As the place of intense fighting in the last stage of the War, Remagen became a symbol of the liberation of Europe from the Nazi yoke. In 1980 thanks to the efforts of local mayor Hans Peter Kuerten the two towers on the western bank were turned into a memorial under the name Peace Museum. The exhibition is divided into ten rooms devoted to the history of the bridge, its successful capture, the fate of local community during the bombing campaign, daily life of the soldiers who guarded the bridge, the victims of the fighting (including four German officers shot on Hitler's orders for failing to demolish the bridge in time) plus a section documenting various military conflicts after 1945. Especially important is the exhibition devoted to the Prisoner of War Temporary Enclosure at Remagen, where thousands of German prisoners of war were held without the most rudimentary shelter.