Rạch Cát fortress

The fortress Rạch Cát (French Ouvrage de Rach-Cat , Vietnamese . Pháo đài Rạch Cát or Đồn Rạch Cát ) is a former coastal defense system south of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) in southern Vietnam . It is located on the western bank of the western Nhà-Bè estuary Soài Rạp (Soirap) between the confluences of the Rạch Cát and Vaico rivers , and thus about 30 kilometers as the crow flies south of the city center in the municipality of Long Hựu Đông in the Cần Đước district of the Long An province .

The fortress was built during the French colonial period between 1903 and 1914 and equipped with powerful coastal artillery . On the one hand, it was supposed to block the western access route to Saigon for enemy ships and, on the other hand, to secure the Vaico tributary, where there was a simple dock. Together with other coastal battery works at Cap Saint-Jacques (Vũng Tàu) , which covered the eastern branch of the estuary, Saigon was to be protected against attacks from the seaside. At that time, German and British warships were primarily feared as potential attackers.

The advanced reinforced concrete was already used in the construction of the fortress ; In addition, the spongy subsurface had to be fastened in a laborious manner. In addition, since the building materials and equipment had to be brought in over a long distance, the construction costs in the end amounted to seven million francs .

The fortress is about 300 meters long and 100 meters wide. It consists of two symmetrical turrets ( demi-ouvrages ), each six meters in diameter, connected by a casemate . Inside there are two upper and three lower floors, with the ammunition being stored above ground due to moisture problems. The wall thickness is 60-100 centimeters. A (no longer existing) moat surrounded the complex.

In each of the turrets there were two fully rotating artillery guns of the Schneider 240 mm modèle 1893/96 M "Colonies" type with a caliber of 24 centimeters and a range of 22.7 kilometers. These were supplemented by six 75 mm modèle 1897 and four 95 mm modèle 1888 guns .

All guns were dismantled and brought to the motherland during the First World War , without ever being involved in a battle . It was not until 1940, during the Second World War , that the facility was re-equipped with two 138 mm modèle 1924 and four 75 mm modèle 1897 guns in view of the Japanese threat . These were never used, however, as the Japanese army occupied Indochina as early as September 1940, almost without a fight. In March 1945 the Japanese overthrew the French colonial administration and also took over the fortress, until it again fell to the Việt Minh revolutionaries in August . The Vietnamese were eventually driven out by British occupation forces in October. The returning French found the facility looted, only the two main guns, which had been too heavy to transport, remained on site. The fortress no longer played a role in the Indochina and Vietnam War .

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10.505899 106.727962Coordinates: 10 ° 30 ′ 21.2 ″ N , 106 ° 43 ′ 40.7 ″ E