Objekt 7001: Führungstelle des MdI
Discover Objekt 7001, an abandoned bunker nestled near the quaint village of Freudenberg, Germany. This site served as the command center for the Mdl, the Ministerium des Innern.
Hidden in the rural landscape near Freudenberg, Germany, lies Objekt 7001, an abandoned bunker shrouded in mystery. Built in 1986, this fortified structure served as the command post for the Ministerium des Innern of the German Democratic Republic.
Constructed at a staggering cost of 120 million GDR marks, Objekt 7001 comprises three underground bunkers interconnected by a 260-meter-long tunnel. Designed by VEB Spezialbaukombinat from Schwedt, these bunkers provided a hermetically sealed environment capable of accommodating Minister Friedrich Dickel and his staff. It housed around 200 officers and civilian employees.
Bunkers
The complex consisted of three main sections: TO 01, TO 02, and TO 03. TO 01 and TO 02 were trench protection structures with attached garage parts. Bunker TO 03 housed the technical security module, message block, operational blocks, and a situation center extension.
Impressively engineered, bunkers TO 01 and 02 span 75 meters in length and 15 meters in width, while bunker TO 03 stretches 88 meters long and 14 meters wide. Each bunker boasts exterior walls 45 centimeters thick and ceilings 60 centimeters thick, ensuring maximum protection.
Ministerium des Innern
The MdI, responsible for overseeing the People’s Police, combat groups, fire brigade, prison system. But also administrative tasks, like passport registration and vehicle licensing, operated from Objekt 7001 until the reunification of Germany in 1990.
Following the fall of the DDR, Objekt 7001 fell into disuse. In 1992, experts from the Federal Government deemed it unusable. Subsequently, Gewerbeförderung Freudenberg AG acquired the site. Today, various companies utilize parts of the complex, while the bunker remains locked and guarded, a silent witness to a bygone era.
Explore Objekt 7001, a testament to Cold War history and a reminder of a divided past. I visited the complex in 2022.
