Fort de Guentrange
Encyclopedia
The Fort de Guentrange dominates Thionville
in the Moselle department of France
. It was built by Germany in next to the town of the same name the late 19th century after the annexation of the Moselle following the Franco-Prussian War
. The Fort de Guentrange was part of the Moselstellung, a group of eleven fortresses surrounding Thionville and Metz
to guard against the possibility of a French attack aimed at regaining Alsace
and Lorraine
, with construction taking place between 1899 and 1906. The fortification system incorporated new principles of defensive construction to deal with advances in artillery. Later forts, such as Guentrange, embodied innovative design concepts such as dispersal and concealment. The later forts were designed to support offensive operations, as an anchor for a pivoting move by German forces into France.
The Feste Ober-Gentringen, as Fort de Guentrange was called by the Germans, with the Fort de Koenigsmacker
and Fort d'Illange
, assured the protection of Thionville against French attack. Positioned to the rear of the principal lines of combat in the First World War, the fort never saw combat in World War I
. It is the largest of the three Thionville festen. The site overlooks the Moselle valley and its western approaches, as well as the railway lines to the west of Thionville.
on the heights of Metz
, Fort Ober-Gentringen features two dispersed armored batteries, each armed with four short 100mm guns in single turrets. It possesses a separate four-level barracks and about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) of underground galleries. The austere simplicity of the fort's façade is characteristic of the forts of the era.
The dispersed, un-walled nature of the later Moselstellung was a significant innovation. Compared to the French Séré de Rivières system
forts of the same era, later German fortifications such as Guentrange were scattered over a large area and enclosed chiefly by barbed wire. While certain individual elements presented imposing walls to an attacker, these walls were not continuous. The dispersed nature is evidenced by the official French name: the Groupe Fortifié de Guentrange (Fortified Group of Guentrange). These arrangements were studied and improved upon by the French in the construction of the Maginot Line.
The fort includes three separate fortified barracks along a north-south line, the central barracks being the largest. Each barracks was built into a hillside so that the rear are shielded by earth, while the top and front are protected by three of four meters of concrete, and are surmounted by a parapet. The two batteries are similarly constructed and linked to the barracks by underground tunnels. The four 100mm guns in each battery were protected by Schumann turrets and controlled by an armored observation cupola on top of each battery. The whole was surrounded by deep networks of barbed wire, which were swept by fire from small perimeter blockhouses, also linked via the tunnel system. Further counterscarp
casemates were built after 1912 when the defensive perimeter was expanded. The interior of the position was equipped with trenches for infantry. The barracks and batteries were further armored with reinforced concrete and armored windows. A variety of blockhouses and infantry shelters were also built in the intervals between forts. The fort featured central heating in the barracks and the armored batteries, as well as a central generating plant for electricity with eight diesel generators.
, required that the Moselstellung deter an advance by French forces into Lorraine while the German forces mobilized.
, Thionville was located well to the rear of German lines and never came under attack. With the Compiègne armistice of 1918
, Lorraine was returned to France and the fort became French property. The three Thionville forts became known as the Fortified Group of Thionville.
The Fort de Guetrange was integrated into the Fortified Sector of Thionville
of the Maginot Line
in the 1930s, backing up the newer Maginot ouvrages that were built about halfway between Thionville and the border with Luxembourg
. The short 105mm guns were replaced by 105mm long guns removed from the German fortifications of Metz. The artillery range was thus increased from 9700 metres (6 mi) to 12700 metres (7.9 mi). During the Battle of France
the Thionville area was bypassed and encircled by German forces, with the Maginot and earlier fortifications seeing little action. After the 25 June 1940 armistice the German occupiers used the fort as a supply depot until Thionville was liberated by the Americans. The Fort de Guentrange was captured without resistance by elements of the U.S. 90th Infantry Division on 12 September 1944, after the German forces withdrew to Metz. After the war, the French Army used the fort as a munitions depot until 1971.
Thionville
Thionville , is a commune in the Moselle department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz.-Demographics:...
in the Moselle department of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It was built by Germany in next to the town of the same name the late 19th century after the annexation of the Moselle following the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
. The Fort de Guentrange was part of the Moselstellung, a group of eleven fortresses surrounding Thionville and Metz
Metz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
to guard against the possibility of a French attack aimed at regaining Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
and Lorraine
Lorraine (région)
Lorraine is one of the 27 régions of France. The administrative region has two cities of equal importance, Metz and Nancy. Metz is considered to be the official capital since that is where the regional parliament is situated...
, with construction taking place between 1899 and 1906. The fortification system incorporated new principles of defensive construction to deal with advances in artillery. Later forts, such as Guentrange, embodied innovative design concepts such as dispersal and concealment. The later forts were designed to support offensive operations, as an anchor for a pivoting move by German forces into France.
The Feste Ober-Gentringen, as Fort de Guentrange was called by the Germans, with the Fort de Koenigsmacker
Fort de Koenigsmacker
The Fort de Koenigsmacker is a fortification located to the northeast of Thionville in the Moselle department of France. It was built by Germany next to the town of the same name in the early 20th century after the annexation of the Moselle following the Franco-Prussian War...
and Fort d'Illange
Fort d'Illange
The Fort d'Illange is a fortification located to the south of Thionville in the Moselle department of France. It was built by Germany next to the town of Illange in the early 20th century after the annexation of the Moselle following the Franco-Prussian War...
, assured the protection of Thionville against French attack. Positioned to the rear of the principal lines of combat in the First World War, the fort never saw combat in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. It is the largest of the three Thionville festen. The site overlooks the Moselle valley and its western approaches, as well as the railway lines to the west of Thionville.
