Nazi and Soviet military complex

A worn soldier’s jacket still hangs on the back of a rusty chair, a lapel fallen to the floor, all covered in dust. Colors can barely muster themselves from the gloom of dilapidation.

The wooden floorboards creak when stepped on, quivering with the excitement of something new after more than 20 years.

All around the otherwise bare room sheets of Russian newspapers sag limply or hang from the ceiling, wallpaper reincarnation now redundant in the monotony. All quiet, all still – but for the wind outside brushing branches lightly against the window, trees’ limbs craning for a peek through the opaque panes.

Suddenly a bang! Clanking! Creaking from below. What the fuck?! I freeze. Listen. Dare not breathe. It must be a Russian soldier coming up the stairs to reclaim his jacket! A door slams.

Carefully, I inch my way back out of the room, back into the hall. I nudge open the offending door across the hall. Creeeeeaaakk!!! I peer in. An empty room. A vodka bottle the sole inhabitant. Open windows swing gently in the breeze. Glass miraculously intact all these years.

I assure myself I’m still alone, physically anyway. There may or may not be someone downstairs, but at least nobody’s coming up the stairs. I hope, at least. I continue on, heart in my mouth.

It was actually much easier to get into Krampnitz than I thought when looking at it from the outside. The old ‘Kaserne’ was abandoned by the Russians in 1991, and surrounded by a high unfriendly wall that doesn’t exactly encourage unannounced guests.

The Nazis who used this old military training compound before them weren’t too fond of visitors either – it wasn’t that kind of riding school – so I was quite happy none of them were around anymore.

The German army operated here from September 1937 after its High Command (Oberkommando des Heeres, or OKH) decided to establish a cavalry riding and driving school with a separate training and testing detachment (Kavallerie-Lehr und Versuchsabteilung).

The former cavalry school moved over from Hannover, where space was an issue and the focus was switching to weapons and motors.

The OKH also figured the troop-training ground at nearby Döberitz might come in handy at Krampnitz, too. The move happened bit by bit, over a couple of years, which was just as well as construction took a couple of years as well – probably no coincidence.

In October 1937, Oberstleutnant Joachim Degener became the first commander of the training detachment, succeeded by Oberstleutnant Hans Cramer, who took troops off to participate in the invasion of Poland. Cramer earned the Iron Cross and later became General der Panzertruppe.

It was as good as it got for him, though. Cramer’s was among the many arrests made following the failed plot to assassinate Hitler in July 1944.

He was imprisoned by the Gestapo, then interned in a sub-camp of the Ravensbrück concentration camp before being dismissed from the Wehrmacht in September. He saw out the rest of the war under house arrest.

Cramer had had dealings with Erwin Rommel, and he knew Claus von Stauffenberg from their days at the cavalry school in Hannover.

Before any of this happened, back at Krampnitz the poor horses were feeling a little unappreciated and helpless. As much as they tried, they couldn’t fly as high as planes, dive as deep as submarines, or drive their way through battlefields as fearlessly as Panzers.

Krampnitz increasingly catered to Panzers, and it was here that horses handed over their reins to new technology. As the Versailles Treaty didn’t outlaw the development of armored scout or reconnaissance vehicles, different types were tested and handed over to the troops.

The first Panzerspäh (armored scout) teaching squadron got three Büssing-manufactured heavy eight-wheeled armored cars with a closed turret and armed with a 2-cm cannon and MG-34, said to be the world’s first “general-purpose machine guns.” General-purpose, so you could use them for anything – washing-up, shopping, unblocking drains, sealing leaks etc. – and not just for riddling people with bullets.

These eight-wheeled Panzers (armored vehicles or tanks to you and me) had a crew of four men each and they carried on the golden cavalry tradition of, well, death and misery. Let’s not gloss over the facts here – they killed people. Apparently they were among the best at it at the time. Most tanks are based in the eight-wheeled Princip to this day.

I guess you gotta hand it to them: the Krampnitz car was pretty good. They were equipped with radio communications, had all-wheel drive, four-wheel steering and could reach 90 km/h.

While the Panzers were hogging the limelight, horses weren’t completely ignored. The riding school carried on beside the armored divisions up the first few months of 1945.

The Kavallerieschule was renamed Schule für Schnelle Truppen Krampnitz (School for Rapid Troops Krampnitz) in 1941 and Panzertruppenschule II (Panzer Troop School II) two years later.

Oberst Arno von Lenski, who was involved with the cavalry school since its Hannover days, became the Krampnitz school commander on December 1, 1939. He was off fighting on the Western Front, and was later made an honorary judge of Roland Freisler’s notorious Volksgerichtshof (People’s Court) by Hitler.

Von Lenski commanded the 24th Panzer Division at Stalingrad and ended up in Soviet captivity. He boosted his post-war career chances by joining the National Committee for a Free Germany (NKFD).

Sure enough, after the war, he joined the East German Kasernierte Volkspolizei and in 1956 became head of the DDR’s Panzer troops. His work for the Nazi Volksgerichtshof suddenly didn’t matter anymore.

The horses also found refuge after the war. With the Red Army closing in, they’d been moved to safer pastures in western Germany.

Everyone was heading west away from the Soviet advance. German Army command abandoned ship at Wünsdorf with yellow-livered Wehrmacht chief Wilhelm Keitel staying in Krampnitz for a few days before legging it to Fürstenberg.

The Russians had put an end to the Nazis’ little gallop, and they took over a day after their foes abandoned it April 26th, 1945. They in turn abandoned it nearly 50 years later.

