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Here's the last of the reports from our recent recce trip for the Derelict Places Verdun visit in May. We found out what we needed to know for the trip then did a few explorations down in St. Mihiel and at the Maginot Line on the German border. This report covers an unusual pre-WW1 fortification known as Fort Lucey.
Fort Lucey is located some 55 miles or so south south-east of Verdun. Like Fort d'Ecrouves a few short miles further south which I reported on last week, it is yet one more link in the massive chain of fortifications built to defend France against German invasion in the immediate aftermath of the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 - 1871. This fort is quite unlike any of the Verdun forts and extremely unusual in that it is square in plan with a heavy artillery battery connected to the main fort by an underground corridor completely "out on a limb" some distance roughly north west of the main body of the fort proper. It is the only instance of a fort built in this style that we have encountered to date.
Below is an aerial shot of the fort culled from Google Earth which readily shows the square ground plan. The attached artillery battery is just visible where there are two grey dots (the remains of the turrets) at about the 11 o' clock position.
The other unusual feature of the fort is the huge Mougin 155 double artillery turret planted squarely right slap bang (if you'll pardon the pun) in the middle of the fort. To give you some idea of exactly what a Mougin turret looks like this photo - BELOW - shows German infantry posing on just such a turret after the fall of France in 1940.
Personally, we have found and visited very few Mougin turret installations anywhere and sadly this statistic was not about to change despite us managing to get into Lucey because every turret in the fort, Mougin or otherwise, has been removed or demolished leaving gaping voids in the concrete superstructure wide open to the sky. Not withstanding that sad fact this is still a pretty awesome fort to wander around and really well worth the effort.
In conjunction with the other two forts in the immediate area, Trondes and Brouly, Fort Lucey defends the towns of Lucey and Lagney; and more importantly it prevents movement along the next valley north from that which Fort d' Ecrouves defends. These valleys were extremely important tactically because they provide a natural artery funnelling any invader from the east straight on towards Paris.
The initial construction phase began on this fort on September the 1st. 1874, and it was finished on the 1st. January 1877 at an initial cost of one and three quarter million Francs, a massive sum at that time and equivalent to almost 22 MILLION Euros now.
As with all the forts of this period extensive modifications were necessary in order to keep ahead of the rapidly evolving German artillery, both in terms of their guns and their ammunition.
It does not appear that the fort was subject to any further modification during the so called "Travaux 17" programme - literally translated as "1917 works" - so common in the Verdun forts and those in the same area. During the battle of Verdun in 1916 Fort Vaux had fallen for the simple want of drinking water and as a result an urgent need was identified to provide all the forts with interconnection between fighting compartments AND a secret route in and out of the fort. In early 1917 work was therefore begun on the forts with the digging of a series of tunnels beneath the existing floors accessed by deep vertical pits and ladders or sloping tunnels with stairs. The original intention was to line these tunnels properly with reinforced concrete but sadly many did not progress much beyond the wooden pit prop and bare rock wall stage. These pit props have long since rotted away and any Travaux 17 in such condition is highly dangerous!
Our visit to the fort was extremely interesting to say the least! On a cold, snowy Sunday morning in February 2013 we began a rather hairy drive up a steep, frozen forest track in our very low slung Volvo estate. We passed several well constructed arched masonry entrances on the side of the track into what appear to be Abri Caverenes, or infantry shelters, parked up and set off on foot looking for the fort entrance. Sadly I had set off in completely the wrong direction but sooner rather than later we worked out where I had gone wrong and found ourselves approaching the moat. I won't go into how we got in but after getting our camera kit ready and waiting for our eyes to adjust to the darkness we began our exploration.
The fort interior is in remarkably good shape though sadly it has suffered somewhat at the hands of graffiti taggers. It was particularly distasteful to find evidence of right wing neo-Nazi types amongst the graf though thankfully there is little sign of any other vandalism beyond the prolific spray can moronity. It was very easy to navigate the fort with the help of Cedric and Julie's floor plan and we managed to wander out onto the top of the fort where the open walkways between the barrack blocks appear as deep rectangular pits in the carapace - see if you can spot them on the aerial photograph above. The weather was very misty at this time of day and so sadly, decent photographs of the fort exterior were very difficult to achieve.
That said we hope you enjoy what we did manage to take...
...and that's your lot for today 
Hope you enjoyed it...
L' histoire...
Fort Lucey is located some 55 miles or so south south-east of Verdun. Like Fort d'Ecrouves a few short miles further south which I reported on last week, it is yet one more link in the massive chain of fortifications built to defend France against German invasion in the immediate aftermath of the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 - 1871. This fort is quite unlike any of the Verdun forts and extremely unusual in that it is square in plan with a heavy artillery battery connected to the main fort by an underground corridor completely "out on a limb" some distance roughly north west of the main body of the fort proper. It is the only instance of a fort built in this style that we have encountered to date.
