Perpetrators at a Distance:A Semiotic Inquiry into Fort Breendonk’s Visitor Tour

This article presents an in-depth analysis of Fort Breendonk, a Belgian WWI military compound that was repurposed as a Nazi Auffanglager in 1940 and presently functions as a memorial museum. The camp quickly gained notoriety, even during the war, for the brutality of some guards and commanders, and for the abject living conditions of its inmates, who were systematically humiliated, beaten, starved and worn down. Conceptualised as an ‘indexical’ trauma site, today’s fortress bears witness to its violent history through its material essence. The study focuses on two key aspects: a review of curatorial interventions that bring out the site’s testimonial qualities and emphasise its authentic features, and an empirical enquiry into user interactions with these features. Employing a spatial-semiotic approach inspired by Violi (2012) and Ravelli and McMurtrie (2016), the article demonstrates how Fort Breendonk’s visitor tour combines visual, spatial, material and linguistic strategies to create an emotional immersive experience of the ‘Hell of Breendonk’. In particular, the curatorial approach hinges on a realistic, almost mimetic, representation strategy that facilitates empathy with the victims while creating moral distance from the sadistic perpetrators. The spatial analysis is triangulated with a qualitative examination of 200 TripAdvisor reviews that underscores visitors’ profound engagement with the fortress’s spatial and material aspects, attesting to the efficacy of some of the curatorial choices. The article concludes by raising critical questions regarding ethical curatorship and authenticity effects, as well as reflecting on the implications of victim-focused immersive techniques for the memorial’s educational goals.