Marine hideout in the forest

In 1943, parts of the High Command of the Kriegsmarine moved from Berlin to Brandenburg. Parts of the "Koralle" camp are still accessible today.

Did Karl Dönitz live here? Nothing reminds us of it. Photo: von Klewitz

To the north of Bernau, in a wooded area between Ladeburg and Lanke, you will find the bunker remains of the former "Koralle" camp, the headquarters of the High Command of the German Navy from 1943 to 1945 and the radio control centre for Karl Dönitz's submarine warfare. In addition to three shelters, the complex originally comprised five transmission masts, broadband antennas and a radio relay system, as well as accommodation for the command staff, a "military residential camp", a motor pool, barracks for male and female personnel, buildings for the naval intelligence service and the weather service, various anti-aircraft and machine gun emplacements, a bathhouse, garages and several extinguishing ponds. The latter have repeatedly given rise to speculation, for example that Dönitz used them to simulate naval warfare on the world's oceans. Another rumour has it that a real submarine was even kept in one of the bunkers for training commanders. There is as little evidence to back up such claims as the assurances of some amateur gold seekers that fabulous treasure was buried on the site. The history of the site is interesting even without such embellishments.