Abri de combat

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Abri de combat in the battlefield of Verdun (possibly "TF 1" in the Thiaumont – Frodeterre section)

The Abri de combat (dt .: about: Combat protection room - called by the German soldiers “Infantry room” or “I room” for short) were small shelters against artillery fire, which were part of the de Barrière de fer in the advanced defensive rings of the fortress Verdun , Épinal , Toul , and Belfort had been laid out.

description

Abri de combat were located in the immediate vicinity of the fixed defense lines and were connected to the Ouvrages d'infanterie by connecting trenches. They were always in hollows or on the opposite slope, so most of them were hidden from view and could not be fought directly by the artillery . Although they were purely protective rooms in terms of their design, a large number of them were bitterly fought over in the battle for Verdun . Most of the demolitions also withstood heavy fire during the battle. Exceptions were those who stood in the main combat zone and were almost continuously under heavy fire. The demolitions TD 1, TD 2 and TD 3 in the intermediate field from Thiaumont - Douaumont (small version) are almost completely destroyed.

The designation of the individual structures was based on the location, so the “Abri de combat MF 1” was located in the Maas - Froideterre section , “Abri de combat TD 1” in the Thiaumont - Douaumont section .

The buildings contained two or four accommodation rooms with seating and sleeping facilities. At least one kitchen corner with an oven to warm up the food rations was available. The lighting was done by kerosene lamps . There were also latrines . There was a small cistern under the floor for water supply. The construction plans showed differences, as one took into account the nature of the terrain. Only the construction data (number and size of the rooms, wall thickness etc.) are the same for all.

Three types of these shelters had been built:

  • Abri de combat modèle 1898 (for a company )
  • Abri de combat modèle 1898 (for half a company)
  • Abri de combat modèle 1913 (for a company)

Abri de combat modèle 1898

The walls of these shelters consisted of reinforced concrete , with the outer walls (left, right and front) being surrounded by a four-meter-thick layer of gravel, which was followed by the natural ground. A 1.6 meter thick concrete slab was used as the ceiling, which extends over the entire structure and rested on the rear protective wall. It was covered with a layer of earth 20 to 40 cm thick. Inside there were two or four rooms with seats and beds for 100 men (½ company ) or for 200 men (one company). The rooms were 10 meters long and 4 meters wide. The ceiling height was 2.5 to 3 m. The quarry stone partition was 1 m thick and provided with a passage. There was an entrance to each room which was provided with a strong door grille. The entrances were each 1.20 m wide and reached up to the ceiling. The large shelters had a small kitchen room measuring 1.5 mx 1.5 m. The latrine was outside the small demolition in a niche in the outer wall and was unprotected. (Iron doors were installed later.) A masonry protective wall was built in front of the rear wall (1.5 m thick at the base, 1 m thick at the top) to prevent direct fire at the entrance doors to the relaxation rooms. Sometimes the latrine was moved behind the protective wall in the large version. The connection to the other military facilities was made by telephone. Some of the shelters were equipped with armored observation domes ( Guérite blindée ).

Abri de combat modèle 1913

Only five copies of this type were built, since the project and the corresponding construction work were discontinued with the beginning of the First World War . They are all in the run-up to the Epinal fixed place.

The differences to the previous model were only minor. They simply consisted in the fact that the inner walls and the rear protective wall were also made of concrete, the layer of gravel had been removed. Since the building had now been given a somewhat more active role, a throat box was attached to the rear wall to paint the entrance area.

  • Protective construction modèle 1898 with 2 rooms

  • Protective structure modèle 1898 with 4 rooms

  • Protective construction modèle 1913

Total number

A total of 86 bunkers of all types were built.

34 in Verdun
18 in Toil
20 in Épinal (including 5 of the 1913 type)
14 in Belfort

The total cost of all structures was 4,730,000 gold francs.

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