Caserne Desvallières

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La Ronde barracks / Caserne Desvallières

The Caserne Desvallières (originally: La-Ronde-Kaserne ) is a former barracks in the suburb "Devant-les-Ponts" of Metz . It was built in 1877 on behalf of the German Empire during the time when Alsace-Lorraine was part of Germany. It was intended to accommodate the " Dragoons Regiment King Carl I of Romania (1st Hann.) No. 9 ". Parts of the " Rhenish Foot Artillery Regiment No. 8 " were also temporarily in the barracks. It is on the Rue de la Ronde and the Route de Lorry.

Historical

From a military point of view, Metz was an extremely important strategic point for the German Empire that had to be secured after the acquisition. Immediately after Alsace-Lorraine fell to Germany, the military authorities began to upgrade the city militarily. Great efforts were made to build new barracks in addition to the fortifications and thus to enlarge the garrison . The strength of the troops permanently stationed here was between 15,000 and 20,000 men of all branches of service, only to grow to 25,000 men before the beginning of the First World War . During a visit on the occasion of a tour of the construction work in the city and at the Gürtel forts, Kaiser Wilhelm II said:

"Metz and his army corps are a pillar for the Prussian military in Germany, designed to ensure peace in Germany and also in Europe."

Construction and location

The "La Ronde barracks" was built by the then still independent municipality of "Devant-les-Ponts" as a municipal barracks. The buildings were erected on a site on which the Château de la Ronde had previously been located and which is located on the Route de Lorry. It was one of the first barracks to be commissioned by the German military administration in this region. It was originally intended as a cavalry barracks and consisted of 18 (also connected) buildings, which were grouped around two courtyards. The rectangular courtyard between the accommodation blocks served as a barracks courtyard, while the triangular courtyard between the stables and coach houses served as a training ground. The barracks area extended over several hectares.

use

The facility was occupied by the German Army until March 1919 and then passed to the French Army . From then on it was called "Caserne Desvallières" and used it until the 1990s. Until 1933, the "39 e régiment d'artillerie de Région Fortifiée" (39 e RARF - 39th regional fortress artillery regiment) was located here, part of which was also housed in the "Quartier Gribeauval" in Verdun . Between 1940 and 1944 the barracks was used by the German Wehrmacht and taken over again by the French army in 1945. From 1968 to 1976, was here 23 e régiment d'infantry stationed. In recent years it has only served as accommodation for the military music of the “6e région militaire” (6th military region). After the military had given up, a provisional juvenile prison for the Lorraine region was set up here. In 2009 this institution was closed and the buildings became part of the city of Metz. Due to its size and location as well as the type of architecture and the quality of the buildings, the city saw the conversion as an enrichment of this district. The plan was to set up apartments and shops in the complex. As of 2013, the demolition of parts of the increasingly dilapidated facility appears to have been considered. In 2015, however, it was decided to renovate the building.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Another 20 were added to the four existing from French times
  2. ↑ René Bour: Histoire de Metz . 1950, p. 227.
  3. ^ Philippe Martin: Metz en 1900 . In: L'Express , 18.-24. October 2007.
  4. ↑ François Roth: Metz annexée à l'Empire anglais: 1871-1918 , (. You François-Yves Le Moigne), Histoire de Metz , Privat, Toulouse, 1986 (S. 362).
  5. ^ Poste principale . Structurae.de, 1893.
  6. ↑ These types of barracks were built by the municipalities on their own account and then rented or sold to the military. There were also the fiscal barracks, which were built and paid for directly by the state.
  7. ↑ Devant-les-Ponts was not incorporated into Metz until 1907.
  8. ↑ Projet Desvallières ( Memento of the original dated November 26, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. City of Metz website. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.metz.fr
  9. ↑ Faut-il demolir Desvallières? In: Républicain Lorrain ; Paid Item; accessed: October 14, 2016
  10. ↑ pourmetz.com

Coordinates: 49 ° 7 ′ 58 ″  N , 6 ° 9 ′ 4 ″  E