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Ouvrage Rochonvillers
Ouvrage Rochonvillers is one of the largest of the Maginot Line fortifications. Located above the town of Rochonvillers in the French region of Lorraine, the ''gros ouvrage'' or large work was fully equipped and occupied in 1935 as part of the Fortified Sector of Thionville in the Moselle. It is located between the ''petit ouvrage'' d'Aumetz and the ''gros ouvrage'' Molvange, facing the border between Luxembourg and France with nine combat blocks. Rochonvillers saw little action during World War II, but due to its size it was repaired and retained in service after the war. During the Cold War it found a new use as a hardened military command centre, first for NATO and then for the French Army. Design and construction Rochonvillers was considered an early priority for construction, and as such went through several concepts in early design while the overall concept of the Maginot Line was being investigated. It was initially proposed in 1926 as a single massive fort shieldi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maginot Line
The Maginot Line (french: Ligne Maginot, ), named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, is a line of concrete fortifications, obstacles and weapon installations built by France in the 1930s to deter invasion by Germany and force them to move around the fortifications. The Maginot Line was impervious to most forms of attack. In consequence, the Germans invaded through the Low Countries in 1940, passing it to the north. The line, which was supposed to be fully extended further towards the west to avoid such an occurrence, was finally scaled back in response to demands from Belgium. Indeed, Belgium feared it would be sacrificed in the event of another German invasion. The line has since become a metaphor for expensive efforts that offer a false sense of security. Constructed on the French side of its borders with Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium, the line did not extend to the English Channel. French strategy therefore envisioned a move into Belgium ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rochonvillers EM2
Rochonvillers (; lb, Rucksler/Rucksweller) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. See also * Communes of the Moselle department * Ouvrage Rochonvillers, a nearby Maginot Line The Maginot Line (french: Ligne Maginot, ), named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, is a line of concrete fortifications, obstacles and weapon installations built by France in the 1930s to deter invasion by Germany and force the ... fortification References External links * Communes of Moselle (department) {{Thionville-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thionville
Thionville (; ; german: Diedenhofen ) is a city in the northeastern French department of Moselle. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz. History Thionville was settled as early as the time of the Merovingians. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the region was inhabited by the Germanic Alamanni. It was known in the Latin of that era as ''Theudonevilla'' or ''Totonisvilla''. King Pepin the Short had a royal palace constructed here. The Synod of Thionville was held here beginning on February 2, 835. It reinstated Emperor Louis the Pious and reversed his former conviction on crimes — none of which he actually committed — and deposed the Archbishop of Rheims, Ebbo. The Synod was composed of 43 bishops. On February 28, 835, in Mainz, Ebbo admitted that Louis had not committed the crimes of which he had been indicted and for which he had been deposed as Holy Roman Emperor. From the 10th century onward, the area ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force
Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force (4 ATAF) was a NATO military formation under Allied Air Forces Central Europe tasked with providing air support to NATO's Allied Force Command Heidelberg, Central Army Group (CENTAG) in southern West Germany. 4 ATAF commanded all flying units based within its sector and all reinforcements flying into its sector, as well as ground-based radar systems and stations, air defense units and the airfields in its sector. History Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force was formed in 1951 with its area of responsibility covering the Germany south of the city of Kassel. Commander of Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force at its inception was the commanding Major general, Major General of the American Twelfth Air Force based in the southwest of Germany. After Twelfth Air Force returned to the continental United States in 1958, the commander of Seventeenth Air Force took over command of Fourth Allied Tactical Air Force. Headquarters 4 ATAF moved several times over more than ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Angevillers
Angevillers (Lorraine Franconian ''Aasler'', German: Arsweiler) is a commune in the Moselle department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Population See also * Communes of the Moselle department * Ouvrage Rochonvillers, a Maginot Line The Maginot Line (french: Ligne Maginot, ), named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, is a line of concrete fortifications, obstacles and weapon installations built by France in the 1930s to deter invasion by Germany and force the ... fortification References External links * Communes of Moselle (department) {{Thionville-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Third Army (France)
