Ouvrage Salmagne
Encyclopedia
Ouvrage La Salmagne is a petit ouvrage of the Maginot Line
, built as part of the "New Fronts" program to address shortcomings in the Line's coverage of the border with Belgium
. Like the other three ouvrages near Maubeuge
, it is built on an old Séré de Rivières system
fortification, near the town of Bersillies
. The Ouvrage Bersillies
is nearby to the northwest. La Salmagne has been preserved and is open to the public.
s. It was armed with six 120mm guns, four 95mm guns and several smaller pieces. La Salmagne was attacked by German forces in 1914 during the Siege of Maubeuge
. It surrendered to the Germans on 5 September 1914.
During the Battle of France
in 1940, the invading German forces approached Maubeuge from the south and east, to the rear of the defensive line. The German 28th Infantry Division moved along the line of fortifications 19–22 May, rolling up blockhouses and larger fortifications. La Salmagne was hit with aerial and artillery bombardments. After the fall of Ouvrage Boussois
on 22 May the Germans concentrated on La Salmagne, which had been supporting its neighbor. 15 cm gunfire was concentrated on Block 2, which was evacuated at 1500. After the AM cloche on Block 1 was destroyed by explosives the position lost all means of resistance. Facing asphyxiation from smoke and fumes, La Salmagne's garrison surrendered at 2030.
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,...
, built as part of the "New Fronts" program to address shortcomings in the Line's coverage of the border with Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. Like the other three ouvrages near Maubeuge
Maubeuge
Maubeuge is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It is situated on both banks of the Sambre , east of Valenciennes and about from the Belgian border.-History:...
, it is built on an old 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...
fortification, near the town of Bersillies
Bersillies
Bersillies is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.-Heraldry:-References:*...
. The Ouvrage Bersillies
Ouvrage Bersillies
Ouvrage Bersillies is a petit ouvrage of the Maginot Line, built as part of the "New Fronts" program to address shortcomings in the Line's coverage of the border with Belgium. Like the other three ouvrages near Maubeuge, it is built on an old Séré de Rivières system fortification, near the town of...
is nearby to the northwest. La Salmagne has been preserved and is open to the public.
Séré de Rivières
The original Ouvrage de la Salmagne was built to the northeast of Bersillies in 1884-1895 as part of the Séré de Rivières fortifications of Maubeuge. The trapezoidal fort is surrounded by a ditch defended by counterscarpCounterscarp
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...
s. It was armed with six 120mm guns, four 95mm guns and several smaller pieces. La Salmagne was attacked by German forces in 1914 during the Siege of Maubeuge
Siege of Maubeuge
The Siege of Maubeuge took place between August 24 and September 7, 1914 when the French garrison of the Maubeuge Fortress finally surrendered to the Germans at the start of World War I on the Western Front....
. It surrendered to the Germans on 5 September 1914.
Design and construction
The Maginot-era site was approved in 1934. Work cost 6.2 million francs.Description
La Salmagne comprises two combat blocks. The ouvrage was built within the walls of the old Ouvrage de la Salmagne. An underground gallery connects the two blocks, with underground service and barracks spaces under Block 1.- Block 1: infantry block with one automatic rifle cloche (GFM-B)GFM clocheThe GFM cloche was one of the most common defensive armaments on the Maginot Line. A cloche was a fixed and non-retractable firing position made of a thick iron casting which shielded its occupant...
, one mixed-arms cloche (AM)JM clocheThe JM cloche is an element of the Maginot Line. It is a non-retractable non-rotating cupola of steel alloy like GFM cloches, but are armed with twin heavy machine guns, as opposed to the lighter automatic rifles associated with the GFM. There are 179 JM cloches on the Maginot Line.JM is an acronym...
and one retractable mixed-arms turret. - Block 2: infantry/entrance block with two GFM cloches, one grenade launcher cloche (LG)LG clocheThe LG cloche was a defensive element common to many Maginot Line ouvrages. The fixed cupola was deeply embedded into the concrete on top of a combat block, with only the top surface visible. The opening permitted the ejection of grenades from the interior of the cloche, providing a means of...
, one automatic rifle embrasure and one machine gun/47mm anti-tank gunAC 47 anti-tank gunThe AC 47 was a French anti-tank gun of 47mm caliber. It was principally used in the ouvrages and casemates of the Maginot Line in the late 1930s; another version was created for naval use....
(JM/AC47) embrasure.
Manning
The 1940 manning of the ouvrage under the command of Captain Brichard comprised 97 men and 3 officers of the 84th Fortress Infantry Regiment. The units were under the umbrella of the 101st Fortress Infantry Division, 1st Army, Army Group 1.History of the Maginot ouvrage
- See Fortified Sector of MaubeugeFortified Sector of MaubeugeThe Fortified Sector of Maubeuge was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line between the French border with Belgium and Maubeuge, a distance of about...
for a broader discussion of the events of 1940 in the Maubeuge sector of the Maginot Line.
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...
in 1940, the invading German forces approached Maubeuge from the south and east, to the rear of the defensive line. The German 28th Infantry Division moved along the line of fortifications 19–22 May, rolling up blockhouses and larger fortifications. La Salmagne was hit with aerial and artillery bombardments. After the fall of Ouvrage Boussois
Ouvrage Boussois
Ouvrage Boussois is a petit ouvrage of the Maginot Line, built as part of the "New Fronts" program to address shortcomings in the Line's coverage of the border with Belgium. Like the other three ouvrages near Maubeuge, it is built on an old Séré de Rivières fortification, near the town of Boussois...
on 22 May the Germans concentrated on La Salmagne, which had been supporting its neighbor. 15 cm gunfire was concentrated on Block 2, which was evacuated at 1500. After the AM cloche on Block 1 was destroyed by explosives the position lost all means of resistance. Facing asphyxiation from smoke and fumes, La Salmagne's garrison surrendered at 2030.
Current condition
La Salmagne is managed by the Association des Amis de la Forteresse du Secteur Fortifié de Maubeuge. The association is working to preserve the site and to allow visitation. It is occasionally open to the public.See also
- List of all works on Maginot Line
- Siegfried LineSiegfried LineThe original Siegfried line was a line of defensive forts and tank defences built by Germany as a section of the Hindenburg Line 1916–1917 in northern France during World War I...
- Atlantic WallAtlantic WallThe Atlantic Wall was an extensive system of coastal fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the western coast of Europe as a defense against an anticipated Allied invasion of the mainland continent from Great Britain.-History:On March 23, 1942 Führer Directive Number 40...
- Czechoslovak border fortificationsCzechoslovak border fortificationsThe Czechoslovak government built a system of border fortifications from 1935 to 1938 as a defensive countermeasure against the rising threat of Nazi Germany that later materialized in the German offensive plan called Fall Grün...
External links
- Association Amifort, official site