Modlin Fortress

Modlin Fortress sits at the confluence of the Narew and Vistula rivers, about 40 kilometres northwest of Warsaw, and is one of Europe's largest surviving fortress complexes. It was begun in 1806 under Napoleon as a bridgehead, then taken over by the Russian Empire after the Congress of Vienna and expanded through the 19th century as the Fortress of Novogeorgievsk, ringed by an outer belt of forts. In September 1939 the Polish garrison held out here for days after Warsaw fell to the Wehrmacht, a late chapter of the September campaign now marked by several memorials. After 1945 the site served for decades as a Polish Army base and is now part of the town of Nowy Dwor Mazowiecki. Visitors can wander kilometres of brick ramparts and outlying forts on their own or with guided tours, and the adjacent Warsaw-Modlin airport makes access easy.