Description
The Fort de Guentrange is located about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) to the northwest of Thionville on a hilltop overlooking the town and the northern railway line. It was defended by a garrison of 2000 men. Like the Fort de PlappevilleFort de Plappeville
The Fort de Plappeville, or Feste Alvensleben, is a military fortification located to the northwest of Metz in the commune of Plappeville. As part of the first ring of the fortifications of Metz, it is an early example of a Séré de Rivières system fort...
on the heights of Metz
Metz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
, Fort Ober-Gentringen features two dispersed armored batteries, each armed with four short 100mm guns in single turrets. It possesses a separate four-level barracks and about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) of underground galleries. The austere simplicity of the fort's façade is characteristic of the forts of the era.
The dispersed, un-walled nature of the later Moselstellung was a significant innovation. Compared to the French Séré de Rivières system
Séré de Rivières system
The Séré de Rivières system was an ensemble of fortifications built from 1874 and first used at the beginning of the First World War along the frontiers and coasts of France...
forts of the same era, later German fortifications such as Guentrange were scattered over a large area and enclosed chiefly by barbed wire. While certain individual elements presented imposing walls to an attacker, these walls were not continuous. The dispersed nature is evidenced by the official French name: the Groupe Fortifié de Guentrange (Fortified Group of Guentrange). These arrangements were studied and improved upon by the French in the construction of the Maginot Line.
The fort includes three separate fortified barracks along a north-south line, the central barracks being the largest. Each barracks was built into a hillside so that the rear are shielded by earth, while the top and front are protected by three of four meters of concrete, and are surmounted by a parapet. The two batteries are similarly constructed and linked to the barracks by underground tunnels. The four 100mm guns in each battery were protected by Schumann turrets and controlled by an armored observation cupola on top of each battery. The whole was surrounded by deep networks of barbed wire, which were swept by fire from small perimeter blockhouses, also linked via the tunnel system. Further counterscarp
Counterscarp
A scarp and a counterscarp are the inner and outer sides of a ditch used in fortifications. In permanent fortifications the scarp and counterscarp may be encased in stone...
casemates were built after 1912 when the defensive perimeter was expanded. The interior of the position was equipped with trenches for infantry. The barracks and batteries were further armored with reinforced concrete and armored windows. A variety of blockhouses and infantry shelters were also built in the intervals between forts. The fort featured central heating in the barracks and the armored batteries, as well as a central generating plant for electricity with eight diesel generators.
Operational concept
From 1899, the Germans viewed Metz as a secure position that could provide an anchor for a pivoting movement into France from the Low Countries. This strategy, which would become known as the Schlieffen PlanSchlieffen Plan
The Schlieffen Plan was the German General Staff's early 20th century overall strategic plan for victory in a possible future war in which the German Empire might find itself fighting on two fronts: France to the west and Russia to the east...
, required that the Moselstellung deter an advance by French forces into Lorraine while the German forces mobilized.
History
During World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Thionville was located well to the rear of German lines and never came under attack. With the Compiègne armistice of 1918
Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)
The armistice between the Allies and Germany was an agreement that ended the fighting in the First World War. It was signed in a railway carriage in Compiègne Forest on 11 November 1918 and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not technically a surrender...
, Lorraine was returned to France and the fort became French property. The three Thionville forts became known as the Fortified Group of Thionville.
- See Fortified Sector of ThionvilleFortified Sector of ThionvilleThe Fortified Sector of Thionville was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line immediately to the north of Thionville. The sector describes an arc of about , about halfway between the French border with Luxembourg and Thionville. The Thionville...
for a broader discussion of the Thionville sector of the Maginot Line.
The Fort de Guetrange was integrated into the Fortified Sector of Thionville
Fortified Sector of Thionville
The Fortified Sector of Thionville was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line immediately to the north of Thionville. The sector describes an arc of about , about halfway between the French border with Luxembourg and Thionville. The Thionville...
of the Maginot Line
Maginot Line
The Maginot Line , named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, was a line of concrete fortifications, tank obstacles, artillery casemates, machine gun posts, and other defences, which France constructed along its borders with Germany and Italy, in light of its experience in World War I,...
in the 1930s, backing up the newer Maginot ouvrages that were built about halfway between Thionville and the border with Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
. The short 105mm guns were replaced by 105mm long guns removed from the German fortifications of Metz. The artillery range was thus increased from 9700 metres (6 mi) to 12700 metres (7.9 mi). During the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
the Thionville area was bypassed and encircled by German forces, with the Maginot and earlier fortifications seeing little action. After the 25 June 1940 armistice the German occupiers used the fort as a supply depot until Thionville was liberated by the Americans. The Fort de Guentrange was captured without resistance by elements of the U.S. 90th Infantry Division on 12 September 1944, after the German forces withdrew to Metz. After the war, the French Army used the fort as a munitions depot until 1971.
Manning
Under the Germans, the Feste Ober-Gentringen was occupied in 1909-10 by the 8th Fussenartillerie (Foot Artillery) Regiment. From 1913, the garrison was provided by the 16th Fussenartillerie. The French garrison of the Fort de Guentrange in 1939-40 was provided by detachments of the 168th Fortress Infantry Regiment and the 151st Position Artillery Regiment.Present status
The fort is presently the property of the city of Thionville and is maintained by the Amicale du Groupe Fortifié de Guentrange, which conducts guided visits.Sources
- This article incorporates text translated from the corresponding French Wikipedia article as of March 2, 2010.
- Kauffmann, J.E., Kaufmann, H.W., Jancovič-Potočnik, A. and Lang, P. The Maginot Line: History and Guide, 2011. ISBN 978-1-84884-068-3
- Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 3. Paris: Histoire & Collections, 2003. ISBN 2-913903-88-6