Ouvrage Restefond is a work (gros ouvrage) of the Maginot Line's Alpine extension, the Alpine Line. The ouvrage consists of one artillery block and three observation blocks at the summit of the Col de la Bonette. The entry block and an artillery block were not completed, and a further block was never built.[1] At 2,733 metres (8,967 ft), Restefond is the highest Maginot ouvrage.[2]
| Ouvrage Restefond | |
|---|---|
| Part of Maginot Line, Alpine Line | |
| Southeast France | |
 | |
  Ouvrage Restefond | |
| Coordinates | 44°19′49″N 6°48′32″E / 44.33028°N 6.80889°E |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | France |
| Site history | |
| Built by | CORF |
| In use | Abandoned |
| Materials | Concrete, steel, rock excavation |
| Battles/wars | Italian invasion of France |
| Ouvrage Restefond | |
|---|---|
| Type of work: | Large artillery work (Gros ouvrage) |
| sector └─sub-sector | Fortified Sector of the Dauphiné └─Jausiers, Quartier du Restefond |
| Regiment: | 73rd BAF, 162nd RAP |
| Number of blocks: | 3 |
| Strength: | 10 officers, 216 men |
Description
edit- Block 1 (unfinished entry): one machine gun cloche and one heavy twin machine gun embrasure. A 47mm anti-tank gun was planned.[3]
- Block 2 (infantry block): one machine gun cloche and two 81mm mortar embrasures.[4]
- Block 3 (infantry block): one machine gun cloche and one heavy twin machine gun embrasure.[5]
- Block 4 (infantry block): one observation cloche, one machine gun cloche and one heavy twin machine gun embrasure.[6]
- Block 5 (uncompleted artillery block): three 75mm gun embrasures.[7]
- Block 6 (artillery block): three 75mm gun embrasures, intended primarily for indirect fire.[2][8]
- Block 7 (unbuilt): three 75mm gun embrasures, later proposed to be armed with a twin 75mm gun turret.[9][10]
Restefond includes 668 meters of underground galleries at a depth of 64 meters. The position remains the property of the French military, with much of its equipment intact.[2] Some of the uninstalled equipment remains at the Restefond barracks nearby.[10]
1940
edit- See Fortified Sector of the Dauphiné for a broader discussion of the Dauphiné sector of the Alpine Line.
Block 6 fired on Italian forces in June 1940 as they advanced toward the Col des Fourches.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; Aublet, Jean-Louis; Mainguin, Sylvie (2010). "Restefond (go de)". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ a b c Fray, François. "Ouvrage de Restefond". Patrimoine XXeme (in French). French Ministry of Culture and Communication. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 1". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 2". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 3". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 4". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 5". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 6". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ Puelinckx, Jean; et al. (2010). "Restefond (go de) Bloc 7". Index de la Ligne Maginot (in French). fortiff.be. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
- ^ a b Mary, Tome 5, p. 42
Bibliography
edit- Allcorn, William. The Maginot Line 1928-45. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-84176-646-1
- Kaufmann, J.E. and Kaufmann, H.W. Fortress France: The Maginot Line and French Defenses in World War II, Stackpole Books, 2006. ISBN 0-275-98345-5
- Kaufmann, J.E., Kaufmann, H.W., Jancovič-Potočnik, A. and Lang, P. The Maginot Line: History and Guide, Pen and Sword, 2011. ISBN 978-1-84884-068-3
- Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 1. Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2001. ISBN 2-908182-88-2 (in French)
- Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 4 - La fortification alpine. Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2009. ISBN 978-2-915239-46-1 (in French)
- Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques. Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 5. Paris, Histoire & Collections, 2009. ISBN 978-2-35250-127-5 (in French)
External links
edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ouvrage de Restefond.
- Rimplas (gros ouvrage du) at fortiff.be (in French)
- Patrimoine XXeme, Ouvrage Restefond (in French)