Ouvrage Hobling
Encyclopedia
Ouvrage Hobling is a lesser work (petit ouvrage) of the Maginot Line
. Located in the Fortified Sector of Boulay
, the ouvrage consists of two infantry blocks and two observation blocks, and is located between gros ouvrage Michelsberg
and petit ouvrage Bousse
, facing Germany
. It has been stripped of metals and abandoned.
A planned Block 5, equipped with an 81mm mortar turret, and an entry block at the end of a gallery of about 200 metres (656.2 ft) were not built.
s and infantry shelters surround Hobling, including
Hobling 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.
Hobling remained under Army control until after 1971, when it was declassified and sold.
Maginot Line
The Maginot Line , named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, was a line of concrete fortifications, tank obstacles, artillery casemates, machine gun posts, and other defences, which France constructed along its borders with Germany and Italy, in light of its experience in World War I,...
. Located in the Fortified Sector of Boulay
Fortified Sector of Boulay
The Fortified Sector of Boulay was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line to the north and east of Metz in northeastern France. The left wing of the Boulay sector was among the earliest and strongest portions of the Maginot Line...
, the ouvrage consists of two infantry blocks and two observation blocks, and is located between gros ouvrage Michelsberg
Ouvrage Michelsberg
Ouvrage Michelsberg, one of the Maginot Line fortifications, formed part of the Fortified Sector of Boulay as well as the fortified region of Metz. The ouvrage is located in Moselle between the towns of Dalstein and d'Ebersviller, about 23km from Thionville. It is located between gros ouvrage Mont...
and petit ouvrage Bousse
Ouvrage Bousse
Ouvrage Bousse, also known as Ouvrage Bois de Bousse, is a lesser work of the Maginot Line in the Fortified Sector of Boulay. The ouvrage is located between petit ouvrage Hobling and gros ouvrage Anzeling, near Hestroff in the Bois du Bousse, facing Germany. A small position, it was manned...
, facing Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It has been stripped of metals and abandoned.
Design and construction
Hobling was approved for construction by CORF (Commission d'Organisation des Régions Fortifiées), the Maginot Line's design and construction agency, in 1931 and became operational by 1935, at a cost of 14 million francs. The contractor was Gianotti of Nice.Description
Hobling is a petit ouvrage with four combat blocks. The blocks are linked by an underground gallery with barracks and a utility area (usine). The galleries are excavated at an average depth of up to 30 metres (98.4 ft).- Block 1: infantry block with two automatic rifle cloches (GFM)GFM clocheThe GFM cloche was one of the most common defensive armaments on the Maginot Line. A cloche was a fixed and non-retractable firing position made of a thick iron casting which shielded its occupant...
andone twin machine gun embrasure. - Block 2: infantry/entry block with two GFM cloches, one twin machine gun embrasure and one 47mm anti-tank gunAC 47 anti-tank gunThe AC 47 was a French anti-tank gun of 47mm caliber. It was principally used in the ouvrages and casemates of the Maginot Line in the late 1930s; another version was created for naval use....
(JM/AC47) embrasure. - Block 3: infantry block with one GFM cloche and one retractable twin machine gun turret.
- Block 4: observation block with one observation cloche (VDP)VDP clocheThe VDP cloche was an element of the Maginot Line fortifications. A cloche was a fixed and non-retractable firing position made of a thick iron casting which shielded its occupant. By comparison, turrets could be rotated and sometimes lowered so that only the top shell was exposed. VDP cloches...
and one automatic rifle embrasure.
A planned Block 5, equipped with an 81mm mortar turret, and an entry block at the end of a gallery of about 200 metres (656.2 ft) were not built.
Casemates and shelters
In addition to the connected combat blocks, a series of detached casemateCasemate
A casemate, sometimes rendered casement, is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired. originally a vaulted chamber in a fortress.-Origin of the term:...
s and infantry shelters surround Hobling, including
- Abri d'Ising: Surface infantry shelter (abri) with two GFM cloches.
- Abri de Férange: Sub-grade abri-caverne with two GFM cloches.
Manning
In June 1940 the garrison comprised 115 men and 4 officers of the 164th Fortress Infantry Regiment (RIF). The commanding officer was Captain Boileau. The Casernement de Férange provided peacetime above-ground barracks and support services to Hobling and other positions in the area. The units were under the umbrella of the 3rd Army, Army Group 2.History
- See Fortified Sector of BoulayFortified Sector of BoulayThe Fortified Sector of Boulay was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line to the north and east of Metz in northeastern France. The left wing of the Boulay sector was among the earliest and strongest portions of the Maginot Line...
for a broader discussion of the Boulay sector of the Maginot Line.
Hobling played no significant role in either the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
in 1940 or the Lorraine Campaign
Lorraine Campaign
Lorraine Campaign is a term used by U.S. Army historians to describe operations of the U.S. Third Army in Lorraine during World War II from September 1 through December 18, 1944. Official U.S. Army campaign names for this period and location are Northern France and Rhineland. The term was...
of 1944. After the Second World War it became part of the Mòle de Boulay, a strongpoint in the northeastern defenses against Soviet attack.
Hobling remained under Army control until after 1971, when it was declassified and sold.
Current condition
Sold in 1975, Hobling has been partially stripped by salvagers and is abandoned. The salvage work stopped with the removal of all metals, including cloches and turrets, from two blocks. Hobling was the last ouvrage to be stripped.See also
- List of all works on Maginot Line
- Siegfried LineSiegfried LineThe original Siegfried line was a line of defensive forts and tank defences built by Germany as a section of the Hindenburg Line 1916–1917 in northern France during World War I...
- Atlantic WallAtlantic WallThe Atlantic Wall was an extensive system of coastal fortifications built by Nazi Germany between 1942 and 1944 along the western coast of Europe as a defense against an anticipated Allied invasion of the mainland continent from Great Britain.-History:On March 23, 1942 Führer Directive Number 40...
- Czechoslovak border fortificationsCzechoslovak border fortificationsThe Czechoslovak government built a system of border fortifications from 1935 to 1938 as a defensive countermeasure against the rising threat of Nazi Germany that later materialized in the German offensive plan called Fall Grün...