Ouvrage Bois-Karre
Ouvrage of the Maginot Line
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Ouvrage Bois-Karre is located in the Fortified Sector of Thionville of the Maginot Line, facing the France - Luxembourg border. The petit ouvrage is situated in the Cattenom Forest between the gros ouvrages Soetrich and Kobenbusch, just south of Boust. It is unusual for a Maginot fortification in its construction as a single blockhouse, with no underground gallery system or remotely located entries. Bois-Karre has been preserved and is maintained as a museum.
| Ouvrage Bois-Karre | |
|---|---|
| Part of Maginot Line | |
| Northeast France | |
Machine gun turret — note two GFM cloches to the rear | |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by | France |
Open to the public | Yes |
| Condition | Preserved |
| Location | |
  Ouvrage Bois-Karre Location within France | |
| Coordinates | 49.429822°N 6.204173°E |
| Site history | |
| Built by | CORF |
| Materials | Concrete, steel, deep excavation |
| Battles/wars | Battle of France, Lorraine Campaign |
Design and construction
Bois-Karre was surveyed by CORF (Commission d'Organisation des Régions Fortifiées), the Maginot Line's design and construction agency, in 1930. Work by the contractor Degaine-Dubois began in 1931,[1] and the position became operational in 1935,[2] at a cost of 10 million francs.[3][4]
Bois-Karre was planned as an anchor point for a fortified line of retreat from the Cattenom salient formed by Kobenbusch and Oberheid. A firing chamber is arranged to cover the reinforcing line (bretelle de Cattenom), which was to be anchored at its other end by Block 2 of Ouvrage Galgenberg. The reinforcing line was never built.[5]
Description
The single two-level combat block comprises two firing chambers and one machine gun turret. The west firing chamber was armed with a machine gun embrasure and a machine gun/47 mm anti-tank gun embrasure (JM/AC47). The east firing chamber was equipped with two JM/AC47 embrasures and a JM embrasure. Three automatic rifle cloches (GFM) on the surface provided spotting for ouvrage Métrich, along with a machine gun turret.[1][6] The integral usine was equipped with two 40 horsepower (30 kW) Renault engines.
Several casemates, observatories and infantry shelters are located around Bois-Karre, including
- Casemate de Basse-Parthe Ouest: Single classmate flanking to the west with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure and one GFM cloche.
- Casemate de Basse-Parthe Est: Single classmate flanking to the east with one JM/AC37 embrasure, one JM embrasure and one GFM cloche.
- Abri du Bois-Karre: Surface shelter for one infantry section, with two GFM cloches.
- Abri du Rippert: Subsurface shelter for two infantry sections and the quarter command post, two GFM cloches.
- Abri du Bois-de-Cattenom: Surface shelter for one infantry section, two GFM cloches.
None of these are connected to the ouvrage or to each other. All were built by CORF.[1] The Casernement de Cattenom provided peacetime above-ground barracks and support services to Bois-Karre and other ouvrages in the area.[7]
Manning
The garrison comprised 91 men and two officers of the 168th Fortress Infantry Regiment under Sub-Lieutenant Boulay.[1]
History
- See Fortified Sector of Thionville for a broader discussion of the events of 1940 in the Thionville sector of the Maginot Line.
