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The Koningshooikt—Wavre Line, abbreviated to KW Line (french: Ligne KW; nl, KW-stelling) and often known as the Dyle Line after the Dijle (Dyle) river, was a -long fortified line of defence prepared by the
Belgian Army The Land Component ( nl, Landcomponent, french: Composante terre) is the land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land Component is Major-General Pierre Gérard. ...
between
Koningshooikt Koningshooikt is a village that since 1977 forms a municipality with Lier in the Belgian province of Antwerp. In the local dialect Koningshooikt is often called ''Jut'' or ''Koningsjut''. Koningshooikt was founded on 1 January 1822, when the vil ...
(
Province of Antwerp ) , native_name_lang = nl , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of Antwerp.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van de provincie Antwerpen.svg , shield_size ...
) and
Wavre Wavre (; nl, Waver, ; wa, Wåve) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, capital of the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. Wavre is in the Dyle valley. Most inhabitants speak French as their mother tongue and are called "Wavriens" and " ...
(
Province of Brabant The Province of Brabant (, , ) was a province in Belgium from 1830 to 1995. It was created in 1815 as South Brabant, part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. In 1995, it was split into the Dutch-speaking Flemish Brabant, the French-speak ...
) which was intended to protect
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
from a possible German invasion. Construction on the KW Line began in September 1939 after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
had begun but while
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
itself remained a
neutral state A neutral country is a state that is neutral towards belligerents in a specific war or holds itself as permanently neutral in all future conflicts (including avoiding entering into military alliances such as NATO, CSTO or the SCO). As a type of ...
. It was subsequently extended southwards from Wavre towards
Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...
(
Province of Namur Namur (; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a province of Wallonia, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the West) on the Walloon provinces of Hainaut, Walloon Brabant, Liège and Luxembourg in Belgium, and the French depart ...
). The line itself consisted of
bunker A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. ...
s,
anti-tank ditch Anti-tank trenches, also called anti-tank ditches, are ditches dug into and around fortified positions to hold up the advance of enemy tanks. Anti-tank ditches were first used in World War I by Germany in an effort to protect their trenches again ...
es, and barricades including so-called
Cointet-element The Cointet-element, also known as a Belgian Gate or C-element, was a heavy steel fence about wide and high, typically mounted on concrete rollers, used as a mobile anti-tank obstacle during World War II. Each individual fence element weighed ...
s and played a key role in Allied strategy during the German invasion of Belgium in May 1940. However, its role in the actual fighting was ultimately minimal. In 2009 an inventory of surviving emplacements was begun.


Background

In October 1936, Belgium abandoned its previous military alliance with
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, fearful that after the German
Remilitarization of the Rhineland The remilitarization of the Rhineland () began on 7 March 1936, when German military forces entered the Rhineland, which directly contravened the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Treaties. Neither France nor Britain was prepared for a milit ...
, bringing German forces to its borders, it would get involved in a Franco-German war. It was recognised that a policy of neutrality could only be viable if Belgium possessed strong defences. Existing defence plans were therefore pursued more vigorously. A strong defence line was created along the
Albert Canal The Albert Canal (, ) is a canal located in northeastern Belgium, which was named for King Albert I of Belgium. The Albert Canal connects Antwerp with Liège, and also the Meuse river with the Scheldt river. It also connects with the Dessel ...
, running eastwards from
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
to the modern fortress of
Eben Emael Fort Eben-Emael (french: Fort d'Ében-Émael, ) is an inactive Belgian fortress located between Liège and Maastricht, on the Belgian-Dutch border, near the Albert Canal, outside the village of Ében-Émael. It was designed to defend Belgi ...
and from there to the southwest along the
River Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a ...
. Although this was a powerful position, it had been understood from the outset that Belgium could not resist a major German invasion alone and that despite its neutrality would need to cooperate with the French army to block a German advance. Eben Emael was too close to Germany, and the salient it created was too large, to make it practical for assisting French forces to occupy such a forward position. For this reason a shorter defence line was planned between Antwerp and
Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...
in the south. This should be the "line of main resistance", while the Albert Canal-Meuse line would function as a "covering line", delaying the enemy long enough for allied help to arrive and entrench itself. However, the Belgian government was hesitant to start any large-scale construction along this line as it could be seen by Germany as a breach of neutrality as well as an invitation to occupy the area to the east of it. After the outbreak of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Belgium was under considerable pressure from France and the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
to take their side even before a German invasion, partly because it was feared Belgian defences would collapse before allied troops had the time to reinforce them. To assuage such fears, the Belgian government hastily ordered the improvement of the Antwerp-Namur position in September 1939. The construction work was largely done by conscripts mobilised in September but also by about a thousand civilian workers hired from private contractors.


