Delving down to a depth of up to 131 feet underground and spanning 14 miles at their peak, the Bock Casemates were part of Luxembourg’s famed defences.

Bock Casemates history

The fortress’ casemates, the fortified gun emplacements, were started by the Spanish in 1644, using the cellars of the medieval castle as their basis. Extended by the noted French fortification engineer Vauban in the 1680s and fully realized by the Austrians in the mid-18th century, the Bock Casemates became much more than cannon perches.

It was in 1744, the passages that remain today were created. The site had 23 kilometres of tunnels delving as deep as 40 metres below the fortress. This included not only 25 artillery slots, but also stables, storehouses, workshops, kitchens, bakeries, slaughterhouses, and barracks for 1200 soldiers. The central passage is 100 metres long and seven metres wide and a 47 metre deep well supplied the installation with fresh water. The casemates helped the Bock resist a seven month siege by the French Republican Army in 1794. When the Habsburg forces in the fortress eventually surrendered, the walls remained unbreached.

Ultimately, the Bock proved too valuable, and its destruction (as well as the perpetual neutrality of Luxembourg) was ordered by the 1867 Treaty of London in an effort to defuse tensions between France and Germany. The demolition took 16 years to complete. However, the casemates could not be destroyed without also destroying part of the city, so 17 kilometres of the subterranean tunnels still remain.

Mostly closed down in the 19th century, the Bock Casemates were opened to the public in 1933. They then reprised their protective role in a different format during World War Two when they provided shelter for 35,000 people.

Bock Casemates today

Today, the Bock Casemates are open to visitors, who can wander through all the open tunnel passages, an extensive network of main thoroughfares and small, dead-end offshoots. The casemates were dug out on different levels, with some as far as 40 metres below the surface. About 17 kilometres worth of winding, dirt-floored passages and stairs are open to the public.

They also form part of the World Heritage site of the City of Luxembourg. Visitors today can still descend from the heights of the Bock to explore the expansive military engineering marvel below. The ruins of the fortress above offer a 360-degree view of the city

Getting to Bock Casemates

The hills leading up to the fortress ruins and casemates entrance are steep. Visitors can park at the bottom of the hill and enjoy the views of the city whilst making their way up to the site.

With a range of weapons, equipment, information boards, and over a thousand documents and photos, the General Patton Memorial Museum chronicles this episode in history. The museum’s namesake is General George S. Patton Jr., the commander who led the 3rd U.S. Army in freeing Luxembourg.

History of General Patton Memorial Museum

General George Patton was commander of the 3rd US Army, and is known for his emphasis on rapid and aggressive offensive military action.

From 1940 onwards during World War II, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg was invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany. General Patton liberated Ettlebruck on Christmas Day, 1944, and as a result, remains a highly revered figure in the city.

The General Patton Memorial Museum opened in July 1995, and pays tribute to Patton whilst also documenting and educating the public about the period from the German occupation of 1940 to American liberation in 1944.

General Patton Memorial Museum Today

Today, more than 1000 photographs and documents that relate to the German invasion are displayed, as well as weapons and pieces of equipment discovered on the Ardennes battlefield.

The first section of the museum describes the invasion in May 1940, the Nazi occupation, and the liberation by American troops in September 1944.

The second section of the exhibition presents visitors with a considerable number of pieces of weapons and military equipment which has been discovered on the battlefield of the Ardennes in recent years.

Another section of the museum provides an overview of the war in the air in Luxembourg. The main attraction of the museum is its large selection of battle tanks.

Outside is the Patton Monument, a statue of General Patton.

Only around 5km away is the National Museum of Military History, which was created in 1984 by collectors and volunteers, and is well worth a visit for those wanting to deepen their understanding of Luxembourg’s strategic importance during World War II.

Getting to General Patton Memorial Museum

The museum is at the Chiriaco Summit exit of Interstate 10, 30 miles east of Indio. It is 1000 feet west of the Chiriaco Summit Airport. There is a large car parking space at the site.

From Los Angeles, which is the nearest major city, the museum takes around 2 and a half hours by car, via the l-10 E road. There are also frequent connecting buses that originate from Union Station.

