Ouvrage Metrich
Encyclopedia
Ouvrage Métrich located in the village of Kœnigsmacker
in Moselle, comprises part of the Elzange
portion of the Fortified Sector of Thionville
of the Maginot Line
. A gros ouvrage, it is the third largest of the Line, after Hackenberg
and Hochwald
. It lies between petit ouvrage Sentzich
and gros ouvrage Billig
, facing Germany
. Located to the east of the Moselle, it cooperated with Ouvrage Galgenberg
to control the river valley.
.
Ouvrage Métrich comprises two entries and ten combat blocks:
Due to the depth of the main galleries under the height of the Métrich hill, Blocks 8 and 11 are linked by a gallery at an intermediate level, containing an "M2" magazine. An intermediate level under Block 7 contains the command post.
None of these are connected to the ouvrage or to each other. All were built by CORF.
The principal mission of the ouvrage was to cover the east side of the Moselle valley. In 1940 German forces largely bypassed the Moselle, enveloping Thionville
from the rear. Métrich and other ouvrages in the Thionville sector therefore surrendered after the Second Armistice at Compiègne of 22 June. During the Occupation support areas of the ouvrage were transformed by German occupiers into offices and manufacturing facilities. Some of the combat blocks were used by the Germans for testing of explosives. In 1944 Métrich was held by the 74th Volksgrenadier Regiment of the 19th Volksgrenadier Division
. Métrich was attacked on 10 November 1944 by the U.S. 90th Infantry Division advancing around he north side of Thionville
. After an initial retreat, German resistance was strong. A second, cautious assault was launched on the 11th, and when the ouvrage had been surrounded the main force bypassed the position, leaving a holding force to clear the German defenses, where resistance ended on the 12th.
Following the war, the Maginot Line was viewed as a means of slowing an advance by Warsaw Pact
forces and most of the northeastern positions were renovated and rearmed. The renovations did not include the command post or the barracks. However, the program was abandoned, and after a period of routine maintenance, Métrich's status was lowered to inactive reserve, and finally abandoned.
The Abri du Sud-du-Bichel is being restored by the Association mémoire des intervalles de la Ligne Maginot.
Kœnigsmacker
Kœnigsmacker is a commune in the Moselle department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.Kœnigsmacker was the birthplace of Father Jean-Vincent Scheil , a French Dominican scholar and Assyriologist, who was one of the discoverers of the Code of Hammurabi in Persia. The area was the scene of fighting...
in Moselle, comprises part of the Elzange
Elzange
Elzange is a commune in the Moselle department in Lorraine in north-eastern France....
portion of the Fortified Sector of Thionville
Fortified Sector of Thionville
The Fortified Sector of Thionville was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line immediately to the north of Thionville. The sector describes an arc of about , about halfway between the French border with Luxembourg and Thionville. The Thionville...
of the Maginot Line
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,...
. A gros ouvrage, it is the third largest of the Line, after Hackenberg
Ouvrage Hackenberg
Ouvrage Hackenberg, one of the largest of the Maginot Line fortifications, is part of the Fortified Sector of Boulay. It is situated twenty kilometers east of Thionville, in the Moselle département, near the village of Veckring, on the Hackenberg . It is located between gros ouvrage Billig and...
and 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 lies between petit ouvrage Sentzich
Ouvrage Sentzich
Ouvrage Sentzich is part of the Fortified Sector of Thionville of the Maginot Line.The petit ouvrage for infantry is located to the south of gros ouvrage Galgenberg, on the edge of the main road to Luxembourg near the village of Sentzich. Gros ouvrage Métrich is to the east. As a small work it was...
and gros ouvrage Billig
Ouvrage Billig
Ouvrage Billig, a gros ouvrage or large fortification of the Maginot Line, was located in the Fortified Sector of Thionville, Moselle in northern France. It is located between the gros ouvrages Metrich and Hackenberg, facing Germany...
, 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...
. Located to the east of the Moselle, it cooperated with Ouvrage Galgenberg
Ouvrage Galgenberg
Ouvrage Galgenberg forms a portion of the Fortified Sector of Thionville of the Maginot Line. It is situated in the Cattenom Forest, near the gros ouvrage Kobenbusch and petit ouvrage Oberheid. The ouvrage was tasked with controlling the Moselle valley and as such was called the "Guardian of the...
to control the river valley.
Design and construction
Métrich was approved for construction by CORF (Commission d'Organisation des Régions Fortifiées), the Maginot Line's design and construction agency, in November 1930 and became operational by 1935, at a cost of 127 million francs. The contractor was Construction Générale.Description
Métrich is a typical large Maginot gros ouvrage with separate ammunition and personnel entry blocks. It has a particularly heavy artillery component, with seven 75mm guns, two 135mm guns and four 81mm mortars, making it the third most heavily armed unit in the Maginot Line. More than 1200 metres (3,937 ft) of underground galleries connect the entries to the farthest blocks 4 and 5, at an average depth of 30 metres (98.4 ft). An "M1" magazine, arranged with a horseshoe-shaped perimeter gallery connected by cross galleries between the legs, is located close to the ammunition entrance, while the underground barracks and utility areas are just inside the personnel entry. The gallery system was served by a narrow-gauge (60 cm) railway that continued out the ammunition entry and connected to a regional military railway system for the movement of materiel along the front a few kilometers to the rear. Several "stations" along the gallery system, located in wider sections of gallery, permitted trains to pass or be stored. Several 60 cm wagons, which had remained at Métrich, were recovered in 1983 and were moved to the Maginot museum at Ouvrage SchoenenbourgOuvrage Schoenenbourg
Ouvrage Schoenenbourg is a Maginot Line fortification. It is located on the territory of the communes of Hunspach, Schœnenbourg and Ingolsheim, in the French département of Bas-Rhin, forming part of the Fortified Sector of Haguenau, facing Germany. At the east end of the Alsace portion of the...
