Warsaw. Fort Bema is facing changes

As explained by the conservator, the planned works will focus on “leveling the area by removing secondary soil from the courtyard, repairing chimneys and reinforced concrete steps on slopes, revealing the tops of all concrete covers above the cornices crowning the building, securing some of the entrance and window openings, as well as replacing the boards bridge surface. The project also includes the installation of video monitoring.

The work in Fort Bema is made possible by a grant from the Government Program for the Reconstruction of Monuments, for which PLN 1.5 million was allocated. The Burke annexe also received funding for renovations (PLN 3.5 million) and Elizeum (PLN 3.5 million).

Fort Bema (formerly Parysów) was built as a warehouse in the years 1886-90, in the second stage of the expansion of the Warsaw Fortress. Its layout, based on a model design, has been modified and adapted to the warehouse function. The fort, entirely surrounded by a water moat and an infantry rampart, received an expanded neck in which gunpowder, ammunition and laboratory depots were located, protected by earth embankments. Due to the readability of the fort and the significant degree of preservation of buildings and earthen structures, along with the original 19th-century iron bridge, Fort Bema was entered into the register of monuments in 2008.

At the beginning of the 21st century, the city carried out clean-up works, including: to make the fort more legible. This involved cutting down some greenery, removing the dyke in the moat, demolishing secondary buildings and building two pedestrian and bicycle footbridges. The historic bridge was also repaired. The fort area is available to residents and has a park character.

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