Ouvrage Mont Agel is a work (''gros ouvrage'') of the

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 ...

's Alpine extension, the

Alpine Line The Alpine Line (french: Ligne Alpine) or Little Maginot Line (French: ''Petite Ligne Maginot'') was the component of the Maginot Line that defended the southeastern portion of France. In contrast to the main line in the northeastern portion of Fra ...

, also called the Little Maginot Line. The 1930s ''ouvrage'' was built in and around the earlier mountaintop Fortress of Mont Agel. The ''ouvrage'' forms a backup to the main curtain of Alpine Line forts, and was not initially planned as part of the Alpine Line proper. Its intended function was primarily to provide heavy, long-range artillery support from a location well to the rear of the line. However, the planned 145mm heavy guns were never installed. Its site on

Mont Agel Mont Agel is a mountain on the border between France and Monaco. The summit of this mount, at above sea level, is on the French side, but the highest point of Monaco, lying on a pathway named Chemin des Révoires, is on its slopes, at an altitud ...

, at an altitude of , is the highest point in the vicinity of

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

and

Menton Menton (; , written ''Menton'' in classical norm or ''Mentan'' in Mistralian norm; it, Mentone ) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera, close to the Italian border. Me ...

and commands the entire coastline, as well as the approaches from

Sospel Sospel (; Mentonasc: Sospèl, Italian Sospello) is a commune (municipality) and former schismatic episcopal seat (1381-1418) in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France near the Italian border and not far from Monte Carlo. Hist ...

to the north. The site is now occupied by ''Base Aérienne 943'' of the French Air Force and functions as an air defense control station.

Description

The ouvrage consists of three entry blocks (including a terminal for an

aerial tram An aerial tramway, sky tram, cable car, ropeway, aerial tram, telepherique, or seilbahn is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion. With this form of lift, the grip ...

) with a guard block, one infantry block, two artillery blocks and one observation block facing

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. The mountaintop position is unusual in having two 75mm gun turrets: due to restricted fields of fire, most Alpine ''ouvrages'' had their guns in

casemates A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to antiquity, the term "casemate wall" mean ...

. Mont Agel, with its commanding site, could make appropriate use of turreted guns. A 145mm gun turret was planned, but not built.Kaufmann 2006, p. 68 *Block 1 (personnel entry): no armament. *Block 2 (materials entry): no armament. *Block 3 (aerial tram entry): no armament. *Block 4 (entry guard block): two machine gun ports and one machine gun turret, intended to defend the three entry points in Blocks 1–3. *Block 5 (artillery turret block): two 75mm/1933 guns in one retractable turret. *Block 6 (artillery turret block): two 75mm/1933 guns in one retractable turret. *Block 7 (infantry block): one machine gun/observation turret. *Block 8 (observation block, ''Observatiore Est de Mont-Agel''): one machine gun port, one machine gun turret and one machine gun/observation turret. Block 8 is not connected to the rest of the complex by a gallery. The Maginot blocks are concentrated in a relatively small area on the west side of the summit plateau, to the north of the Séré de Rivières ''reduit''. They are not used by the French Air Force installation.

Observation posts

The observatory Mont-Gros de Roquebrune is an observation block intended to spot the fall of shot for Ouvrage Mont Agel. Located near Roquebrune, the post is at a lower altitude and closer to the sea than Mont Agel, and affords a clear view of the coast and sea at times when Mont Agel is in or above the clouds. The post has two blocks: an entry block with a machine gun port and the observation block with one machine gun/observation cloche. Four other observation posts are associated with Mont Agel, including Mont-Gros principal, Mont-Agel abri nord and Cime de Cabanelles. The Observatiore Est de Mont-Agel is a larger post designed and constructed to CORF standards, sometimes called Block 8 of Mont Agel even though it was not connected to the ''ouvrage''.Mary, Tome 5, p. 69 Two instruction casemates were built at Mont Agel, facing north. A 75mm gun casemate is located between the ''réduit'' and the ''ouvrage'' on the southwest corner of the plateau, while an 81mm mortar casemate is located at the north end.

Forteresse du Mont Agel

The Fortress of Mont Agel was built between 1889 and 1892 as part of the

Séré de Rivières system The system was named after Raymond Adolphe Séré de Rivières, its originator. The system was an ensemble of fortifications built from 1874 along the frontiers and coasts of France. The fortresses were obsolescent by 1914 but were used during ...

of fortifications. The main ''réduit'' was sited on the southwestern side of the roughly by summit plateau, overlooking Nice. It is now the site of the main facilities of ''Base Aérienne 943'' and has been extensively altered. A barracks was located near the center of the plateau, while several batteries, designated by number, were located around the plateau, all enclosed by a wall. Battery A became the Maginot entry. Battery B has been obscured by later changes, but its underground magazine remains. Battery C mounted four 95mm guns at the middle of the east side of the plateau. Battery D was located on the southeast side of the plateau, with Battery E nearby. None of these batteries exist in their original state. In 1897 six emplacements were prepared for additional artillery, ranging from 90mm guns at positions 1 and 2 to 220mm mortars at Battery 3. Battery 4 was a prepared site for field artillery, and Battery 5 was planned for four

de Bange Charles Ragon de Bange (17 October 1833 – 9 July 1914) was a French artillery officer and Polytechnician. He invented the first effective obturator system for breech-loading artillery, which remains in use. He also designed a system of field g ...

120mm or 155mm guns.

History

The Mont Agel ''ouvrage'' was originally planned as a series of casemates in the eastern edge of the summit plateau, with four casemates each for 75mm and 155mm guns. An access gallery would run across the width of the plateau to an aerial tram station. The plan that was adopted and built was much more compact and could fire in all directions.Mary, Tome 4, p. 13 The ''ouvrage'' was built by Thorrand et Cie. between November 1931 and July 1933 at a cost of 23 million francs, including the observation post. The aerial tram cost 1 million francs. On 23 June 1940 Mont Agel's 75mm gun turrets fired at least 1251 shots at Italian forces assaulting

Ouvrage Cap Martin Ouvrage Cap Martin is a work (''gros ouvrage'') of the Maginot Line's Alpine extension, the Alpine Line, also called the Little Maginot Line. The ouvrage, located on high ground in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Roquebrune, consists of two artillery bl ...

, destroying an Italian armored train in the process. On 6 September 1944, allied cruisers opened fire with eight-inch guns on Mont Agel, forcing the German garrison to withdraw into the galleries. A ground attack followed and the ''ouvrage'' was captured.Tomblin, Barbara. "With Utmost Spirit: Allied Naval Operations in the Mediterranean, 1942-1945". University of Kentucky Press, 2004. , p.449 The ''ouvrage'' and Fortress Mont Agel are occupied by Nice Air Base of the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...

and feature a prominent set of

radome A radome (a portmanteau of radar and dome) is a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects a radar antenna (radio), antenna. The radome is constructed of material transparent to radio waves. Radomes protect the antenna from weather and ...

References

Bibliography

*Allcorn, William. ''The Maginot Line 1928-45.'' Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003. *Kaufmann, J.E. and Kaufmann, H.W. ''Fortress France: The Maginot Line and French Defenses in World War II'', Stackpole Books, 2006. *Kaufmann, J.E., Kaufmann, H.W., Jancovič-Potočnik, A. and Lang, P. ''The Maginot Line: History and Guide'', Pen and Sword, 2011. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 1.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2001. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 4 - La fortification alpine.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2009. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 5.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2009.