318:, included several new features as a result of World War I experience. The gun turrets were less closely grouped. Reinforced concrete was used in place of plain mass concrete, and its placement was done with greater care to avoid weak joints between pours. Ventilation was greatly improved, magazines were deeply buried and protected, and sanitary facilities and general living arrangements for the troops were given careful attention. Battice, along with Eben-Emael, featured 120 mm and 75 mm guns, giving the fort the ability to bombard targets across a wide area of eastern Liège region. The 120 mm guns had sufficient range to provide artillery cover to Tancrémont and Aubin-Neufchâteau, but not with 75 mm guns, nor could the other forts' 75 mm guns or Eben-Emael's 120 mm guns reach Battice.
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guns, while J and O were emergency exits. All were outside the defended perimeter, above deeply buried galleries. Block B.I also served as an entrance, with truck access along the railway grade. The subterranean accommodations and utilities are outside the surface perimeter. The fort included a false 120 mm cupola.
386:
325:
highway. The roughly pentagonal fort has a surface area of about 13.5 hectares (33 acres), of a total site area of about 47 hectares (120 acres). The fort was armed similarly to Eben-Emael in both scale and equipment, only with fewer 60 mm anti-personnel guns. All of
Battice's heavy artillery
376:
In 1940 Battice was commanded by
Commandant-Captain Guery of the 5th Battalion of the Liègeois Fortress Regiment. The battalion was commanded by Major Bovy from Battice. Major Bovy had been hospitalized on 6 May for heart problems, but returned to the fort on the 10th at 0430. He died of a heart
363:
positions arranged to fire along the ditches with 47 mm guns, machine guns and grenade launchers, one designated B.IVce. Three blocks designated B.J., B.O. and B.W. provided air and access. B.W. was located above the main living accommodations and was the combat entrance, armed with machine
393:
The Fort de
Battice was largely complete by 1940. On 10 May 1940 German forces attacked all four PFL I forts, having largely neutralized Eben-Emael by airborne assault and driving its garrison below, unable to operate the fort's turrets. Battice supported Tancrémont and Aubin-Neufchâteau with
367:
The subterranean galleries total about 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) of passages buried between 20 metres (66 ft) and 28 metres (92 ft) below the surface, linking troop accommodations, a command post, ammunition magazines and utility plants.
410:
demanded the surrender of
Battice and Tancrémont. Battice finally surrendered on 22 May after twelve days of fighting. 34 defenders were killed in action and 36 died while prisoners of war, out of a garrison of 939 personnel.
306:. Even in its larger form, the fort comprised a relatively compact ensemble of gun turrets and observation posts, surrounded by a defended ditch. This was in contrast with French thinking for the contemporary
277:
to the south, about 18 kilometres (11 mi) east of Liège. Tancrémont and Aubin-Neufchâteau are smaller than Eben-Emael and
Battice. Collectively, the line was known as the Fortified Position of Liège I
314:
concept, with no clearly defined perimeter, a lesson learned from the experiences of French and
Belgian forts in World War I. The new Belgian forts, while more conservative in design than the French
406:
had been struck by an aerial bomb. A nine-hour cease-fire was negotiated to remove the thirty dead and four survivors. After Aubin-Neufchâteau was forced to surrender, the German commander, General
419:
The fort is preserved and open for public tours. Much of the fort's equipment and armament was removed during and after World War II. A memorial to the 36 dead is located on the side of Block B.I.
253:, augmenting the twelve original forts built to defend Liège in the 1880s with four more forts closer to the Belgian frontier with Germany. Battice is nearly as large as the more famous
821:
261:, Battice held out against the Germans until 22 May 1940 (12 days). On 28 May 1940 all Belgian forces surrendered. Battice has been preserved and may be visited by the public.
814:
402:. German 305 mm mortars fired on Battice on the 12th without significant damage. German infantry attacks started on the 13th. On 21 May Block B.I's
337:, designed to interdict the N648 road and a railway line, equipped with two 60 mm guns, a machine gun embrasure, a grenade ejector and a searchlight.
959:
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housed the fort's 120 mm guns, one per block in twin non-retractable gun turrets. Both turrets have been dismantled. Also called B.IX and B.X.
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298:
The Fort de
Battice was a greatly enlarged development of the original Belgian fortifications designed by General
321:
The Fort de
Battice comprised at least twelve combat blocks just to the east of Battice, north of the present-day
257:. Work began in April 1934, with some finish work continuing in 1940 when war broke out. Following the successful
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flanking casemates disposed around the perimeter ditch to take the ditch in enfilade
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Belgian fortification to the east of the town of
Battice, Liege province
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was housed in turrets, while Eben-Emael also disposed heavy guns in
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536:
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Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques (2001).
464:(in French). Histoire & Collections. pp. 17–19.
