The Fort du Replaton is a fortification of the
Séré de Rivières system in
Modane,
France. The fort was built to provide artillery cover for the French end of the
Fréjus Rail Tunnel
The Fréjus Rail Tunnel (also called Mont Cenis Tunnel) is a rail tunnel of length in the European Alps, carrying the Turin–Modane railway through Mont Cenis to an end-on connection with the Culoz–Modane railway and linking Bardonecchia in ...
away horizontally.
It is connected to Modane by an
aerial tram, which continues on from Replaton to the
Fort du Sapey
Ouvrage Sapey is a work (''gros ouvrage'') of the Maginot Line's Alpine extension, the Alpine Line, also known as the Little Maginot Line. The ouvrage consists of one entry block, three artillery blocks and one observation block two kilometers w ...
on a much higher eminence.
The Fort du Replaton was built between 1884 and 1892 using an arrangement that anticipated the later
Maginot Line
The Maginot Line (french: Ligne Maginot, ), named after the French Minister of War André Maginot, is a line of concrete fortifications, obstacles and weapon installations built by France in the 1930s to deter invasion by Germany and force the ...
fortifications, and resembles
Fort Saint Michel
A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
near
Toul. It cost approximately 2 million francs.
Unlike a Maginot fortification, Replaton was enclosed by a perimeter wall and had surface barracks. The original armament consisted of two 95mm and two 155mm guns along a communicating gallery on the rock behind. The fort received concrete reinforcement in the early 1900s.
A renovation project in 1930 added 75mm guns in place of the 95mm weapons. The fort was fired upon in 1940 and 1944. It is the property of the Association de la Traversée es Alpes. It is not open to the public, but is in a good state of preservation.
Redoute du Replaton
A smaller fortification occupies the eastern extremity of the small plateau, about above Modane. It was armed with a single 95mm gun.
See also
*
Alpine Line
The Alpine Line (french: Ligne Alpine) or Little Maginot Line (French: ''Petite Ligne Maginot'') was the component of the Maginot Line that defended the southeastern portion of France. In contrast to the main line in the northeastern portion of Fra ...
References
Bibliography
*Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. ''Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 5.'' Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2009.
External links
Replaton (fort du)at fortiff.be
Replaton (redoute du)at fortiff.be
at fortiffsere.fr
{{Séré de Rivières system
Séré de Rivières system