Atlantic Wall Museum, Ouistreham, France

Located at a stones throw from the beach and the Ferry terminal, the Atlantic Wall Museum (Le Grand Bunker Musee du Mur de l'Atlantique) is inside the old German headquarter which was in charge of the batteries covering the entrance of the river Orne and the canal. The 52ft high concrete tower has been fully restaured to make it look how it was on the 6th of june 1944.

You will discover on the Grand Bunker's six floors all its inner rooms, which have been recreated down to the last detail: generator room, gas filters room, casemate with machine gun protecting the entrance, dormitory, medical store, sick bay, armoury, ammunition store, radio transmission room, telephone switchboard, observation post equipped with a powerful range-finder and on the top floor a 360° view over Sword Beach.

You will also be able to see many photographs and documents concerning the construction of the Atlantic wall, the artillery, the beach defences, observation, etc. A souvenir of the assault and shock troops specially trained for OVERLORD operation to attack the Atlantic Wall, and the everyday life of the Germany Army soldiers.

References:

The Museum of the Atlantic Wall

User Reviews

Zohar Tenne (2 years ago)
A very interesting visit, especially with kids (mine were around 10 years old)

Tim Griffiths (2 years ago)
My third visit. I still find it fascinating. An informative couple of hours.

Matthew English (2 years ago)
A fascinating museum located in an old German coastal defense bunker. Very detailed information plaques offer a ton of information throughout the museum. It can get a bit cramped to navigate if there are a lot of other visitors (there are some narrow halls, low ceilings and tight spiral staircases) so it may not be the best place to visit during peak tourist season. But certainly a worthwhile visit for anyone interested in WWII history. Even if you don't want to pay the admission to visit the bunker, you can still see a couple artillery guns and a D-Day landing craft (used in the filming of Saving Private Ryan) outside in the courtyard.

Patrick Turner (2 years ago)
Definitely worth visiting. You can find a few free, abandoned bunkers in Normandy but the way they have displayed “soldiers” and true artifacts none will give you the feel like this one will.

Tim Corbett (2 years ago)
Wanted to learn more about the construction and development of the Atlantic Wall. The taking of this position could have been done as an interesting ending. Little in the way of real information. Plus side a good collection of equipment but most look in a poor state of preservation. Also why the lack of real literature in the shop. There are a few books now available on 6th June from the German view and it would have been good to see some of these.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Polybert49

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The Electorate of Trier and its nobility became wealthy and powerful in large part due to the income from Cochem Castle and the rights to shipping tolls on the Moselle. Not until 1419 did the castle and its tolls come under the administration of civil bailiffs (Amtsmänner). While under the control of the bishops and electors in Trier from the 14th to the 16th century, the castle was expanded several times.

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In 1942, during the Nazi years, Ravené was forced to sell the family castle to the Prussian Ministry of Justice, which turned it into a law school run by the Nazi government. Following the end of the war, the castle became the property of the new state of Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate). In 1978 the city of Cochem bought the castle for 664,000 marks.

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