Location

The line in the north was anchored on the old fortress belt of Antwerp. This way the existing Fort Broechem, Fort Lier and Fort Koningshooikt could be used. From the latter fort southwards, the line continued to
Haacht Haacht () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Haacht proper, Kelfs, Tildonk, Wakkerzeel and Wespelaar. On January 1, 2020, Haacht had a total population of 14,858. The ...
, protecting the city of
Mechelen Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...
. From Haacht it ran to
Leuven Leuven (, ) or Louvain (, , ; german: link=no, Löwen ) is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the historic ...
, which city was incorporated into the frontline. Originally, this had not been the case: in this sector between November 1939 and April 1940 the line was shifted to the east four times. The next twenty kilometres, the line followed the course of the
River Dyle The Dyle (french: Dyle ; nl, Dijle ) is a river in central Belgium, left tributary of the Rupel. It is long. It flows through the Belgian provinces of Walloon Brabant, Flemish Brabant and Antwerp. Its source is in Houtain-le-Val, near Nivelles ...
until
Wavre Wavre (; nl, Waver, ; wa, Wåve) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, capital of the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. Wavre is in the Dyle valley. Most inhabitants speak French as their mother tongue and are called "Wavriens" and " ...
was reached. The area between Koningshooikt and Wavre represented the main position where the Belgian army was expected to fight, and to the improvement of which most funds were directed. This explains the name Koningshooikt-Wavre line. From February 1940 onwards, the line was extended to the south in the direction of Namur, to close the so-called "
Gembloux Gembloux (; wa, Djiblou; nl, Gembloers, ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 21,964 inhabitants. The total area is 95.86 km², yielding a population dens ...
Gap" between the Dyle and the Meuse. Also a branch westwards of Wavre was created, running to Waterloo, Halle and Kester, ending in
Ninove Ninove () is a city and municipality located in the Flemish province of East Flanders in Belgium. It is situated on the river Dender, and is part of the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the city of Ninove proper and since the 1976 merger of ...
. This covered the southern approaches of the Belgian capital
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. This extension was more symbolic than real, containing only thirty-eight pillboxes and an anti-tank line made out of Cointet elements, and it served to counter German allegations that the K-W line violated Belgian neutrality by being directed against Germany. The western branch pretended to block a possible French advance.


