Ouvrage Schoenenbourg
Encyclopedia
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,...
fortification. It is located on the territory of the communes of Hunspach
Hunspach
Hunspach is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.-Geography:The commune lies a short distance to the south of Wissembourg within the North Vosges Natural Park.-Sights:...
, Schœnenbourg
Schœnenbourg
Schœnenbourg is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.-See also:*Ouvrage Schoenenbourg, a Maginot Line fortification*Communes of the Bas-Rhin department-References:*...
and Ingolsheim
Ingolsheim
Ingolsheim is a commune in the north of the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.The commune is part of the North-Vosges Natural park.-Geography:Ingolsheim is a small village with an economy based on agriculture...
, in the French département of Bas-Rhin
Bas-Rhin
Bas-Rhin is a department of France. The name means "Lower Rhine". It is the more populous and densely populated of the two departments of the Alsace region, with 1,079,013 inhabitants in 2006.- History :...
, forming part of the Fortified Sector of Haguenau
Fortified Sector of Haguenau
The Fortified Sector of Haguenau was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the most easterly section of the Maginot Line, to the north of Strasbourg...
, 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...
. At the east end of the Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
portion of the Maginot Line, its neighbor is the gros ouvrage Hochwald
Ouvrage Hochwald
Ouvrage Hochwald is a gros ouvrage of the Maginot Line, one of the largest fortifications in the Line. Located in the Fortified Sector of Haguenau in the community of Drachenbronn-Birlenbach in the Bas-Rhin department of northeastern France, it was designed to protect the northern Vosges region of...
. It is the largest such fortification open to the public in Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
. Officially recorded as an historical monument, it retains all its original structural elements. Schoenenbourg was heavily bombarded during 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, receiving more enemy ordnance than any other position in France, with no significant damage. In 1945, retreating German troops used explosives to destroy much of the ouvrage. After the war it was fully repaired and placed back into service as part of a program to use Maginot fortifications to resist a potential Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
advance through Europe. By the 1970s the plan had lost favor and funding, and Schoenenboug was abandoned. In 1987 a local organization undertook Schoenenbourg's preservation, and today it is open to public visitation.
Design and construction
The site was surveyed by CORF (Commission d'Organisation des Régions Fortifiées), the Maginot Line's design and construction agency; Schoenenbourg was approved for construction in June 1931. The gros ouvrage was intended to receive an additional turret in a second phase of construction, never pursued. Schoenenbourg is arranged as a typical gros ouvrage, with separate entrances for munitions and personnel almost 1000 metres (3,280.8 ft) behind the closely grouped main combat blocks. Schoenenbourg lacks the large "M1" central magazine characteristic of most gros ouvrages. A total of 3000 metres (9,842.5 ft) of galleries extend between 18 metres (59.1 ft) and 30 metres (98.4 ft) below the surface.Initial plans were on a smaller scale. The original 1929 proposal was for a petit ouvrage, six blocks armed with machine guns and 75mm guns. Blocks were added to the design until the gros ouvrage emerged. Costs in 1931 were estimated at 41.2 million francs. Construction uncovered difficulties with the foundations, resulting in the widespread use of piles
Deep foundation
A deep foundation is a type of foundation distinguished from shallow foundations by the depth they are embedded into the ground. There are many reasons a geotechnical engineer would recommend a deep foundation over a shallow foundation, but some of the common reasons are very large design loads, a...
under the blocks to stabilize their support, a unique solution in the Line. The major work was completed in 1935, and equipment and armament were fitted in 1936 and 1937. Final completion took place in 1938, marked by difficulties with drainage of water infiltration.
Description
The work is composed of eight blocks, with six combat blocks including two casemate blocks, a personnel entrance block and an ammunition entrance block. Underground galleries connect the blocks, extending more than 1500 meters in length. The underground barracks and utility areas are located just inside the personnel entry. The ouvrage was served by electrified narrow-gauge (600mm) railways that branched from a line paralleling the front and connecting to supply depots. The rail lines ran directly into the munitions entry of the ouvrage and all the way out to the combat blocks.- Block 1: Infantry casemate on two levels, with one twin machine gun/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....
embrasure (JM/AC47), one flanking twin machine gun and 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...
, as well as an emergency exit. This block was particularly difficult to supply with ammunition, since it lacked a hoist, and all ordnance had to be carried by the troops. - Block 2: Infantry block with one retractable twin machine gun turret and one GFM cloche. As with Block 1, no ammunition hoist was provided.
- Block 3: Artillery block with one retractable twin 75mm gun turret and one GFM cloche. The block had an ammunition hoist with a capacity of 2.5 tons.
- Block 4: Artillery block, identical to Block 3, with an additional observation clocheVDP 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...
(VDP). - Block 5: Artillery block with one retractable twin 81mm mortar turret, one GFM block and one grenade launcher cloche (LG)LG clocheThe LG cloche was a defensive element common to many Maginot Line ouvrages. The fixed cupola was deeply embedded into the concrete on top of a combat block, with only the top surface visible. The opening permitted the ejection of grenades from the interior of the cloche, providing a means of...
(never armed). The hoist capacity was 500 kg. - Block 6: Infantry casemate, identical to Block 1, with a single GFM cloche.
