Intense scrutiny, arrows, and rockets along the eternal border between East and West

The topography of the area where the Danube surges into Bratislava has always been followed with scrutinizing attention from the military. This geo-strategic position at the dividing lines of empires has been of such importance that matters could not be left to chance. The Romans (Limes Romanus) controlled their protective barrier at the Danube, and the Slavs erected a terrifying fortress at Devín. The battle weaponry of the Romans evolved from the lance to the spear. In 907, the Hungarians dealt a surprise defeat to the Bavarians at Pressburg (the former name of Bratislava) in a battle that included swift attacks by horsemen accompanied by a rain of arrows. In the 15th century, arrows were replaced by cannonballs. In the 20th century, air warfare became the norm. The early military aeroplanes of World War I were answered in kind by the German Reich in World War II with surface-to-air missiles. After that, the Iron Curtain dramatically divided the East Bloc from the West. Although there was no open warfare, the grating atmosphere of a ‘Cold War’ settled over all these countries. This balance of terror was presided over by a multitude of anti-aircraft installations and surveillance operations. One particular bastion was erected in Devínska Kobyla, which included concrete missile silos, bunkers, and army barracks. Twelve S-125 NEVA-M anti-aircraft rockets were always ready for deployment. Yet they never left their silos. By now these ghost bastions have been completely abandoned, having become ‘lost places’.