Fort d'Hirson

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Entrance of the Fort d'Hirson

The Fort d'Hirson (also known as Fort Dubois for a short time ) is a fortress from the 19th century. It is located in the municipality of Hirson in the French department of Aisne .

Origins

It was built from April 14, 1877 to the end of 1880 according to the plans of Général Raymond Adolphe Séré de Rivières . The pioneer Capitaine Félix L'héritier was in charge of the construction supervision, the executing company was Adrien Hallier. The construction costs amounted to 2,604,521 francs (excluding the armored turret).

Naming

It was named after the Hirson community . By presidential decree of January 21, 1887, the Minister of War, Georges Boulanger , implemented that all forts, fortified artillery installations and barracks of the Système Séré de Rivières must bear the names of former military commanders. For this reason it was called "Fort Dubois" after Général Paul-Alexis Dubois from then on . On October 13, 1887, this was reversed by Boulanger's successor, Théophile Ferron, with Note No. 14980 of the same date, and the fort was given its original name back. Nevertheless, it continued to be called "Fort de Dubois" above the main entrance, like some others where the "nom de Boulanger" was not removed.

Armament

Building description

The structure was a barrier fort that was supposed to protect the Hirson train station and prevent the use of the railway line by enemy forces. It was built entirely of bricks and surrounded by a dry moat. A layer of earth was applied to the ceiling of the central structure.

The war occupation in 1880 consisted of:

  • 30 officers
  • 40 NCOs
  • 960 teams

In 1891 the now smaller garrison consisted only of 103 infantrymen, 123 artillerymen and three cooks.

The corresponding accommodations were available, a medical station with 66 beds, a stable for 12 horses, two wells of 40 m³ each per day (there were still three springs in the trenches) and two ovens each with 200 loaves of bread a day.

75 tonnes of black powder were stored in the East powder magazine and 91 tons in the West powder magazine . The stock of cartridges was 1,000,000 pieces.

The entrance was secured by a removable bridge.

The guns were still free on the ramparts, with the exception of those of the capons (one throat trench caponier , two shoulder trench capons and a double front trench caponier ).

The fort was not included in the modernization measures at the end of the 19th century and was downgraded in 1912.

The outdated Tourelle Mougin armored turret was dismantled and scrapped by the Germans in 1914.

The fort is in a ruinous state, entire sections of the galleries have collapsed and the moat has been filled in. It is privately owned, entry is not permitted.

Web links

Footnotes and individual references

  1. ↑ Parcelle Cadastrale 990
  2. ↑ Note No. 5285 of March 25, 1886 from Minister of War Général Boulanger to the General Commanders of the Military Regions; Presidential decree of January 21, 1887 renaming the forts, fortified artillery systems and barracks, as proposed by the Minister of War, Général Boulanger
  3. ↑ now gone
  4. ↑ "nom de Boulanger" refers to the name given to Boulanger.
  5. ↑ Alfred DESMASURES : Histoire de la ville d'Hirson. 1892

Coordinates: 49 ° 54 ′ 52 ″  N , 4 ° 4 ′ 24 ″  E