bridgehead
A weir system that is built to secure a river bridge is originally referred to as a bridgehead (also known as bridge jump ). Bridgeheads were often designed as hornwork or redan. However, like the Jülich bridgehead , they could also have the layout of a crown work .
In military parlance
In military parlance, a bridgehead means a military position on enemy territory, which is separated from its own territory by a river, a lake or a sea. The aim of building a bridgehead is to create an area that enables the safe landing of own troops and supplies. Such positions can be fought for as part of an amphibious operation , such as in the Second World War with the Allied landing in Normandy . Even when an army withdraws, bridgeheads can arise, for example the Kuban bridgehead held by Wehrmacht troops between January and October 1943 .
In the media, the (military) bridgehead plays an important role in Christopher Nolan's film Dunkirk . The film deals with the Battle of Dunkirk , a French city on the English Channel, where British troops withdrew after being pushed back further and further by advancing German troops. In this case, the British had a military position or a bridgehead on French territory, which at that time was largely under the control of the German Wehrmacht and was therefore enemy territory.
In contemporary architecture
In contemporary architecture, buildings that are striking in terms of urban development and mark the approach of bridges are referred to as bridgeheads.
See also
literature
- Michael Losse : bridgehead. In: Horst Wolfgang Böhme , Reinhard Friedrich, Barbara Schock-Werner (Hrsg.): Dictionary of castles, palaces and fortresses. Reclam, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-15-010547-1 , pp. 87-88, doi: 10.11588 / arthistoricum.535 .
