Fort de Guentrange
France · Europe
About
The Fort de Guentrange dominates Thionville in the Moselle department of France. It was built by Germany next to the town of the same name in the late 19th century after the annexation of the Moselle following the Franco-Prussian War. The Fort de Guentrange was part of the Moselstellung, a group of eleven fortresses surrounding Thionville and Metz to guard against the possibility of a French attack aimed at regaining Alsace and Lorraine, with construction taking place between 1899 and 1906. The fortification system incorporated new principles of defensive construction to deal with advances in artillery. Later forts, such as Guentrange, embodied innovative design concepts such as dispersal and concealment. The later forts were designed to support offensive operations, as an anchor for a pivoting move by German forces into France.
The Feste Ober-Gentringen, as Fort de Guentrange was called by the Germans, with the Fort de Koenigsmacker and Fort d'Illange, assured the protection of Thionville against French attack. Positioned to the rear of the principal lines of combat in the First World War, the fort never saw combat in that war. It is the largest of the three Thionville festen. The site overlooks the Moselle valley and its western approaches, as well as the railway lines to the west of Thionville.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.