Description of the attraction
The fifth fort of the Brest Fortress is a branch of the Brest Hero-Fortress memorial complex. The fifth fort is part of a defensive system built in 1878-88 and serving to stop the enemy on the distant approaches to the fortress.
The fort is pentagonal in shape and covers an area of 0.79 square kilometers. It was built of bricks and surrounded by an earthen rampart with a moat filled with water. In front of the fort there is a front caponier for six guns, capable of firing in two directions. A well-protected barracks on all sides was built at the back, connected to the caponier by an underground corridor (porch).
In 1908, it was decided to modernize the Fifth Fort - to cover its walls with a two-meter layer of concrete and build porches connecting the garrison with the side half-caponiers. Staff-captain Ivan Osipovich Belinsky was appointed to supervise this work.
In 1941, at the beginning of the war, the 3rd rifle battalion of the 44th rifle regiment was located on the territory of the fort, which tried to break through to the defenders of the Brest fortress, and later fled to the east. During the Nazi occupation, the Fifth Fort was used as a warehouse, then, in 1944, it was liberated by the 1295th Infantry Regiment of the 160th Infantry Division of the 70th Army.
For a long time, the fort was abandoned and dilapidated. In 1997 it was given the status of a historical and cultural value and extensive restoration work was carried out. At the present time on the territory of the fort there is a museum “History of Fortification and Armaments”, an exhibition “Western Outpost of the Fatherland”, as well as a large collection of artillery weapons in the open area of the fort.