- Block 7: Ammunition entry with two hoists of 5 and 2.5 ton capacity, two GFM cloches, three FM automatic rifle embrasures and one JM/AC47 embrasure. Radio communications were also available at this location.
- Block 8: Personnel entry with one GFM cloche, one LG cloche, one JM/AC47 embrasure and two FM automatic rifle embrasures. Due to explosive demolition by the Germans in 1944, the block was reconstructed in 1950.
The generating plant comprised four Sulzer engines of 165 hp each.
Casemates and shelters
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 are in the vicinity of Schoenenbourg, including
- Casemate de Breitenacker Nord: SIngle block with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one twin machine gun embrasure and a GFM cloche.
- Casemate de Breitenacker Sud: SIngle block with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one twin machine gun embrasure and a GFM cloche. Breitenacker Nord and Sud are linked by an underground gallery.
- Abri de Grasserloch: Subsurface abri-caverne with two GFM cloches.
- Abri de Schoenenbourg: Surface abri with two GFM cloches.
- Casemate d'Ingolscheim Ouest: SIngle block with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one twin machine gun embrasure and a GFM cloche.
- Casemate d'Ingolscheim Est: SIngle block with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one twin machine gun embrasure and a GFM cloche.
Manning
The 1939 manning of the ouvrage under the command of Commandant Reynier comprised 491 men and 17 officers of the 22nd Fortress Infantry Regiment and the 156th Position Artillery Regiment. The units were under the umbrella of the 5th Army, Army Group 2. Interval troops covering the areas between and outside the fortifications were assigned to the 16th and 70th Infantry Divisions, 12th Corps. The nearby Casernement de Drachenbronn provided peacetime above-ground barracks and support services to Schoenenbourg and other positions in the area.History
- See Fortified Sector of HaguenauFortified Sector of HaguenauThe Fortified Sector of Haguenau was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the most easterly section of the Maginot Line, to the north of Strasbourg...
for a broader discussion of the Haguenau sector of the Maginot Line.
1940
The fortification at Schoenenbourg is the one that saw the most combat between September 1939 and June 1940. Over this period, over 17,000 shells were fired from the fort, and it was itself the target of over 3000 shells and 160 bombs. Schoenenbourg was in action against the German 146th Infantry Division, which applied pressure along the Line. On 19 June 1940, German Stukas attacked Schoenenbourg and other ouvrages, returning on the 20th and 21st. The attacks on the 21st were joined by a bombardment with 420 mm siege mortars, lasting three days. The bombardment cracked walls, but did not disable the position. Schoenenbourg fired during this period in support of nearby casemates, not seriously affected by the bombardments. Shoenenbourg's turrets were retracted to receive the heavy shells, and raised during the lengthy reloading period for counterbattery fire. The inventory of German ordnance fired against Schoenenbourg was assessed after the armistice, and found to comprise 160 aerial bombs, 50 42cm shells, 33 28cm shells, and approximately 3000 smaller projectiles, the most ammunition used against any fortification in France. The final surrender of Schoenenbourg was effected on 1 July, 1940, in accordance with the terms of the Second Compiègne armistice. Following the surrender Shoenenbourg was used as a backdrop for propaganda films and as an indoctrination center for Hitler YouthHitler Youth
The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It existed from 1922 to 1945. The HJ was the second oldest paramilitary Nazi group, founded one year after its adult counterpart, the Sturmabteilung...
.
1945
No fighting took place in the area of Schoenenbourg during the American advances of 1945, but the retreating Germans of the 245th Infantry Division caused extensive damage in March, using explosives to wreck the entrances and turrets, along with a number of nearby casemates. The U.S. 36th Infantry Division took possession of the damaged ouvrage on 20 March, 1945.Cold War
In the 1950s interest in the Maginot Line was renewed. In 1951, Lembach, Four-à-Chaux, Hochwald and Schoenenbourg were designated the Môle de Haguenau, a point of resistance against a potential invasion by forces of the Warsaw PactWarsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
. Lembach was repaired and put in a state of readiness in 1951-52. Wartime damage was repaired. The reconstructed entries took on a form that was modified from the original design, using the old foundations. By the late 1950s interest in fixed fortifications was waning after France developed a nuclear deterrent. The money needed to maintain and upgrade the fortifications was diverted for the nuclear programs. Schoenenbourg was not manned or maintained after the early 1970s The gallery system was used by the army for training until 2001, and the surface hosted three field emplacements for anti-aircraft missiles.
Current condition
In 1987 the French Army allowed the Association des Amis de la Ligne Maginot d'Alsace (Alsace Association of Friends of the Maginot Line) to conduct tours of the fortification. From 1981 the group has worked to restore Schoenenbourg. The information point for visitors is in Block 7, with self-guided tours.The nearby Abri de Grasserloch may also be toured by prior arrangement. The Casemate d'Esch
Casemate d'Esch
The Casemate d'Esch is a pre-World War II fortified position near the German frontier in extreme northeastern France. Built in 1931, the casemate was part of an extension of the Maginot Line fortifications along France's border with Germany. As a unit of the Fortified Sector of Haguenau, the...
is operated by the same organization. On 4 September 2001, Schoenenbourg was the first gros ouvrage to be sold by the Ministry of Defense to a local community.
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...
Source
- This article incorporates text translated from the corresponding French Wikipedia article as of January 21, 2007.