Ouvrage Saint Ours Haut 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 known as the Little Maginot Line. The ouvrage consists of one infantry block, one artillery block, two observation blocks and one combination block in the vicinity of the
Col de Larche
The Maddalena Pass (Italian: ''Colle della Maddalena'' French: ''Col de Larche'', historically ''Col de l'Argentière'') (elevation 1996 m.) is a high mountain pass between the Cottian Alps and the Maritime Alps, located on the border between It ...
. It is located on the territory of the commune of
*Block 1 (entry): one machine gun cloche, one grenade launcher cloche and one heavy twin machine gun embrasure.
*Block 2 (artillery): one heavy twin machine gun cloche, one grenade launcher cloche, one 75mm gun embrasure and two 81mm mortar embrasures.
*Block 3 (infantry): one machine gun cloche.
*Block 4 (infantry): one machine gun cloche.
*Block 5 (infantry): one machine gun cloche, one grenade launcher embrasure, three heavy twin machine gun embrasures and two 81mm mortar embrasures.
History
:''See
Fortified Sector of the Dauphiné The Fortified Sector of the Dauphiné (''Secteur Fortifié du Dauphiné'') was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Alpine Line portion of the Maginot Line facing Italy in the vicinity of Briançon. By compar ...
for a broader discussion of the Dauphiné sector of the Alpine Line.''
As Italian troops of the Forli Division advanced into France on 24 June 1940, they were bombarded by Saint Ours Haut's 75mm guns and 81mm mortars, supported by fire from Roche Lacroix, stopping the advance.Kaufmann 2006, p. 178 Saint Ours Haut fired 92 shots from the guns and 379 shots from the mortars. The armistice of 25 June brought fighting to an end.
After the 1940 armistice, Italian forces occupied the Alpine ouvrages and disarmed them. In August 1943, southern France was occupied by the German 19th Army and Italian
Alpini
The Alpini are the Italian Army's specialist mountain infantry. Part of the army's infantry corps, the speciality distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II. Currently the active Alpini units are organized in two operatio ...
, which took over many of the Alpine positions that had been occupied by the Italians until Italy's withdrawal from the war in September 1943.
In 1945, the Germans evacuated Saint Ours Haut during the night of 22 April, leaving it free to be occupied the following day by Free French forces. Immediately after the war, the Alpine region was regarded as an area of medium priority for restoration and reuse by the military. By the 1950s the positions in the Southeast of France were restored and operational again. However, by 1960, with France's acquisition of nuclear weapons, the cost and effectiveness of the Maginot system was called into question. Between 1964 and 1971 nearly all of the Maginot fortifications were deactivated.
Present condition
Saint-Ours-Haut is under restoration and may be visited, as part of the Museum of WSaint-Ours-Bas.Kaufmann 2011, pp. 264-264
See also
*
List of Alpine Line ouvrages
This is the list of all ''ouvrages'' of the Alpine Line or Little Maginot Line along the Franco-Italian border, organized by sector and type of fortification. ''Ouvrage'' translates as "works" in English; publications in both English and French ...
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 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.