Now paint flaks off the walls, bathtubs are pulled out of their homes, are strange Russian graffiti lurks in attics. There are dark corridors of power where soldiers and officers stomped about in boots thinking they were big and important.

Offices, toilets, kitchens, dormitories… I opened every door, peered in every dark recess. My eye was caught by everything it saw; I was entranced. Not even Adolf himself could have dissuaded me.

What must have been the clubhouse or pub still had signs on the wall outside. Huge bay windows inside must have been impressive in their day. Damn it, they were impressive now. A theater stood beside it empty and silent. Behind another high wall there was an underground bunker. Deep, dark, absolutely huge, facing an immense industrial-looking building.

Another building looked like it hadn’t been touched since the end of WWII; shiny wooden floors, wooden panels on the walls, destroyed Nazi eagles over fireplaces, chandeliers brought down from their lofty heights and one still hanging majestically, absolutely magnificent.

But still I hadn’t found what I was looking for. My frantic search had yielded nichts.

Just as light was failing however, I found it. The tour de force. Absolutely incredible. The Eagle. Imperious in the middle of a huge cross, clutching a swastika in its claws, surrounded by four more, one in each corner. These were painted over in red paint, supposedly by the Russians who destroyed all the Nazi imagery. Apart from the Naziest Nazi image of them all that is – the flippin’ eagle.

Some swear the eagle is real. It certainly looks the part – the attention to detail is frightening. Others point out that ‘Enemy at the Gates’ and ‘Inglourious Basterds’ were filmed here, while others again will tell you it doesn’t appear in either. I don’t know. Some of the mosaics are missing and such attention to detail for a film is extraordinary.

If authentic, it will have managed to live through the Red Army’s occupation, but it’s unlikely to survive the real estate invasion. If Potsdam planners get their way, Krampnitz won’t be unoccupied for much longer.

What : Former military training school, once used by the Nazis and Russians, now abandoned and awaiting exploration.

: Former military training school, once used by the Nazis and Russians, now abandoned and awaiting exploration. Where : Krampnitz, Potsdamer Chaussee, 14476 Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany.

: Krampnitz, Potsdamer Chaussee, 14476 Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany. How to get there : The RE1 regional train from Friedrichstraβe, Alexanderplatz or Hauptbahnhof will take you to Potsdam Hauptbahnhof from where you hop on a 639 bus to Krampnitzsee. Allow an hour altogether. The 639 bus goes to S+U Bahnhof Rathaus Spandau, so if you’re coming from that direction you could get the bus the opposite way. Krampnitz is about half-way between Spandau and Potsdam. I recommend cycling though. There’s a good cycle path from Spandau, although it’s a good way and you don’t want to be knackered by the time you arrive. Here it is on a map so ye can figure it out for yourselves.

: The RE1 regional train from Friedrichstraβe, Alexanderplatz or Hauptbahnhof will take you to Potsdam Hauptbahnhof from where you hop on a 639 bus to Krampnitzsee. Allow an hour altogether. The 639 bus goes to S+U Bahnhof Rathaus Spandau, so if you’re coming from that direction you could get the bus the opposite way. Krampnitz is about half-way between Spandau and Potsdam. I recommend cycling though. There’s a good cycle path from Spandau, although it’s a good way and you don’t want to be knackered by the time you arrive. Here it is on a map so ye can figure it out for yourselves. Getting in : Just off the main road there’s a line of run down-looking holiday homes for rent. These are actually former officers’ houses. You can wander in past the sign which says “Betreten und Befahren verboten!” and, if anyone asks, pretend you’re thinking of renting one. Anyway, go past the last one, follow the worn path – watch out for brambles – and you’re in! Those who favour the more direct approach can simply hop over the front gate. It looks easy enough once you don’t mind barbed wire.

: Just off the main road there’s a line of run down-looking holiday homes for rent. These are actually former officers’ houses. You can wander in past the sign which says “Betreten und Befahren verboten!” and, if anyone asks, pretend you’re thinking of renting one. Anyway, go past the last one, follow the worn path – watch out for brambles – and you’re in! Those who favour the more direct approach can simply hop over the front gate. It looks easy enough once you don’t mind barbed wire. When to go : Preferably when the sun is shining. Daylight is best for exploring.

: Preferably when the sun is shining. Daylight is best for exploring. Difficulty rating : 6/10. Tricky enough to get to but easy to get in. (Just look for the big tower, now a [hopefully abandoned] saw mill or something.)

: 6/10. Tricky enough to get to but easy to get in. (Just look for the big tower, now a [hopefully abandoned] saw mill or something.) Who to bring : Like-minded explorers. If you’re mean, people who are easily scared.

: Like-minded explorers. If you’re mean, people who are easily scared. What to bring : Camera. You’d be pissed off if you made it out that far and couldn’t take photos. Bring a few snacks too – there ain’t no shops in Krampnitz – and a few Sternis for the road. You can drink them en route. Don’t forget to bring a torch for exploring those dark underground bunkers.

: Camera. You’d be pissed off if you made it out that far and couldn’t take photos. Bring a few snacks too – there ain’t no shops in Krampnitz – and a few Sternis for the road. You can drink them en route. Don’t forget to bring a torch for exploring those dark underground bunkers. Dangers: As always, watch out for nosy neighbours or passing outdoor-types who can’t resist sticking their noses in places they don’t belong and getting involved when it’s none of their business. Also watch out for ticks and things like that. One of the fuckers bit me. There are mozzies too, but it’s cold enough now; they should be long gone. I didn’t spot any security guards or anything like that but again, keep your eyes peeled.

Filed 20/10/2010 | Updated 13/4/2020 (With more photos.)