The Third Army (french: IIIe Armée) was a Field army of the French Army, which fought during World War I and World War II. Commanders World War I *General Ruffey (Mobilization – 30 August 1914) *General Sarrail (30 August 1914 – 22 July 1915) *General Humbert (22 July 1915 – Armistice) World War II *General Charles-Marie Condé (2 September 1939 – 20 June 1940) See also * 3rd Army Corps (France) * List of French armies in WWI List of armies — List of French armies in World War I This page is a list of French army formations existing during World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest glo ... External links Robert Thibault, 3rd Army, 8th Infantry Division, 12ème Régiment d'Artillerie, 1939-1940 Field armies of France in World War I 03 Military units and formations of France in World War II Military units and formations established in 1914 1914 establishments in France ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Camp Angevillers
Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to describe a cottage * Military camp * Summer camp, typically organized for groups of children or youth * Tent city, a housing facility often occupied by homeless people or protesters Areas of imprisonment or confinement * Concentration camp * Extermination camp * Federal prison camp, a minimum-security United States federal prison facility * Internment camp, also called a concentration camp, resettlement camp, relocation camp, or detention camp * Labor camp * Prisoner-of-war camp ** Parole camp guards its own soldiers as prisoners of war Gatherings of people * Camp, a mining community * Camp, a term commonly used in the titles of technology-related unconferences * Camp meeting, a Christian gathering which originated in 19th-century America ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ouvrage Bréhain
Ouvrage Bréhain is part of the Fortified Sector of the Crusnes of the Maginot Line, located near the community of Bréhain-la-Ville in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department of France. Bréhain is flanked by ''petits ouvrages'' Mauvais Bois and Aumetz. The ''gros ouvrage'' was equipped with long-range artillery, and faced the border with Luxembourg. It saw no major action in either the Battle of France in 1940 or the Lorraine Campaign of 1944. While not open to public visitation, it has been secured and is in relatively good condition when compared to other abandoned Maginot positions. A flanking casemate has been restored and may be visited. Design and construction Bréhain was approved for construction in May 1931. It was completed at a cost of 84 million francs by the contractor Ballot of Paris.Mary, Tome 1, p. 52 Compared with its neighbours, the ultimate plans for Aumetz, Bréhain, Bois-du-Four and Ouvrage Mauvais-Bois closely resemble each other, but Bréhain is the mos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Casemate
A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which artillery, guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to Ancient history, antiquity, the term "casemate wall" means a double city wall with the space between the walls separated into chambers, which could be filled up to better withstand battering rams in case of siege (see #Antiquity: casemate wall, Antiquity: casemate wall). In its original early modern meaning, the term referred to a vaulted chamber in a fort, which may have been used for storage, accommodation, or artillery which could fire through an opening or embrasure. Although the outward faces of brick or masonry casemates proved vulnerable to advances in artillery performance, the invention of reinforced concrete allowed newer designs to be produced well into the 20th century. With the introduction of ironclad warships, the definition was widened to include a prot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
LG Cloche
The 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 close defense against enemy troops on top of the bunker. 75 units were installed in the Maginot Line. LG refers to ''Lance-Grenade'' (grenade launcher). Unlike other cloches such as the GFM or the JM, the LG cloche was effectively "blind", possessing a single shuttered orifice in diameter in its flat crown. It had no observation ports at all, as it did not project appreciably above the surrounding surface. The LG cloche came in three models: a small version, high, a large version, and a cloche for two persons, tall. All were in diameter. LG cloches were usually found in the vicinity of an entrance block. The LG cloche was armed with a grenade launcher that could fire at an angle f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
VDP Cloche
The VDP cloche was an element of the Maginot Line fortifications. A ''cloche'' (bell) was a fixed and non-retractable firing position made of a thick iron casting which shielded its occupant. By comparison, turrets could be rotated and sometimes lowered so that only the top shell was exposed. VDP cloches were used for observation of the surrounding area for artillery direction. VDP is an acronym for ''Vision Directe et Périscopique''. By comparison with the GFM cloche, the VDP cloche had narrower ports and was consequently lower in profile. Description VDP cloches were equipped with three embrasures or crenels for direct vision, providing protection to observers. VDP cloches were also equipped with periscopes that allowed a greater arc of view. The cloches were embedded in a thick concrete carapace over a combat, entrance or observation block element of a largely subterranean Maginot fortification. A platform, identical to that used in the GFM cloche, was installed for the obser ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
