Forst Zinna

A former Military complex built in 1934 as part of the German rearmament programme and later officially named Adolf Hitler Lager..

At the end of the Second World War due to its location the complex ended up in the hands of the Soviet occupation forces, who turned the camp into a displaced person camp. In 1947 the SED (Socialist Unity Party of Germany) took over the base and turned it into “The German Academy of Public Administration” with the goal of training the DDR political elite.

It appears that the successful use of the camp by the SED did not go unnoticed by the soviets who soondemanded the transfer of the camp for military purposes. Now in the hands of the Soviet Army the base grew to accommodate a new battalion area, several administrative building a cinema and apparently even a zoo!

One of the worst train accidents in the history of the DDR happened just outside of the camp when a tank wasleft on the train tracks and an express train collided into it killing 6 and injuring 33.

Only part of the complex is listed and safe from demolition, the rest of the camp is due to disappear in the next year or so.