The Maginot Line

[housil]

Last weekend I did a quick trip to France to see fortifications of the "Maginot Line". Keep in mind, the Maginot Line was a line of fortifications all along the French border.

I visited the Fort Schönbourg what is huge! Manned with 630 soldiers

The visitors entrance to where the fort got their supplies by train

The train drove into the fort and 30meters (90ft) down by elevators

to distribute their supplies 1km (0.6 mile) all over the fort

Train station

junction into different parts of the fort

Junction into a combat bunker

[housil]

First station after entering the fort (and walking down 135 stairs) is the power plant and ammo storage

long tunnels into the single storage faciliteis

The tiny chappel, sits four

Rest rooms

No idea why all rest rooms where elevated

French toilets didn´t have bowls to sit on, but a "shower" like bottom

I hated these back in the 80s when we went to France for vacation...

So here are the "accommodations"

Kitchen

butcher

Supplies

[housil]

Want to see their chow hall?!
They didn´t have one...
So where did they eat?
The enlisted man had tables at the hallways to fold down and eat there

Officers had their own kitchen and cafeteria

enlisted Bedrooms, sleeps 27

[housil]

Clinic

Elevated room - right, restroom

bunk beds

post OP ward

Operating room

See that tiny office and the bed above so the guy on charge "can" sleep there

Dentist

bath rooms & showers

[housil]

Now it was a 600 Meters walk into the tunnel to the combat part of the fort

Combat commanders room

Observation room

Each place has a photo and drawing of the observers few

Artillery commanding room

Combat bunker

Ammo storage and transportation

The retractable combat tower

These could rotate and lift up and down.




They had a great model/diorama to show how that huge "seesaw" mechanism works

We toured to three different bunkers

saw lots of staff

Slept in a nice place

ate French cuisine - this is just mine dinner, one course...

but also had lunch out of the trunk

[GunnarTheFeisty]

that's super cool