Ouvrage Galgenberg forms a portion of the

Fortified Sector of Thionville The Fortified Sector of Thionville (''Secteur fortifié de Thionville'') was the French military organisation that in 1940 controlled the section of the Maginot Line immediately to the north of Thionville. The sector describes an arc of about , ...

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 Moselle." Galgenberg did not see significant action in 1940 or 1944. After a period of reserve duty in the 1950s and 1960s, it was deactivated. It is now a museum.

Design and construction

The Galgenberg site was surveyed by the Commission d'Organisation des Régions Fortifiées (CORF), the Maginot Line's design and construction agency, in 1930. Work began the next year,Mary, Tome 3, p. 95 and the position became operational in 1935,Kaufmann 2006, p. 25 at a cost of 48 million francs. The contractor was Verdun-Fortifications.Mary, Tome 1, p. 52 The site occupies the heights of the Galgenberg. ''Ouvrage'' Sentzich is close by the side of the Galgenberg ''massif'', overlooking the town of Sentzich and the road to the north.

Description

The ''ouvrage'' comprises two entries and six combat blocks: *Ammunition entry: at grade, two automatic rifle cloches (GFM) and one machine gun/ 47 mm anti-tank gun (JM/AC47) embrasure. *Personnel entry: shaft, one GFM cloche and one JM/AC47 embrasure. *Block 1: Infantry block with one JM/AC47 embrasure and one GFM cloche. *Block 2: Infantry block with one JM/AC47 embrasure, one JM embrasure, and two GFM cloches. *Block 3: Infantry block with machine gun turret and one GFM cloche. *Block 4: Artillery block with 81 mm mortar turret and one GFM cloche. *Block 5: Observation block with one GFM cloche, one machine gun cloche (JM), and one observation cloche (VDP). *Block 6: Artillery block with 135 mm gun turret, one grenade launcher cloche (LG) and one GFM cloche. Galgenberg has a small "M1" main magazine compared to other 'gros ouvrages''.

Casemates and shelters

The Observatoire de Cattenom is located behind Galgenberg, near the Casernement de Cattenom, which provided above-ground peacetime quarters for the garrisons of the nearby ''ouvrages''. The observation point was armed with one GFM cloche and an observation cloche. Flanking Galgenberg to the north is the Casemate du Sonnenberg, armed with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure and one GFM cloche. None of these are connected to the ''ouvrage'' or to each other. All were built by CORF

Manning

The 445 men and 15 officers of the 167th Fortress Infantry Regiment (RIF) and the 151st Position Artillery Regiment (RAP) were under the orders of Captain Guillaume de la Teyssoniére. The units were under the umbrella of the 42nd Fortress Corps of the 3rd Army, Army Group 2. The Casernement de Cattenom provided peacetime above-ground barracks and support services to Galgenberg and other ''ouvrages'' in the area.

History

:''See

for a broader discussion of the events of 1940 in the Thionville sector of the Maginot Line.'' A15 Galgenberg EM

Galgenberg did not see significant action in the Battle of France in 1940, nor in the Lorraine Campaign of 1944. In 1940 Galgenberg fired on German infiltrators in the area. An accident with an 81 mm mortar projectile damaged a mortar tube on 14 June 1940, which was repaired after three days.Mary, Tome 5, p. 208 The Germans largely bypassed the valley of the Moselle, advancing along the valley of the

Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a t ...

and

Saar Saar or SAAR has several meanings: People Given name *Saar Boubacar (born 1951), Senegalese professional football player * Saar Ganor, Israeli archaeologist *Saar Klein (born 1967), American film editor Surname * Ain Saar (born 1968), Est ...

rivers, threatening the rear of the Thionville sector. An order to fortress troops by sector commander Colonel Jean-Patrice O'Sullivan to prepare for withdrawal on 17 June was reversed by O'Sullivan. The garrison therefore remained in place. Following negotiations, the positions on the left bank of the Moselle finally surrendered to the Germans on 30 June 1940.

Renovation

In the 1950s the French government became concerned about a possible invasion by the

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist repub ...

through Germany. The Maginot Line, while obsolete in terms of its armament, was viewed as a series of useful deeply buried and self-sufficient shelters in an era of air power and nuclear weapons. A number of the larger ''ouvrages'' were selected to form defensive ensembles or ''môles'' around which a defence might be organised and controlled. Galgenberg was nominated as a communications station, in concert with the command posts at Rochonvillers, Soetrich and Molvange.

Current condition

The ''ouvrage'' has been maintained by the Association Ligne Maginot du Secteur Fortifié du Bois de Cattenom (LMSFBC), which also maintains Bois Karre, since 1987Kaufmann 2011, p. 181 and portions of the ''ouvrage'' are open to visits during the summer months. The combat blocks are not accessible, but work is continuing to restore the fortification.Kaufmann 2011, p. 221Degon, Zylberyng, p. 53

Notes

References

Bibliography

*Allcorn, William. ''The Maginot Line 1928-45.'' Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003. *Degon, André; Zylberyng, Didier, ''La Ligne Maginot: Guide des Forts à Visiter,'' Editions Ouest-France, 2014. *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

La Ligne Maginot en Lorraine: le Galgenberg

Site de l'association du Galgenberg

Galgenberg
at fortiff.be
Galgenberg
at Chemins de mémoire

L'ouvrage du Galgenberg
at alsacemaginot.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Galgenberg, Ouvrage GALG Maginot Line World War II museums in France