Ouvrage Bersillies is a ''petit ouvrage'' of the Maginot Line, built as part of the "New Fronts" program to address shortcomings in the Line's coverage of the border with

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. Like the other three ''ouvrages'' near Maubeuge, it is built on an old Séré de Rivières-system fortification, near the town of

Bersillies Bersillies is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic. The communes c ...

. The preserved Ouvrage La Salmagne is nearby to the southeast. Bersillies is not open to the public.

Séré de Rivières

The original Ouvrage de Bersillies was built to the north of Bersillies in 1884-1895 as part of the Séré de Rivières fortifications of Maubeuge. The trapezoidal fort is surrounded by a ditch defended by

counterscarp A scarp and a counterscarp are the inner and outer sides, respectively, of a ditch or moat used in fortifications. Attackers (if they have not bridged the ditch) must descend the counterscarp and ascend the scarp. In permanent fortifications th ...

s. It was armed with four 95 mm guns and several smaller pieces. The small infantry shelters or ''abris'' housed the troops. The position was planned to cover the D228 road. Bersillies was attacked by German forces in 1914 during the Siege of Maubeuge. Isolated far behind the front lines, it surrendered to the Germans with the other Maubeuge fortifications in early September 1914.

Design and construction

The Maginot-era site was approved in 1934. Work cost 6.04 million francs.Mary, Tome 1, p. 52

Description

The Maginot-era improvements to Bersillies comprise two combat blocks. The ''ouvrage'' was built within the walls of the old Ouvrage de Bersillies. An underground gallery connects the two blocks, with underground service and barracks spaces along the short gallery.Mary, Tome 3, p. 67 * Block 1: infantry/entry block with one automatic rifle cloche (GFM-B), one mixed-arms cloche (AM), one grenade launcher cloche (LG), one automatic rifle embrasure and one and one machine gun/ 47mm anti-tank gun (JM/AC47) embrasure. * Block 2: infantry/entrance block with two GFM cloches, two AM cloches and two retractable twin machine gun turrets. A number of small blockhouses are associated with Bersillies, as well as a casemate: * Casemate de Crèvecoeur: Double block with two JM/AC47 embrasures, two JM embrasures, one AM cloche and two GFM-B cloches. It is not connected to the ''ouvrage''.

Manning

The 1940 manning of the ''ouvrage'' under the command of Captain Pujade comprised 97 men and 3 officers of the 84th Fortress Infantry Regiment. The units were under the umbrella of the 101st Fortress Infantry Division, 1st Army, Army Group 1.

History of the Maginot ''ouvrage''

:''See Fortified Sector of Maubeuge for a broader discussion of the events of 1940 in the Maubeuge sector of the Maginot Line.'' During the Battle of France in 1940, the invading German forces approached Maubeuge from the south and east, to the rear of the defensive line. The German 28th Infantry Division moved along the line of fortifications 19–22 May, rolling up blockhouses and larger fortifications. Bersillies was under attack on the morning of 22 May. Heavy close-range artillery fire on 23 May destroyed cloches and air intakes. With German troops on top of the ''ouvrage'', Captain Pujade ceased firing and surrendered his garrison.Mary, Tome 3, pp. 181-182

Current condition

Bersillies is owned by a hunting society. It is secured, but is not open for sightseeing. It features an unusual number of murals painted by its garrison, which remain in a good state of preservation.

Notes

References

Bibliography

*Allcorn, William. ''The Maginot Line 1928-45.'' Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003. *Kaufmann, J.E. and Kaufmann, H.W. ''Fortress France: The Maginot Line and French Defenses in World War II'', Stackpole Books, 2006. *Kaufmann, J.E., Kaufmann, H.W., Jancovič-Potočnik, A. and Lang, P. ''The Maginot Line: History and Guide'', Pen and Sword, 2011. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 1.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2001. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 2.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2003. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 3.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2003. *Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 5.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2009.

External links

Bersillies (petit ouvrage de)
at fortiff.be .

at lignemaginot.com

at tracesofwar.com
Le PO de Bersillies
at wikimaginot.eu {{DEFAULTSORT:Bersillies, Ouvrage BERS Maginot Line Séré de Rivières system Fortifications of Maubeuge