The "Katzenkopf" armored plant, built between 1937 and 1939, is located on a hill above the Nims Valley near Irrel. It is an armored plant of the former Westwall, which the National Socialist government had built over a length of almost 630 kilometers on the western border of the German Reich in preparation for the war and is one of the few of these military buildings that can be visited.

History: The infantry regiment 39 from Düsseldorf manned the so-called "B-Werk" until after the campaign against France in 1940. From December 1944 until the arrival of the American troops in February 1945, the bunker was once again occupied by a few soldiers and members of the Hitler Youth. In 1947, parts of the facility were blown up by the French occupying troops and the entrances were filled in. The Irrel volunteer fire department uncovered the bunker again from 1976 and the Westwall Museum has been housed on three accessible floors since 1979. A purely military-historical exhibition can be viewed in the underground corridors and rooms.

Memorial for peace: A memorial to the fallen and missing of Regiment 39 was erected on the concrete rubble of the tank factory.

Note: The temperature in the bunker is 10 °C. So don't forget your sweater, even in summer!

Further information can also be found at www.westwallmuseum-irrel.de