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Fort Istimpei
Fort Istimpei () is a fortress on Mount Beles, Central Macedonia, on Greece's northern border with Bulgaria, that was built to help defend Greece during World War II. It became part of the fortifications of the Metaxas Line, a chain of fortifications along the Greek-Bulgarian border that was built in the 1930s and named after Ioannis Metaxas, then Prime Minister of Greece. It is situated 16 km north of the village of Neo Petritsi at an altitude of 1,339 meters. The main mission of the fort was to prevent entrance to the country from Bulgaria. It housed 13 officers and 350 soldiers. Its commander in chief was Ksanthos Pikoulakis. The fort was active until April 1941, when it was forced to surrender to German troops. In 1991 the Panhellenic Association of Combatants and Friends of the Forts of Macedonia and Thrace funded the construction of a small museum on this site in commemoration of its role in the Battle of the Forts in April 1941 against invading German forces. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Metaxas Line
The Metaxas Line (, ''Grammi Metaxa'') was a chain of fortifications constructed along the line of the Greco-Bulgarian border, designed to protect Greece in case of a Bulgarian invasion after the rearmament of Bulgaria. It was named after Ioannis Metaxas, then Prime Minister of Greece, and chiefly consists of tunnels that led to observatories, emplacements and machine gun nests. The constructions are so sturdy that they survive to this day, some of which are still in active service. Some of them are open to the public. The Metaxas Line consists of 21 independent fortification complexes, the largest of which is Fort Roupel as it covers 6.1 out of the 155 km of the full line and had been constructed at a height of 322 m. Illumination was initially mostly provided by oil-lamps, although generators were also installed. Currently, the fortifications are supplied with public electricity, but they are also equipped with generators. Ventilation was achieved both naturally and a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
