ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Czechoslovak border fortifications

Okay kiddo, imagine that you have a LEGO castle that you love to play with. Now imagine that you want to protect your castle from bad guys who might come and try to invade it.

That's exactly what the Czechoslovak Border Fortifications were designed for. They were built to protect Czechoslovakia (a country that used to exist) from enemies who might try to invade by crossing the border.

The fortifications were made up of different parts, like walls and tunnels and bunkers, just like your LEGO castle has different pieces. They were built along the Czechoslovak borders with Germany and Austria, which were considered to be particularly vulnerable to attack.

One of the main features of the fortifications was a system of trenches and obstacles that made it hard for enemy soldiers to cross the border. This is kind of like when you build a moat around your LEGO castle to stop bad guys from getting in.

The fortifications were built in the 1930s when the threat of war was looming in Europe, and they were meant to deter any potential attackers from trying to invade. They were pretty effective, because they made it very difficult for enemy forces to break through and enter Czechoslovakia.

Unfortunately, in 1938, Germany annexed a large part of Czechoslovakia as part of the Munich Agreement, which resulted in many of the fortifications being destroyed or abandoned. But they remain an important part of Czechoslovakia's history and a reminder of the importance of protecting borders from potential threats.