces in Italy, led by Field Marshal Albert Kesserling, was forced to abandon the headquarters in Frascati and look for a new location near the Alps, north of the defensive Gothic Line.
The quiet and small town of Recoaro was chosen for a series of logistical and geographical reasons: it was protected by the mountains, against possible air attacks; it did not have important military objectives, such as industries; it had a rapid connection both to the plain or the Gothic Line, via a railway, and to the Brenner or the Reich, via the Campogrosso Pass; it had numerous hotels and facilities (used by spa tourism) to accommodate the 1500 Nazi soldiers and officers.
In a few months the territory was adapted to military needs, with the construction of 7 bunkers and 25 shelters in tunnels. The Bunker Kesserling or Kommandobunker (a tunnel of about sixty meters covered in reinforced concrete) was the most important, as well as impenetrable, hosting the command, the strategic offices and also the famous electromechanical device Enigma, to encrypt and decipher messages: from here all the war operations in southern Europe were directed.

After the American bombing of April 20, 1945, a controversial meeting between the leaders was held in this shelter, authorizing the signing of the unconditional German surrender, which then led to the signing of the armistice in Caserta.

The bunker is open only on certain days of the year, recovered and managed by an association of enthusiasts, with a very interesting guided tour. Info:
recoarobunker1945.it

Translated by Google •

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Location: Recoaro Terme, Vicenza, Veneto, Italy

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