.
Ouvrage Métrich comprises two entries and ten combat blocks:
- Ammunition entry: at-grade, one machine gun/37mm anti-tank gunAC 37 anti-tank gunThe AC 37 was a French anti-tank gun of 37mm caliber, developed by the Ateliers de Puteaux. It was principally used in the ouvrages and casemates of the Maginot Line in the late 1930's...
embrasure (JM/AC37), one machine gun embrasure (JM), 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...
. - Personnel entry: gently descending from the entry, one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure, and two GFM cloches.
- Block 1: Artillery block flanking to the north with three 75mm gun embrasures and two GFM cloches.
- Block 3: Infantry block flanking to the north with one machine gun turret, one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure and one GFM cloche
- Block 4: Infantry block with one machine gun turret
- Block 5: Artillery block with on 81mm mortar turret and two GFM cloches
- Block 7: Observation block with one GFM cloche and one VDP periscope 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...
. - Block 8: Mixed block with one 75mm gun turret, one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure and two GFM cloches
- Block 10: Artillery block with one 75mm gun terret and one grenade launcher turret (LG).
- Block 11: Artillery block with one 135mm gun turret, one grenade launcher turret and one GFM cloche.
- Block 14: Observation block with two GFM cloches and one periscope cloche (VDP).
- Block 15: Artillery block with two 81mm mortar embrasures and two GFM cloches.
Due to the depth of the main galleries under the height of the Métrich hill, Blocks 8 and 11 are linked by a gallery at an intermediate level, containing an "M2" magazine. An intermediate level under Block 7 contains the command post.
Casemates and shelters
Métrich was associated with a number of smaller fortifications. These included:- Casemate de Koenigsmacker Nord: one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure, one GFM cloche
- Casemate de Koenigsmacker Sud: one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure, one GFM cloche
- Casemate de Métrich Nord: one JM/AC47 embrasure, one JM embrasure, one GFM cloche
- Casemate de Métrich Sud: one JM/AC47 embrasure, one JM embrasure, one GFM cloche
- Abri du Krekelbusch: buried infantry shelter for two sections, with one GFM cloche
- Abri Sud de Métrich: buried infantry shelter for one section, with two GFM cloches
- Abri du Nonnenberg: buried infantry shelter for one section, with two GFM cloches
- Abri du Nord-du-Bichel: surface infantry shelter for one section, with two GFM cloches
- Casemate du Bois-de-Koenigsmacker: one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure, two GFM cloches
- Abri du Sud-du-Bichel: surface infantry shelter for one section, with two GFM cloches, in the process of restoration.
None of these are connected to the ouvrage or to each other. All were built by CORF.
Manning
The ouvrage was manned by 795 men and 26 officers under the command of Commandant Lauga. The Casernement d'Elzange provided peacetime above-ground barracks and support services to Bois-Karre and other ouvrages in the area.History
- See Fortified Sector of ThionvilleFortified Sector of ThionvilleThe Fortified Sector of Thionville was the French military organization that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line immediately to the north of Thionville. The sector describes an arc of about , about halfway between the French border with Luxembourg and Thionville. The Thionville...
for a broader discussion of the events of 1940 in the Thionville sector of the Maginot Line.
The principal mission of the ouvrage was to cover the east side of the Moselle valley. In 1940 German forces largely bypassed the Moselle, enveloping Thionville
Thionville
Thionville , is a commune in the Moselle department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz.-Demographics:...
from the rear. Métrich and other ouvrages in the Thionville sector therefore surrendered after the Second Armistice at Compiègne of 22 June. During the Occupation support areas of the ouvrage were transformed by German occupiers into offices and manufacturing facilities. Some of the combat blocks were used by the Germans for testing of explosives. In 1944 Métrich was held by the 74th Volksgrenadier Regiment of the 19th Volksgrenadier Division
19th Grenadier Division (Germany)
The 19th Grenadier Division of the German Army in World War II was formed from remnants of the 19. Luftwaffen-Sturm-Division and was renamed 19...
. Métrich was attacked on 10 November 1944 by the U.S. 90th Infantry Division advancing around he north side of Thionville
Thionville
Thionville , is a commune in the Moselle department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz.-Demographics:...
. After an initial retreat, German resistance was strong. A second, cautious assault was launched on the 11th, and when the ouvrage had been surrounded the main force bypassed the position, leaving a holding force to clear the German defenses, where resistance ended on the 12th.
Following the war, the Maginot Line was viewed as a means of slowing an advance by 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...
forces and most of the northeastern positions were renovated and rearmed. The renovations did not include the command post or the barracks. However, the program was abandoned, and after a period of routine maintenance, Métrich's status was lowered to inactive reserve, and finally abandoned.
Current condition
Métrich has been stripped of all materials by salvagers and vandals. The ouvrage is in a state of advanced dilapidation, primarily because the soil is composed of gypsum, causing the destruction of the floors and walls of the galleries. Magazine M1 was used for the cultivation of mushrooms in 1986-87. The entries and blocks with embrasures have been covered with rubble by the Army.The Abri du Sud-du-Bichel is being restored by the Association mémoire des intervalles de la Ligne Maginot.
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...
External links
- Bichel-Sud, showing restoration work on the abri
- Métrich at fortiff.be
- Métrich at darkplaces.org