Lock point Gruyères
Map with all coordinates: 
The Gruyère barrier was a defensive position of the Swiss army . It is located in the Swiss municipality of Gruyères and the surrounding area and is one of 37 restricted areas in the canton of Friborg . It is considered a military historical monument of national importance.
history
In the canton of Friborg, the 1st Division of the 1st Army Corps and the Freiburg Mountain Fusilier Battalion assigned to it built 17 fortifications near Gruyères, La Tine and in the Jaunbachtal . On the basis of Operation Orders 11 and 12, she was given the task of holding the Gruyère bottleneck and resisting there to the extreme.
The 1st Division began to build fortifications immediately after retreating to the foothills of the Alps. This valley leads via Jaunpass into the Obersimmental and thus behind the Réduitfront . In December 1940 there were plans to build several artillery works. With the withdrawal of the Réduit border to La Tine , the Gruyère was in front of this border and became the outpost of the Réduit.
Due to its suitable location, Gruyères was created as a closed base with around 20 plants. Gruyères is a rare example of the doubling of a medieval curtain wall in the 20th century. The first tank barriers were erected at the end of November 1940 and the construction of the first rock work began in February 1941. The units of the 1st Division shared the construction work with civilian companies.
The "Gruyère Group" comprised the following units: Staff Inf Rgt 2, S Bat 1, Füs Bat 4, Füs Bat 5, Ter Bat 163, Ter Str Pol Kp 73, Staff F Art Rgt 1, F Art Abbot 1. During the alarm exercise From September 11, 1942, the "Detachement Gruyères" consisted of the Ter Füs Bat 126, EM Rgt art camp Roc Field Artillery Abbot 1 (Field Artillery Battery 2). These units blocked the Gruyère parade.
The blocking point was assigned to the newly established Reduit Brigade 21 in 1947 , which was abolished in 2003 with the Army XXI .
Infantry factory Les Marches "Iris" A 1760
The rock “Les Marches” is located in the rock face above “Bois des Marches” at the foot of the Dent de Broc at the entrance to the Intyamon valley .
When construction of the planned artillery plant began, Gruyères was still on the Reduit border. The Reduit border was moved during the construction period. The planned artillery expansion was therefore not carried out and «Les Marches» became an infantry plant for anti-tank defense.
The plant had four floors at a height of 744 to 823 m above sea level. M. , which could be overcome on a staircase with 408 steps (les marches d'escalier). The plant could accommodate 112 men. There are three observation posts on the first and top floors, which are on the same level and spread across the width of the rock. They were able to monitor the Gruyère , Bulle and Broc plains . The emergency exit and a water tank for 4450 liters are also located here.
The main entrance is on the second floor, ten meters below the first. The platform for the 7.5 cm mobile artillery cannon was also provided here.
66 meters or 372 steps below is the third floor with the combat block for a 4.7 cm field cannon, which was also expanded for the later 9 cm anti-tank cannon, as well as an observer's niche with Lmg. Below was the fourth floor with the combat block for a machine gun, an observer with an LMG, and a water tank. The two combat blocks could cover a shooting sector from the Pont-qui-Branle (A 1762) to the Bérauta lock (T 1036).
The canton of Friborg bought the plant from the federal government in 2005 to protect it and its surroundings as a reserve for a small colony of the lesser horseshoe bat .
Lock point Gruyères
- Les Marches "Iris" infantry factory A 1760 ⊙
- Infantry factory Les Combes A 1761 ⊙
- Infantry factory Le Pont-qui-branle A 1762 ⊙
- Infantry factory Gruyère Route A 1763 ⊙
- Infantry bunker Gruyère "Henri 2" A 1764 ⊙
- Bearing blocking elements A 1765 for GPH 1042 ⊙
- Terrain tank obstacle GPH Greyerz Ost T 1036 ⊙
- Barricade Gruyères East T 1036.01 ⊙
- Barricade bridge T 1036.02 ⊙
- GPH Greyerz Nord T 1037 ⊙
- GPH and Barricade Greyerz West T 1038/39 ⊙
- GPH Gruyères West T 1040 ⊙
- GPH Gruyère Southwest T 1041 ⊙
- GPH Gruyère South T 1042 ⊙
Infantry bunker Gruyère "Henri 2" A 1764
Barricade Gruyères West T 1039
Tank wall Gruyère West T 1040
Lock point Gorge de L'Evy
The blocking point in the gorge near Albeuve had to block access to the Moléson region with the two works on both sides of the Marive river . The main plant had two machine guns, a 24 mm tank rifle and four observer loops with Lmg light machine guns. The counterwork also had four observer loops with Lmg. The street was secured with an explosive device .
Lock point Le Hongrin
The works on both sides of the Hongrin river and below the dam of the Lac de l'Hongrin had to prevent the main routes to the Alps from being bypassed. An explosive object was set up on the street 600 meters in front of the works. The main plant was equipped with a 4.7 cm infantry cannon and four observer slots with Lmg. The counterwork with an Lmg.
- L'Hongrin infantry factory "cèdre Rive droite" A 1650 main factory ⊙
- L'Hongrin infantry factory "cèdre Rive gauche" A 1650 ⊙
literature
- Fortifications Jauntal-Intyamon-Pays d'Enhaut-Saanenland . Association of Historic Military Plants Freiburg / Bern VH + MA, VH + MA Annual Bulletin 2011.
- Military monuments in the cantons of Berne and Friborg: Gruyère barrier
- Mathieu Allemann: La Gruyère en guerre. Collège du Sud, Bulle. Matura thesis 2009
- Jérôme Gremaud, Benoît Magnin et Emmanuel Rey: Lumière! Les chauves-souris du canton de Friborg (Light! Bats of the Canton of Friborg). FRIbat-CCO Friborg et Musée d'histoire naturelle de Friborg, Freiburg 2016, ISBN 978-2-9701096-0-0
Web links
- Association of Historical Military Facilities Freiburg-Bern
- Photos works Gorge de L'Evy
- Photos works Hongrin
- Photos of anti-tank obstacles Gruyères
- Fortress Oberland: Video lock Gruyères
Individual evidence
- ^ Military monuments in the cantons of Bern and Friborg: Sperrstelle Gruyères
- ^ Fortress Oberland: Gruyères
- ^ Fortress Oberland: Reduit Brigade 21
- Jump up ↑ Gruyère: Infantry factory Iris A 1760
- ↑ Fortress Oberland: Lock point L'Evy (Albeuve FR)
- ↑ Fortress Oberland: Lock point Le Hongrin
- ↑ Fortress Oberland: Video Hongrin A 1650
- ^ Mathieu Allemann: La Gruyère en guerre