Safeguarding New Territory - (Czech Republic)

Safeguarding New Territory was placed at the border of the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic. These bunkers were spared and used by the Germans.
Almost all of the borders, with the exception of the southeastern border with Romania, were fortified. Half of the annual budget was spent on the modernization of the army. Not only bunkers and fortresses but also new weapons were bought.
The Czechoslovakian authorities took examples for the fortification system from similar projects from other European countries, primarily France. Actually, it was a modernized version of the Maginot Line. The construction started in 1935 and it was predicted that the entire project would be completed in 1945. Thousands of citizens and hundreds of construction companies were included in the construction work. But in 1938 the work was stopped because of the development of events concerning Czechoslovakia. However, the fortification of the western, southern, and northern borders from 1935 till 1938 is known as the largest construction operation in Czechoslovakia.
In Munich in September 1938, a conference was held without any official representative of Czechoslovakia in attendance. The government in Prague was forced by its allies to accept the decisions of the Munich Conference, which were that Czechoslovakia must allow parts of its territory, mainly the borderland known as the Sudetenland, which was inhabited by a majority of German-speaking people, to be united with Germany. Great Britain and France thought that with this move and the uniting of all of the Germans into one state would satisfy the ambitions of Hitler and that peace in Europe would be maintained. But instead of that, the door for a great war in Europe was opened wide. Six months later, Hitler occupied the rest of Czechoslovakia and in September 1939, World War II officially started.
The Czechoslovakian army left the bunkers and the fortresses without a fight and practically without any fired bullet. The army was ready to defend their country, but the fearful politicians betrayed Czechoslovakia. 10,000 light (small pillboxes) and 265 heavy (artillery fortresses) fortifications were abandoned and never used for the purpose they were built for. Since almost all of the fortifications were on the territory that was inhabited by Germans, the German army (Wehrmacht) annexed the deserted fortifications and started to test weapons and tactics on them. They shoot and tried to damage them with bombs and various explosives. Also parts of the fortifications were used for training of their special forces. During these tests the Germans realized that the fortifications were of excellent quality.
At the end of the war, they reused many of the reinforced parts, such as domes and cupolas, for their fortification system, especially on the Atlantic Wall. Also, the German army used the Czechoslovakian border fortification to slow the progress of the Red Army towards Berlin. During this campaign, some lines of the fortification system were heavily damaged by the Red Army. The signs of this battles can be still seen now, like large holes in the concrete. After 1946, the fortifications were included in the military system of the new Soviet block. During the Cold War, parts of the fortification system were modernized and they were used by the Czechoslovakian army till the beginning of the 1990s.
With the fall of the Iron Curtain, two independent nations were created from the Socialist Republic of Czechoslovakia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Today great parts of the fortification system are located in the Czech Republic, but parts can also be located in Slovakia. Some of the objects were reconstructed and adapted into museums, but also there are many which are abandoned, ruined, painted with graffiti and overgrown with vegetation and moss.

I have been exploring abandoned structures for years. Looking for adventure and searching for artifacts. I decided in 2016 that I would document my adventures and soon after I decided to share by posting my videos online. I explore alone, always darting my head from left to right looking for broken windows or signs of decay. I do not disclose the location of any sites in order to maintain their preservation... sorry! As a workaholic who gets very little personal time, exploring is my most favorite thing to do. I love to share my experiences with the world. I could have gone down the media/self love route....but preferred to keep explores private. I post new vids all the time, so please visit often!

Our Disclaimer: We try really hard not to leave a footprint in our explores. Exploring can be illegal and unsafe. I can only take responsibility for my own actions not yours.

Technical side:
Film with a GoPro4 - Sony A5000
edit with Filmora.

Music by Madeline Lauer - Come Around - https://thmatc.co/?l=E46163AA

Видео Safeguarding New Territory - (Czech Republic) канала Anna's Burning Curiosity