The Soratte bunker is an underground bunker complex in the Italian municipality of Sant’Oreste, about 50 kilometres north of Rome. It was built between 1937 and 1943 in the Monte Soratte Mountain and served as the headquarters of the Wehrmacht units in the Mediterranean region until June 1944. The huge bunker complex was intended to house the Italian government and the Italian military high command in the event of a siege of Rome. During the Cold War, the bunker was converted into a nuclear shelter for the Italian government and the president. It could have housed 50 members of the government and 50 NATO technicians. The structure was “ready to accommodate the Government of Italy” but was never used because there was no need. It was used only on the occasion of some exercises by NATO in the years 1976-1988 and was dismantled in 1993.

Today, thanks to the efforts of the municipality of Sant’Oreste and the Soratte Bunker Association, the bunker complex is a modern historical site. Visitors can immerse themselves in the special history of the fortress monument in a variety of ways, e.g. with the new narrow-gauge railway or with virtual reality offers.

Mayor Gregory Paolucci signed the FORTE CULTURA membership of the municipality of Sant’Oreste in February 2025 and also joined the FORTE CULTURA network as a private individual. He expressed maximum interest in the touristic valorisation of fortified monuments with FORTE CULTURA as well as in the comprehensive international exchange.