Bent but not broken, Fort VIII Twierdzy Warszawa Służew stands as a testament to Warsaw’s complex history. This fort was once a key part of the city’s outer defense ring. It is located near Nowoursynowska Street in Ursynów. It is close to the old village of Służew.
Fort VIII Służew was built in the 1880s. It was designed as part of the Warsaw Fortress. The fort covered 26.17 hectares on a rise between the Warsaw escarpment and the Służewiecki stream valley. The design followed a standard Russian plan called F1879.
Initially Fort VIII Twierdzy Warszawa Służew had two ramparts. One was for infantry and the other for artillery. This design quickly became outdated. Newer forts used single ramparts. The double rampart made the fort too visible to enemies.
Just two years after completion Fort VIII Służew was modernized. The two ramparts were replaced with one. Most Warsaw Fortress forts were updated this way. Engineers poured concrete over brick ceilings to strengthen them. Additional ammunition storage was also constructed.
At the end of the 19th century around 1900, Fort VIII Służew was rebuilt again. Support buildings, troop quarters, and stables were added. Roads leading to the fort were also built. The wooden buildings were decorated in a distinct pan-Russian style. One such building survived until 1990. Unfortunately it was then torn down like the military casino in Legionowo.
The brick front caponier was replaced with a concrete counterscarp caponier. An underground passage was created under the moat for communication. The brick flank caponiers were rebuilt in concrete. Large earthworks were added to defend the fort’s neck along with a traditor or caponier.
In August 1897, Tsar Nicholas II visited Fort VIII Twierdzy Warszawa Służew. He was inspecting the Warsaw military district’s fortresses.
Ironically, Fort VIII Służew was slated for destruction when the Warsaw Fortress was being liquidated. An order issued January 31 1909 was never fully carried out. In the summer of 1913, only the caponiers in the fort’s ditch were blown up. The remaining fort structures were disarmed but not destroyed.
From the end of World War II until 1990 the fort belonged to the Polish Army. Apartment buildings were constructed on the fort’s grounds for senior military personnel. This construction damaged the historic site. The last traces of the fort’s interior slopes and firing positions were leveled. The buildings were built on the site of four old stables. The fort’s esplanade is now occupied by garden plots.
Today the fort’s rampart remains along with the moat and neck barracks. The brick cornices of the barracks casemates are interesting to see. You can also see the remains of the caponiers. The site is protected by a conservator of monuments. It is located in the heart of Służew and Ursynów between Nowoursynowska Chłapowskiego Rosoła and Dolina Służewiecka streets.
In 2005, the unused space of the fort and its outbuildings was sold by the Military Property Agency. Turret Development redeveloped the area. In 2019, the Fort Służew residential complex was built with three large blocks. Two years later the historic fort barracks were renovated and opened as Fort 8. The old casemates were converted into commercial spaces. There are restaurants cafes shops and Dorota Szelągowska’s studio. The former moat and ramparts have become the Ósmy Park for recreation. A new ravelin is being built between the housing estate and the barracks where the old ravelin and traditor once stood. The developer is building an apartment building with services that resemble the original fortifications in size and shape. The entire project is promoted as Rawelin Fort 8.
So as you wander through Fort VIII Twierdzy Warszawa Służew remember its layered past. From tsarist stronghold to military residence to modern commercial space, it embodies Warsaw’s enduring spirit of change and resilience.