Luxembourg National Museum of Military History

The National Museum of Military History in, Luxembourg was started in 1982 by a handful of enthusiasts and volunteers, the National Museum of Military History has grown over all those years into a key attraction of international renown due to its impartiality and balanced representation of events.

The museum’s key objective is to contribute to presenting an informative, yet objective representation of one of the most striking chapters of World War Two, namely the Battle of the Bulge of 1944/45.

At the National Museum of Military History, the fighting around Diekirch during the Battle of the Bulge is reconstructed in large-scale dioramas, focusing on the fate of the people concerned. Also on display in the exhibition are weapons, vehicles and other military artefacts, together with numerous documents and archive photos. The museum also illustrates the history of the Resistance fighters in Luxembourg from 1940 to 1945 and the history of Luxembourg’s army; there are also sections about Allied troops in the First and Second World Wars and the Korean War.

A wide array of more than 3.500 square meters provides immersion into this period from an American, German and civilian point of view. Further sections of the museum portray the history of the Luxembourg army since 1945, the fate of the Luxembourg soldiers during times of war, as well as their numerous humanitarian and peacekeeping missions.

Luxembourg National Museum of Military History today

Using a combination of life-size dioramas and its comprehensive collection of US and national items, weapons, equipment, photos and maps, the Luxembourg National Museum of Military History offers an insight into both the military and civilian aspects of this battle.

In addition to this main exhibit, the Luxembourg National Museum of Military History also offers up a more general history of its army.

Those who want to explore more about the Battle of the Bulge can also use the Luxembourg National Museum of Military History as a starting off point as it has information on local tours and trails.

Getting to Luxembourg National Museum of Military History

The museum is in the northeast of Luxembourg in Diekirch. There is underground parking close to the site as well as a variety of bus routes that pass nearby…

Interestingly, the site of Vianden Castle has a history dating back to Roman times, when it was the location of a fort or ‘castellum’.

While several aspects of Vianden Castle seen today date back to the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, this magnificent site was the subject of extensive renovations in the twentieth century.

History of Vianden Castle

Vianden Castle is one of the largest fortified castles west of the river Rhine. It dominates the town of Vianden, being 310 metres in height and 90 metres long, and overlooks the River Our around 100 metres below.

Vianden Castle was built on the site of an ancient Roman castellum, with the basement appearing to have been a Carolingian refuge.

In around 1100, a square keep was built as well as a kitchen, chapel, and residential rooms which indicate that an aristocratic family resided there at the time. During the first half of the 12th century, a new residential tower and prestigious decagonal chapel were added, and the palace itself was extended.

The Counts of Vianden added a new two-storey palace with a grand gallery connecting it to the chapel, which indicates that they sought to rival the House of Luxembourg. The last great change took place in the middle of the 13th century, when the entire castle was adapted into a Gothic style.

Finally, the Nassau Mansion with its Renaissance-style banqueting hall and bedroom was built by Prince Maurice of Orange-Nassau-Vianden in 1621, and replaced a damaged side wing of the 11th century keep.

The castle was effectively abandoned by the Counts of Vianden in the 16th century until a number of political alliances with the House of Nassau meant that the Count of Nassau took an interest in it in 1564.

He left Vianden Castle in 1566 to lead the Dutch revolt against King Philip II of Spain, which meant that Philip II confiscated it and bestowed it to the Earl of Luxembourg.

In 1820, King William I sold the castle to an alderman, who sold off different parts of the castle, and left it to soon become a ruin.

In the 19th and 20th centuries, attempts to reconstruct the castle were interrupted by the Belgian Revolution of 1830, the First World War, and the Second World War. Finally, the castle was restored via an enormous project that lasted until 1990.

Vianden Castle Today

Today, the castle is open to visitors throughout the year from 10am ’til 4pm. Visitors can enjoy a number of exhibits, as well as note the castle’s history via the combination of both ancient and modern architecture.

Getting to Vianden Castle

From the centre of Vianden, the castle is a 15 minute walk via N17. It also takes 2 minutes by car via the same route.