Structure

The K-W line was not a massive fortification line with modern forts sheltering the artillery, like the French
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 ...
. There were no permanent fortress garrisons occupying it. In case of war, regular infantry divisions had to entrench themselves along the line after having been withdrawn from the Albert Canal-Meuse covering line. Construction work was aimed at preparing this entrenchment by providing a pre-existing infrastructure, consisting of a telephone network, command bunkers, pillboxes for the machine guns,
anti-tank obstacles Anti-tank obstacles include, but are not limited to: *The Czech hedgehog and Dragon's teeth are the most famous types of World War II anti-tank obstacles. * Anti-tank trenches were used on the western front during World War I, and in the Pacific ...
and inundations. Little was done in the way of digging
trench A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from eros ...
es, placing
barbed wire A close-up view of a barbed wire Roll of modern agricultural barbed wire Barbed wire, also known as barb wire, is a type of steel fencing wire constructed with sharp edges or points arranged at intervals along the strands. Its primary use is t ...
entanglements or laying
minefields A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...
beforehand. About four hundred concrete pillboxes were constructed. Most of these were placed along a forward line of defence, directly behind main obstacles. To provide some depth, about a kilometre to the west a second line of pillboxes was present. However when inundations were located in front of the forward line, these were considered to offer enough protection that a second pillbox line could be dispensed with. In front of Mechelen, the river Dyle curved to the west. This was seen as an especially vulnerable spot and between the Dyle and the River Nete a third line of pillboxes was constructed covering the eastern approaches of Mechelen. Multiple lines were also present west of Leuven, due to the many changes in the construction plans. The pillboxes were able to withstand hits by the German 15 cm sFH 18, the heaviest
howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...
German infantry divisions were equipped with. They were not of a uniform construction; each pillbox was tailored to adapt to the specific terrain conditions of its location, avoiding dead angles and often allowing enfilading fire. To this end they contained up to three chambers in which a single machine gun could be placed. The machine guns were not permanent fixtures; the troops retreating from the covering line were supposed to bring their
MG 08 The ''Maschinengewehr'' 08, or MG 08, was the German Army's standard machine gun in World War I and is an adaptation of Hiram S. Maxim's original 1884 Maxim gun. It was produced in a number of variants during the war. The MG 08 served during W ...
s, called "Maxims", along. Thousands of Cointet-elements were installed on the K-W Line between the village
Koningshooikt Koningshooikt is a village that since 1977 forms a municipality with Lier in the Belgian province of Antwerp. In the local dialect Koningshooikt is often called ''Jut'' or ''Koningsjut''. Koningshooikt was founded on 1 January 1822, when the vil ...
and the city
Wavre Wavre (; nl, Waver, ; wa, Wåve) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, capital of the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. Wavre is in the Dyle valley. Most inhabitants speak French as their mother tongue and are called "Wavriens" and " ...
to act as the main line of defence, against a possible German armoured invasion through the heartland of Belgium, forming a long iron wall. The Cointet-elements were also used as an anti-tank line in a sidebranch of the K-W Line, which was meant to defend the southern approaches to
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. This line branched off the main line in Waver and ran from there to Halle and then to
Ninove Ninove () is a city and municipality located in the Flemish province of East Flanders in Belgium. It is situated on the river Dender, and is part of the Denderstreek. The municipality comprises the city of Ninove proper and since the 1976 merger of ...
, where it ended on the banks of the
Dender The Dender (Dutch, ) or Dendre ( French, ) is a 65-kilometre (40 mi) long river in Belgium, the right tributary of the river Scheldt. The confluence of the two rivers is in the Belgian town of Dendermonde. The Western or Little Dender is 22 kilome ...
. The Cointet-elements were placed next to each other in a zig-zag and connected with steel cables. Near main roads they were fixed to heavy concrete pillars that were fixed into the ground to allow local traffic passage. In May 1940 however, due to a relocation programme, the elements did not form a continuous line and thus were easily bypassed by the
3rd Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...
and 4th Panzer Divisions.


See also

* Grebbe Line *
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 ...
*
Peel-Raam Line 230px, Peel-Raam Line The Peel-Raam Line (Dutch: Peel-Raamstelling) was a Dutch defence line built in 1939 and attacked and conquered on 10 May 1940 by the German forces. The defence line was behind the Maas Line (about 9 km to 21 km ...
*
Schuster Line The Schuster Line ( lb, Schuster-Linn) was a line of barriers and barricades erected by the Luxembourg government along its borders with Germany and France shortly before World War II. The line was named after Joseph Schuster, Luxembourg's chief en ...
*
Manstein plan The Manstein Plan or Case Yellow (german: Fall Gelb) also known as Operation Sichelschnitt (german: Sichelschnittplan, from the English language, English term sickle cut), was the Military operation plan, war plan of the German Army (Wehrmacht), ...


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kw-Line World War II defensive lines Battle of France Military history of Belgium during World War II World War II sites in Belgium 1939 in Belgium Belgian neutrality in World War II
K-W Line The Koningshooikt—Wavre Line, abbreviated to KW Line (french: Ligne KW; nl, KW-stelling) and often known as the Dyle Line after the Dijle, Dijle (Dyle) river, was a -long fortified line of defence prepared by the Belgian Army between Koningsho ...