The ruins of Skanskvarns luftvärnsställning sit on a hill in the Årsta district of Stockholm, about 400 meters west of Gullmarsplan and above Koloniföreningen Stugan. Constructed during the years of 1939 to 1945, this installation was part of a network of air defense batteries surrounding the capital. It was primarily intended to defend Skansbron and Skanstullsbron (which were under construction at the time) and the important railway connection Årstabron (together with Tivolibergets luftvärnsställning). If breached, it was planned to blow up Årstabron before the enemy could use it. The name Skanskvarns luftvärnsställning originates from the nearby Skanskvarn.
Skyttevärn and pjäsvärn, along with some anti-tank obstacles, were part of the fortification. The site covered an area of about 160 x 80 meters and included two gun emplacements, several bunkers, a nine-meter-long trench, and a 75-meter-long access road for transporting the guns. Two of the gun emplacements remain today, measuring about 7 meters in diameter with an octagonal interior and a one-meter-high wall of concrete and blasted stone.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Nik Frost
Discuss this with the author and others
No comments yet. Be the first to start the conversation.