Government bunker documentation site
A place of remembrance and warning
The government bunker in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler is one of the most outstanding relics of the Cold War. In 2009, it received the "European Cultural Heritage" award from the European Commission in recognition of its important role in European history. Since its opening in March 2008, around 1.1 million visitors have visited the museum and reminisced about the times of the Iron Curtain with intensive rearmament in East and West.
The government bunker - secret hideout of the Bonn government
The bunker was originally intended to serve as a strategic fallback location for the federal constitutional authorities (AdVB) and was designed for use in the event of a crisis or defense. The aim was to ensure the complete functionality of the German government in the event of war.
The planning phase of this top-secret project began as early as the 1950s, still under Federal Chancellor Dr. Konrad Adenauer. Construction of the facility began in 1962 and took place on a wooded hillside above the Roman villa in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler. Hidden in two tunnels of the never-completed "Ruhr-Moselle relief line" railroad line, the government bunker was built with impressive security measures for the time.
With a gigantic underground extension of 17.3 km and its nuclear bomb-proof gates, the huge bunker complex was not only the number one state secret, but also the most expensive building in Germany.
The government bunker was designed to accommodate over 3,000 political, military and economic decision-makers. For this purpose, the facility was equipped with all technical facilities and everyday necessities for up to 30 days. From 1966 onwards, NATO rehearsed every two years in the government bunker. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the exercises were discontinued.
The government bunker as a documentation site
Today, the government bunker is a fascinating documentation site run by the Alt-Ahrweiler local history association. The non-profit association is passionately committed to preserving this historical testimony.
The bunker is like a window into the Cold War era. It is a fascinating original location where history becomes tangible through many details of architecture and technology. But not only that: it is also an impressive reminder of the importance of safeguarding democracy, peace and freedom.
