Next to the 800 year old Trondenes Church outside Harstad you can visit this Red Army POW memorial. During the war up to 1200 POWs suffered here crammed into a camp. They had been brought here for building the nearby coastal fortification "Batterie Theo" MKB 5/511 with its four massive 40,6 Cm guns. Approximately 800 of the prisoners died here through starvation, sickness, cold, hard labour and murder. The dead POWs was buried between the camp and the old church, and in 1951/52 the cemetery was exhumed and the bodies relocated to the War Cemetery at Tjøtta further south in Northern Norway in what became known as "Operation Asphalt".
In 2014 the area where the camp had been was reclaimed from the forest and a path with informational signs put up for visitors. The barracks and watchtower foundations is clearly visible and in the outskirts one can see the trail the German guards patrolled outside the camp fences. This is a place one should visit and pay ones respect when in the area as it tells a grim story in what is today idyllic surroundings.
In 2014 the area where the camp had been was reclaimed from the forest and a path with informational signs put up for visitors. The barracks and watchtower foundations is clearly visible and in the outskirts one can see the trail the German guards patrolled outside the camp fences. This is a place one should visit and pay ones respect when in the area as it tells a grim story in what is today idyllic surroundings.
Video below:
RSS Feed