Kanonen som skulle stoppa Hitlers armé - Djuramossa, Sweden - News Article Locations on Waymarking.com

With its sights set on the German occupying power on the other side of the strait, the cannon Brita outside Helsingborg was the lock in Öresund. Hostile powers that wanted to take Sweden had to knock her out first.

- Hitler placed such importance on the cannons here that he set up corresponding batteries in Denmark, says Johan Andrée at the Preparedness Museum.
The world was completely on fire in 1940 when the defense forces built Battery Hälsingborg after Nazi Germany invaded Norway and Denmark. The fear was great that Sweden would also end up under German occupation.
The four cannons in Djuramossa were set up with the aim of preventing a German invasion and ensuring that no one could get north through the Sound.

Battery Hälsingborg was kept in operation over the end of the war and throughout the Cold War, but when the wall fell in Germany in 1989 and when the Soviet Union later collapsed, the battery in Djurmossa was shut down and three of the guns, which last fired shots in 1983, were cast in concrete.
Mausoleum for cannons
- The entire pieces were cast in. It's like a mausoleum for cannons and it's totally unique. Nothing like this has ever been done, neither before nor after, neither abroad nor in Sweden, says Johan Andrée who is director of the Preparedness Museum, which is responsible for the four plays.
Ever since the cannons were cast in 1991, they have been untouched and hidden from the public. But this summer, the Preparedness Museum decided to take a look inside. With the permission of the landowner Gustaf Trolle, Johan Andrée and other volunteers drilled through the concrete to the cannon Brita.

- It was a dream come true. It's like a sleeping rose, completely untouched, clogged with dust and with cobwebs everywhere. Absolutely unbelievable, says Johan Andrée, who compares the impressions to how Harold Carter must have felt when he discovered Tutankhamun's burial chamber in 1922.
The plays are incredible. Brita weighs around 30 tonnes, is four or five meters high and is around 15 meters long.
Together with the cannons Asta, Sonja and Maja (they were named after beautiful girls in the area) they formed a respectable invasion defense in their time.
- The range was great, they could shoot 2.5 miles, which was a good distance into the Danish side, says Johan Andrée.
The sharp quartet posed such a threat to Hitler's Nazi Germany that he chose to build corresponding batteries on the Danish side.
- He realized that if they wanted to take Sweden, they would have to beat Batteri Hälsingborg first, says Johan Andrée.
During the war years, and also during the arms race in the Cold War, soldiers were transferred to Battery Hälsingborg. Mainly for exercises.
- In total, there is room for 300 soldiers here.

Open house
In connection with the excavation of the Brita cannon, the Preparedness Museum held an open house for the public for one day. The response was great and the staff held guided tours throughout the day.
Now there are plans for a pure exhibition about the Cold War. The idea is to equip Brita, clean off the dust and make her available to the public.
- People don't know much about the Cold War today, when you talk about the Second World War, the kids know that Hitler was mean and that the USA came in and won everything, but when you say the Cold War, it's kind of empty, says Johan Andrée.

Type of publication: Newspaper When was the article reported?: 12/21/2014 Publication: Magnus Andersson Article Url: [Web Link] Is Registration Required?: no How widespread was the article reported?: national News Category: Arts/Culture

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