liberated by the US Army, on 4 April 1945. Shortly thereafter, Generals Eisenhower, Patton and Bradley came here to look at the piles of dead bodies left behind by the SS. Post World War II The military training area of Truppenübungsplatz Ohrdruf was taken over in July 1945 by the Red Army, since Thuringia became part of the Soviet occupation zone. The Nordlager -part of the concentration camp was razed. Two memorials to the dead were erected at around this time. In 1991, ownership was transferred to the German Defence Ministry. Since 1993, the Bundeswehr has been in charge of the area. The Soviet troops also used Schloss Ehrenstein from 1956 until 1971, leaving it in a desolate condition. Sights Schloss Ehrenstein: A Renaissance castle with Baroque alterations, the restoration of Schloss Ehrenstein was completed in the fall of 2013 and a new exhibition on local history opened in the east wing. However, on 26 November 2013 a fire destroyed parts of the castle and many of the new exhibits. It was started inadvertently by workmen putting finishing touches to the south eastern corner of the castle. Sparks caused a smouldering fire that spread unnoticed. Despite the efforts of hundreds of fire fighters from all over the region, supported by Bundeswehr and Technisches Hilfswerk, large parts could not be saved. Small fires were still burning five days later. The town library and museum were severely damaged. St. Michaelis Kirche: Previous churches at the site go back to the 8th century. Associated with the Bach family, who worked there as organists, the church burned down in 1753 and 1808 when fires raged through the town, but was rebuilt each time. The church was again destroyed by Allied bombing in 1945, only the roofless 15th century tower remaining. This was covered by a concrete roof until 1998/99 when the tower was reconstructed. Today, the tower houses a small chapel and an exhibition on the church's history. See also List of towns in Thuringia Ohrdruf concentration camp References External links Town website (German) Gotha (district) Saxe-Coburg and Gotha