Felsennest
On May 10, 1940, the German attack (Fall Gelb) began on western European mainland and the same day Hitler arrived in Felsennest. Here the German armed forces (Wehrmacht) had established an FHQ on a hill just outside the small town of Rodert. It was from here that Hitler supervised the attack on Western Europe. Felsennest was the first stationary FHQ used by Hitler. Felsennest was, in comparison with, for example, Wolfschanze in East Prussia, very small and consisted only of a few barracks (dining room, mess hall, garage, conferance room). The only concrete bunker built was Hitler’s personal. It was in Felsennest that Hitler received paratroopers who had taken Eben-Emael and awarded them medals. On June 6, Hitler left Felsennest and went to his new FHQ Wolfsschlucht in Belgium. He ordered that Felsennest be preserved for future generations as a monument to German victory. But as Germany lost the war this was never materialized. In march 1945 when the american forces approached teh area, Felsennest was blown up by the germans.
Current status: Demolished (2008).
Location: 50°32' 54.16" N 06°46' 15.66" E
Get there: Car.
Follow up in books: Seidler, Franz W. & Zeigert, Dieter: Hitler’s secret headquarters (2004).
There are no signs or anytning that informs about the site. The ruins of Hitler’s bunker remain but is heavily overgrown. Other parts of the area are now on private land. Of the other barracks within Sperrkreis I (security zone), only the foundations of the conferance room remain where Hitler and his generals held their military conferences and discussed the campaign. But just as other FHQ:s, this is also visited by people who wants to place themselves where history has been made.