Ouvrage Berenbach

Ouvrage Berenbach
Part of Maginot Line
Northeast France
Ouvrage Berenbach
Coordinates 49°14′00″N 6°27′00″E / 49.23333°N 6.45°E / 49.23333; 6.45
Site information
Controlled by France
Condition Abandoned
Site history
Materials Concrete, steel
Battles/wars Battle of France
Ouvrage Berenbach
Type of work: Small artillery work (Petit ouvrage)
sector
└─sub-sector
Fortified Sector of Boulay
└─Burtoncourt
Work number: A26
Regiment: 162nd Fortress Infantry Regiment (RIF)
Number of blocks: 3
Strength: 2 officers, 97 men

Ouvrage Berenbach, also known as Ouvrage Behrenbach, is a lesser work (petit ouvrage) of the Maginot Line. Located in the Fortified Sector of Boulay, the ouvrage is located between gros ouvrage Anzeling and petit ouvrage Bovenberg, facing Germany. The ouvrage consists of two infantry blocks and one observation block. Uniquely, the blocks are not connected by subterranean galleries, as is the case in virtually all other Maginot fortifications.

Design and construction

The site was surveyed by CORF (Commission d'Organisation des Régions Fortifiées), the Maginot Line's design and construction agency; Berenbach was approved for construction in August 1930. It was completed at a cost of 11 million francs by the contractor La Parisienne d'Enterprises.[1] The petit ouvrage[nb 1] was planned as an annex to Anzeling.[4]

Description

Berenbach comprises three separate infantry blocks. Blocks 1 and 2 were planned for the deep underground gallery system to come in Phase 2. Since there was no central usine, each block has its own generating plant.[4]

Casemates and shelters

In addition to the combat blocks, a series of detached casemates and infantry shelters surround Berenbach, including

Manning

The 1940 manning of the ouvrage under the command of Captain Ramaud comprised 97 men and 2 officers of the 162nd Fortress Infantry Regiment.[4] The units were under the umbrella of the 3rd Army, Army Group 2.[9] The Casernement de Bockange provided peacetime above-ground barracks and support services to Berenbach and other positions in the area.[4][10]

History

See Fortified Sector of Boulay for a broader discussion of the Boulay sector of the Maginot Line.

Berenbach played no significant role in either the Battle of France in 1940 or the Lorraine Campaign of 1944. After the Second World War it became part of the Mòle de Boulay, a strongpoint in the northeastern defenses against Soviet attack.[11] Berenbach remained under Army control until after 1971, when it was declassified and sold.[12]

Current condition

The ouvrage has been stripped of much of its equipment and is in poor condition.[7]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ English-language sources use the French term ouvrage as the preferred term for the Maginot positions, in preference to "fort", a term usually reserved for older fortifications with passive defensives in the form of walls and ditches.[2] The literal translation of ouvrage in the sense of a fortification in English is "work." A gros ouvrage is a large fortification with a significant artillery component, while a petit ouvrage is smaller, with lighter arms.[3]
  2. ↑ An abri is an infantry shelter, sometimes underground or under earth cover. An abri in the main Maginot Line often closely resembles a casemate, but is more lightly armed and can hold more occupants.[8]

References

  1. ↑ Mary, Tome 1, p. 52
  2. ↑ Kaufmann 2006, p. 13
  3. ↑ Kaufmann 2006, p. 20
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Mary, Tome 3, p. 107
  5. ↑ Puelinckx, Jean; Aublet, Jean-Louis; Mainguin, Sylvie (2010). "Behrenbach (po de) Bloc 1". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  6. ↑ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Behrenbach (po de) Bloc 2". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  7. 1 2 Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Behrenbach (po de) Bloc 3". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  8. ↑ Kaufmann 2006, p. 14
  9. ↑ Mary, Tome 3, p. 99
  10. ↑ Wahl, J.B. "Festungsabschnitt Boulay" (in German). darkplaces.org. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  11. ↑ Mary, Tome 5, p. 171
  12. ↑ Mary, Tome 5, p. 175

Bibliography

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