Geoarchaeological considerations on the Arpad Line with relevance to tourism. Case study: Bistrița-Năsăud County (Romania)
Geoarchaeological considerations on the Arpad Line with relevance to tourism. Case study: Bistrița-Năsăud County (Romania)

Summary/Abstract: On the peaks of the Eastern Carpathians there is a system of fortifications set up during the Second World War by the Horty Miklos’ troops, to defend the eastern border of Hungary expanded after the Second Vienna Award. These fortifications are called the Arpad Line and they joined other fortified lines of Europe such as the Maginot Line, the Siegfried Line, the Stalin Line, the Mannerheim Line, and the Metaxas Line. Within this system of fortifications, there are trenches, firing positions, positions for artillery pieces, bunkers, castmates, and concrete anti-tank obstacles (dragon`s teeth). In Bistrita-Năsăud county, the Arpad Line is present in the mountain areas of Călimani, Bîrgău, Suhard, and Rodnei, but also in the Someșului Mare Hills and the Bistriței Hills. As military and historical evidence, the fortifications within the Arpad Line are distinguished by geoarchaeological, cultural-educational, and touristic value, which could be exploited by local communities. The present study attempts to inventory, evaluate, and analyze these fortifications from a geoarchaeological and tourist perspective, to include them in the attractive tourist resources of Bistrița-Năsăud County and the Eastern Carpathians.

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