282:(PFL I) ), the original Liège forts constituting PFL II.
512:
Fort Eben Emael: The Key to Hitler's
Victory in the West
437:
Fortress Europe: European Fortifications of World War II
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fortification located just to the east of the town of
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310:fortifications, which were based on the dispersed
389:The surviving 75 mm gun turret at Block B.IV
249:. The fort was built in the 1930s as part of the
462:Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 1
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647:"Battice - Battice - Fuasse coupole 120"
722:La Position Fortifiée Liègeois (P.F.L.)
691:(in French). fortiff.be. Archived from
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78:
294:Map of the Fortified Position of Liège
628:"Battice - Battice - Tourelle B Nord"
487:The Forts of the Meuse in World War I
236:
7:
439:. Combined Publishing. p. 103.
259:German surprise attack on Eben-Emael
204:Reinforced concrete, deep excavation
14:
341:Blocks B.II, B.III, B.V and B.VII
77:
70:
57:
960:World War II museums in Belgium
779:Index des fortifications belges
689:Index des fortifications belges
670:Index des fortifications belges
651:Index des fortifications belges
632:Index des fortifications belges
613:Index des fortifications belges
594:Index des fortifications belges
575:Index des fortifications belges
1:
394:suppressing fire, as well as
377:attack at 0600 the same day.
280:Position Fortifiée de Liège 1
347:Blocks A.Nord, B.IV and B.VI
269:The fort is located between
965:Fortified position of Liège
831:Fortified position of Liège
251:fortified position of Liège
38:Fortified Position of Liège
991:
514:. Osprey. pp. 10–11.
489:. Osprey. pp. 55–56.
970:Museums in Liège Province
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754:(in French). Bel-Memorial
718:"Le fort de Battice 1940"
537:"Welcome to Fort Battice"
485:Donnell, Clayton (2007).
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56:
43:
35:
26:
850:Fort d'Aubin-Neufchâteau
781:(in French). fortiff.be.
672:(in French). fortiff.be.
653:(in French). fortiff.be.
634:(in French). fortiff.be.
615:(in French). fortiff.be.
596:(in French). fortiff.be.
577:(in French). fortiff.be.
435:Kauffmann, J.E. (1999).
271:Fort d'Aubin-Neufchâteau
666:"Battice - Le sous-sol"
556:Kauffmann, pp. 109, 124
510:Dunstan, Simon (2005).
359:The fort also included
353:Blocks B.Nord and B.Sud
734:Kauffmann, pp. 116-117
609:"Battice - Le bloc VI"
590:"Battice - Le bloc IV"
390:
300:Henri Alexis Brialmont
295:
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891:Fort de Chaudfontaine
571:"Battice - Le bloc I"
388:
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273:to the north and the
748:"Commune de Battice"
238:[fɔʁdəbatis]
118:50.64684°N 5.83393°E
716:Hoet, Jean-Claude.
685:"Organigramme 1940"
150:Ministry of Defense
114: /
860:Fort de Tancrémont
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275:Fort de Tancrémont
155:Controlled by
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901:Fort de Boncelles
775:"Fort de Battice"
773:Puelinckx, Jean.
683:Puelinckx, Jean.
664:Puelinckx, Jean.
645:Puelinckx, Jean.
626:Puelinckx, Jean.
607:Puelinckx, Jean.
588:Puelinckx, Jean.
569:Puelinckx, Jean.
496:978-1-84603-114-4
218:
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213:Battle of Belgium
123:50.64684; 5.83393
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931:Fort de Pontisse
911:Fort de Hollogne
906:Fort de Flémalle
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361:counterscarp
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308:Maginot Line
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209:Battles/wars
181:Site history
163:Open to
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415:Present day
304:World War I
286:Description
121: /
97:Coordinates
954:Categories
758:25 October
699:2010-10-27
423:References
404:sally port
312:fort palmé
234:pronounced
193:April 1934
189:April 1934
106:50°38′49″N
372:Personnel
335:Block B.I
328:casemates
265:Situation
201:Materials
176:Preserved
173:Condition
109:5°50′02″E
316:ouvrages
36:Part of
400:Evegnée
381:History
302:before
247:Battice
243:Belgian
241:) is a
191: (
158:Belgium
50:Belgium
46:Battice
869:PFL II
518:
493:
468:
443:
396:Fléron
226:French
975:Herve
838:PFL I
752:Liege
186:Built
147:Owner
760:2010
516:ISBN
491:ISBN
466:ISBN
441:ISBN
398:and
220:The
137:Fort
134:Type
330:.
323:E40
168:Yes
956::
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739:^
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561:^
549:^
539:.
232:,
228::
48:,
823:e
816:t
809:v
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543:.
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474:.
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278:(
224:(
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
