Brest Fortress

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A stretch of the ring barrack of the Citadel with projecting semi-tower on the left

Brest Fortress in Brest, Belarus, formerly known as Brest-Litovsk Fortress (the Polish name of the city was Brześć Litewski), was the biggest 19th century fortress of Russian Empire, one of the western Russian fortresses. It is located at the confluence of the Mukhavets river and the Bug river with total area 4 km². The initial phase of the construction lasted from 1836 until 1842. The defences were then progressively modernised and expanded throughout the 19th century, with additional forts being built around the original citadel. The final works were carried out in the first year of World War I, resulting in a fortified area 30 km in circumference.

In the course of fighting on the Eastern Front of the war the fortress was captured by the German army in August, 1915, after the Russian army abandoned it during its general withdrawal from Poland that summer. The fortress changed hands twice during the Polish-Soviet War and eventually stayed within Polish borders, a development that was formally recognised by the Treaty of Riga in 1921. In 1930 the fortress became infamous in Poland during the "Brest elections" and the Brest trial. During the Invasion of Poland in 1939 the city was defended by a small garison of four infantry battalions under Gen. Konstanty Plisowski against the XIX Panzer Corps of Gen. Heinz Guderian. After four days of heavy fighting the Polish forces withdrew southwards on September 17.

Satirical drawing from "Hasło Łódzkie" newspaper, 5 October 1930. The text: "From the series: 'Most popular Polish spa towns' - Brest-on-the-Bug." The picture is a reference to the Brest trial and the "Brest elections", when many Polish politicians of the Centrolew party were imprisoned in the Brest Fortress (pictured).

The territory was attached to the Belarusian Soviet Republic in 1939 in accordance with the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact.

In the summer of 1941 it was heroically defended by Soviet soldiers against the German Wehrmacht in the first days of Operation Barbarossa, earning it a title of Hero-Fortress (Russian: крепость-герой, krepost'-geroy).

The core of the fortress is a citadel in the shape of a red-brick two-storied ring barrack, 1.8 km long, with 500 rooms to accommodate 12 thousand soldiers. The citadel is on the island, formed by the Bug river and the two branches of the Mukhavets river. The three manmade islands, bridgeheads around the citadel are formed by the branches of the Mukhavets river and ditches (moats, fortified by earthworks, 10 m high ramparts with casemates inside the defense works.

A stretch of the rampart on the Kobrin fortification by the contemporary Main Entrance to the War Memorial

The Kobrin fortification is the northeastern biggest island, featuring 4 fortification curtains with detached 3 ravelins and a caponier. The Terespol fortification is the western island, featuring detached 4 lunettes. The Volyn fortification is the southeastern island, featuring 2 fortification curtains with 2 detached ravelins.

The outer ring of fortifications built later surrounds the old citadel. As the post-1945 border along the Bug river runs through the fortress area, many of the fortification works are now located in Poland, around the town of Terespol.