Schießplatz Dünnwald

Schießplatz Dünnwald lies in Cologne’s Dellbrücker Wald conservation area, surrounded by woodland, walking paths, Dünnwalder Wildpark, and Waldbad Dünnwald. The Prussian Army established the military range in 1887, when the area was known as Kützeler Heide. Up to six shooting lanes stretched between 400 and 600 metres, separated by earth embankments. A brick wall with bullet traps once stood beside the side facing Waldbad Dünnwald.

After closure following the First World War, the Wehrmacht reopened the grounds in 1936 for military training. Between 1940 and 1943, military courts sent 23 men here to be executed as deserters or “underminers of military strength”. Belgian forces, the Bundeswehr, and the police continued using the grounds after 1945, until the 1970s. Overgrown embankments and lane outlines now mark the former range beneath the trees.

A memorial inaugurated in September 2019 commemorates those killed here during the Nazi era. Its inscription quotes Ludwig Baumann: “What better thing can one do than betray war.” Jakob Brock, executed in 1945 at 23, is also remembered by a Stolperstein at his former home. His daughter was born in November that year, months after his death.