Since September 2020, historian Dr Kristiane Janeke has held this position and is the head of the museum's exhibitions, collection and research department.

By 2001, feelings regarding the museum had shifted and an architectural competition was held for an extension which would cause visitors to reconsider the way they think about war.

[2] Before opening in October 2011 as the Bundeswehr Military History Museum, the building underwent six years of extensive construction.

Jewish architect Daniel Libeskind added a transparent arrowhead to the façade of the building, creating, according to the Dresden Tourism board, "an outwardly visible expression of innovation".

[2] The silver arrowhead protrudes from the center of the traditional Neo-Classical building and provides a five-story, 29 meter high viewing platform which overlooks the city.

[5] The Arsenal main building in the center of Dresden's Albert City served as an armory for roughly twenty years, until it was transformed into a museum in 1897.

[7] On February 13 and 14, 1945, British bomber planes commenced an air attack against Dresden, creating a vast firestorm below.

[8] During the first phase, 244 Lancaster bombers dropped high explosive and incendiary bombs aimed at the center of the city.

[5] The building withstood World War II attacks on Germany and continued to be used as a military museum until it was closed in 1989.

Additionally, the museum showcases the history of Military Technology, Handguns, Uniforms and Insignia, Order, Art, an Image Archive, Records, and a Library.

The museum houses a vast collection of military history, from technology and handguns to artistic renderings of war.

[11] Among historically significant items displayed is the ship's bell from SMS Schleswig-Holstein, a pre-dreadnought battleship that fired what are generally regarded as the first shots of World War II (in Europe) when on Sept. 1, 1939, it shelled Polish positions at Westerplatte in the then- Free City of Danzig.

Included in the museum are 4,250 firearms spanning from rifles, carbines and machine guns, as well as 3,250 handguns such as pistols and revolvers that make up the collection of Feuerwaffen.

In addition to outerwear, underwear, shoes, headgear, and military equipment are on display, along with badges, musical instruments and banners.

One remarkable piece within the collection is the Spencer jacket from 1805 which belonged to Queen Louise, the "Sissi Prussia", mother of the first German Emperor Wilhelm I.

Nearly 1,100 paintings, 500 sculptures, 12,000 drawings and prints have been added to the early collection by an eclectic group of artists including Jacques Callog, William Campenhausen, Max Liebermann, Lea Grundig and Bernhard Heisig.

Non-military members are granted access to the reading room if they apply ahead of time via telephone or through written application.