Reduit Brigade 24

Bunker keeper's house on the Linth, background Glärnisch

Artillery works at Spitz ob Sattel SZ

The Reduitbrigade 24 (R Br 24 "Central Switzerland") was one of three Reduit brigades of the fortress troops of the Swiss Armed Forces have been newly created 1947th With Army 61 they were subordinated to Mountain Army Corps 3 and abolished in 2003 with Army XXI .

history

With the Troop Order 47 (TO 47), the Reduit Brigades 21 (Bernese Oberland), 22 (Ob- and Nidwalden, Oberhasli), and 24 (Central Switzerland) were created. They each had a fortress artillery regiment.

With Army Reform 61 (TO 61), the three fortress brigades and three reduit brigades were subordinated to the newly created Mountain Army Corps 3.

In 1974, genius units of the Reduit Brigade 24 expanded the still unfinished Schwyz part of the Pragel Pass because it was the most direct connection from Glarnerland to the Muota valley , where the Brigade's Selgis command post was located. The initiator and person responsible for the construction was Claus Cramer, the commander of the brigade, who received honorary citizenship from the Muotathalers.

The reorganization of Army XXI led to a significant reduction in stocks in 2003. The Mountain Army Corps, the large units, and the Reduit and Fortress Brigades were abolished.

Mission and type of threat

The Reduit Brigade 24 had the order to block the entrances from the Mittelland to the central area (Reduit) and to hold the key rooms of the basins of Schwyz and Altdorf.

For an opponent, the Swiss Alpine region was less of a primary objective of the operation than a bypass area for the air force or to ensure a north-south connection.

Operational area: command posts, artillery works and blocking points (of national importance with *)

Room of the Reduit Brigade 24 in the 1992 basic disposition

The area of ​​the Reduit Brigade 24 extended from the southern shore of Lake Zurich via Zug, Lake Lucerne into the middle Reuss Valley and across the Klausen Pass into the Glarnerland to the Walensee and to the Etzel and Hirzel Passes . It closed the entrances towards Gotthard and protected the traffic axes, in particular the A2, A3 and A4 motorways.

The works and barriers of the Reduit Brigade 24 were located in central Switzerland, mainly in the cantons of Glarus and Schwyz.

Canton of Glarus

Bunker Hüttenböschen, Walensee

Sitenhölzli terrain armor obstacle, Escherkanal

• Command post: Bergli A 6710 (Glarus), Feldbachrippe A 6731 (Mollis), Vorburg A 6775 (Oberurnen), Rebberg A 6832 (Niederurnen),
• Artillery works: Niederberg A 6740 (Näfels) , Beglingen A 6756 (Näfels) , Ennetberge A 6723-30 (Ennetberg-Matten / Kängel)
• Blocking points: Bilten , Ennenda, Filzbach, Gäsi (Filzbach) , Lehni , Mollis, Näfels *, Netstal, Niederurnen-Ziegelbrücke * (north of the Linth canton of St. Gallen), Linthal

Canton lucerne

• Artillery Works Vitznau A 2206

Canton of Nidwalden

• Artillery works Unter Nas A 2226
• Beckenried locking point

Canton of Schwyz

Seesperre Obere Nas, Vierwaldstättersee

• Command post Selgis A 7444 (entrance Muotatal)
• Artillery works: Barbara A 7330 (Rigi) , Halsegg A 7351/52 (Sattel) , Ober Nas A 2215 (Vitznau) , Spitz A 7347/48 (Sattel) , Stock A 7345 (Engelstock, Steinen) , Verena A 7341 (Steinerberg) .
• Artillery positions (Art Stel): Biberegg (Rothenturm), Hageggli, Lützelmatt (Rothenturm), Rothenthurm, Schmiedenen (Rothenturm), Schornen Wart-Morgarten , Turnern (Rothenturm area).
• Blocking points: Alpthal, Altmatt-Schönboden , Biberbrugg *, Bühl-Etzel West *, Einsiedeln-Horgenberg , Freienbach, Linth level , Obere Nas *, Oberarth *, Rigi, Rothenturm-Willerzell, Sattel, Schindellegi , Schlagberg (Schlapprig) , Schwyz, Seilegg (Sattel), Sihlsee , St. Adrian , St. Meinrad-Etzel *, Wägital .

Canton of St. Gallen

• Lining plain

Canton of Uri

• Isleten Artillery Plant A8730
• Blocking points: Attinghausen, Bürglen, Flüelen-Nord, Klausenpass , Seelisberg

Canton of Zug

• Artillery positions (Art Stel): Bucklen (Unterägeri) , Schüsselbach (Unterägeri)
• Blocking sites: Eielen-Oberwil, Finsterseebrugg, fire-Schwand Gubel * Hinterwald-Winteregg, Lorzentobelbrücke, Morgarten, rates , Unterägeri , Zugerbergbahn *

Warfare

In addition to a highly mechanized thrust by the enemy through valleys, over alpine passes and forest roads, helicopters and airborne operations were a great danger. The infantry strong mountain division had to be very agile in order to be able to concentrate forces and resources at critical points by means of combat groups.

Outline (1994)

• Infantry regiments 79 and 83
• Werkkompanien (Wk Kp) 15 and 46
• Fortress regiments (Fest Rgt 24) with division 18 (company I / 18, II / 18, III / 18, IV / 18, V / 18 and VI / 18) and division 19 (I / 19, II / 19, III / 19 and IV / 19)
• Fortress Air Defense Department (Fest Flab Abt) 24
• Genius Department 64

education

In order to be able to move around in mountainous terrain at any time, camouflage, mountain fighting and hunting combat formed the focus of the training. The mountain training on a broad basis formed the basis of the mountain combat training. In Mountain Army Corps 3, which was created with Army 61, training in the large unit was taken by the hand and the previous mandatory and voluntary mountain training was further promoted.

Museums in the operational area of ​​the Reduit Brigade 24

• Schwyz Fortress Foundation
• Artillery factory Halsegg and Dufour Museum
• Military history foundation of the canton of Zug
• Mühlefluh artillery works (Vitznau fortress)
• Beglingen Fortress Museum

literature

• Rudolf Arquint, Kurt Bättig, Susanne Däbritz: Farewell to the Reduit. Memories of the Reduit Brigade 24th Command Reduit Brigade 24 (Ed.). Küng AG, Näfels 1994.
• Huber Hilbi: Reduit Brigade 24th deployment in World War II 1939–1945 . CD
• Hans Stadler-Planzer: Military monuments in Uri, Schwyz and Zug. Historical overview . In: Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport (ed.): Military monuments in the cantons of Uri, Schwyz and Zug. Inventory of the combat and command structures. (PDF; 2 MB).

Web links

Commons : Reduitbrigade 24  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Fortress Switzerland: Reduit Brigade 24
• Schwyz fortifications
• Swiss Dufour Museum
• Jürg Zimmermann: Commander's memories of the artillery works "Barbara" and "Stock" (Fest Rgt 24, Reduit Brigade 24)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ NZZ of September 14, 2001: Bödmeren Primeval Forest Reserve. ( Memento from May 28, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
2. ↑ Fortress Oberland: Reduit Brigade 24. ( Memento of the original from January 18, 2015 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. 
3. ↑ ETH Library: The Mountain Division 12.
4. ↑ Military History Foundation of the Canton of Zug: Annual Report 2013.