Cannon

Although the technology was old, Stevnsfort's cannons could effectively block Øresund all the way to the Swedish coast. The old German guns combined with ...
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Although the technology was old, Stevnsfort's cannons could effectively block Øresund all the way to the Swedish coast. The old German guns combined with modern radar therefore became an effective weapon.

The German battleship Gneisenau was built in 1935 and was in the first part of World War II a massive threat to the Allied convoys of freight vessels on the Atlantic. Part of the ship's armor was two small cannon turrets on the side of the ship. The canoeing stands today at Stevnsfort.

During the occupation, the Germans had set the two cannon to Fanø to protect the entry into Esbjerg harbor against an allied invasion. After the occupation, they perfectly suited a new task, which was to ensure the passage of Øresund from Stevnsfort. The two towers in total four 15 cm cannons could reach all the way to the Swedish coast 23 km away.

Stevnsfort was built in 1953-56, and the underground fortress was especially tasked with the two big cannon tanks to work. From the underground fort, targets on the ocean were identified, and runways were calculated. And from the underground ammunition magazines grenades and charges were lifted in the elevator up to the cannon towers.

It required a crew of approx. 100 men to shoot with the two towers. On the other hand, the fort could shoot a shot every three seconds with surprising precision and effectively stop ship traffic in the event of a war.

The towers shot several times a year during exercises until February 2000.
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