Below is an aerial shot of the fort culled from Google Earth which readily shows the square ground plan. The attached artillery battery is just visible where there are two grey dots (the remains of the turrets) at about the 11 o' clock position.
The other unusual feature of the fort is the huge Mougin 155 double artillery turret planted squarely right slap bang (if you'll pardon the pun) in the middle of the fort. To give you some idea of exactly what a Mougin turret looks like this photo - BELOW - shows German infantry posing on just such a turret after the fall of France in 1940.
Personally, we have found and visited very few Mougin turret installations anywhere and sadly this statistic was not about to change despite us managing to get into Lucey because every turret in the fort, Mougin or otherwise, has been removed or demolished leaving gaping voids in the concrete superstructure wide open to the sky. Not withstanding that sad fact this is still a pretty awesome fort to wander around and really well worth the effort.
In conjunction with the other two forts in the immediate area, Trondes and Brouly, Fort Lucey defends the towns of Lucey and Lagney; and more importantly it prevents movement along the next valley north from that which Fort d' Ecrouves defends. These valleys were extremely important tactically because they provide a natural artery funnelling any invader from the east straight on towards Paris.
The initial construction phase began on this fort on September the 1st. 1874, and it was finished on the 1st. January 1877 at an initial cost of one and three quarter million Francs, a massive sum at that time and equivalent to almost 22 MILLION Euros now.
As with all the forts of this period extensive modifications were necessary in order to keep ahead of the rapidly evolving German artillery, both in terms of their guns and their ammunition.
In 1881 the huge Mougin 155mm artillery turret was installed in the middle of the fort.
In 1890 the fort was connected into a communications grid with the adjacent forts and the command and control structure by an electric telegraph.
In 1898 a generator and a 90 cm diameter search light were installed together with a light gauge service railway.
In 1904 the moat protection caponnieres were replaced with counterscarp galleries in order to reduce their vulnerability to plunging heavy artillery rounds such as those fired by the Gamma-Gerät siege mortar.
Between 1904 and 1908 EIGHT armoured observation turrets and TWO 75mm armoured artillery turrets (Type 75 RO5) were installed.
From 1908 to 1910 the external battery armed with TWO 155 mm armoured turrets (Type 155 RO5) was built onto the fort.
From 1910 to 1914 the fort was equipped with lighting and electric ventilation powered by FIVE generators delivering 110 VAC. The reinforced concrete barrack block was also built at this time and the Mougin turret was heavily reinforced.
It does not appear that the fort was subject to any further modification during the so called "Travaux 17" programme - literally translated as "1917 works" - so common in the Verdun forts and those in the same area. During the battle of Verdun in 1916 Fort Vaux had fallen for the simple want of drinking water and as a result an urgent need was identified to provide all the forts with interconnection between fighting compartments AND a secret route in and out of the fort. In early 1917 work was therefore begun on the forts with the digging of a series of tunnels beneath the existing floors accessed by deep vertical pits and ladders or sloping tunnels with stairs. The original intention was to line these tunnels properly with reinforced concrete but sadly many did not progress much beyond the wooden pit prop and bare rock wall stage. These pit props have long since rotted away and any Travaux 17 in such condition is highly dangerous!
Our visit to Fort Lucey...
Our visit to the fort was extremely interesting to say the least! On a cold, snowy Sunday morning in February 2013 we began a rather hairy drive up a steep, frozen forest track in our very low slung Volvo estate. We passed several well constructed arched masonry entrances on the side of the track into what appear to be Abri Caverenes, or infantry shelters, parked up and set off on foot looking for the fort entrance. Sadly I had set off in completely the wrong direction but sooner rather than later we worked out where I had gone wrong and found ourselves approaching the moat. I won't go into how we got in but after getting our camera kit ready and waiting for our eyes to adjust to the darkness we began our exploration.
The fort interior is in remarkably good shape though sadly it has suffered somewhat at the hands of graffiti taggers. It was particularly distasteful to find evidence of right wing neo-Nazi types amongst the graf though thankfully there is little sign of any other vandalism beyond the prolific spray can moronity. It was very easy to navigate the fort with the help of Cedric and Julie's floor plan and we managed to wander out onto the top of the fort where the open walkways between the barrack blocks appear as deep rectangular pits in the carapace - see if you can spot them on the aerial photograph above. The weather was very misty at this time of day and so sadly, decent photographs of the fort exterior were very difficult to achieve.
That said we hope you enjoy what we did manage to take...
L' photographie...
A misty, moisty morning!
And we're out of the starting blocks
This is relatively sophisticated as French military toilet facilities go
The first of the underground bombardment proof barrack dormitories used in war time.
A tunnel leads up to the above ground masonry built peace time barrack blocks.
There are several pairs of peace time barracks blocks facing each other and each pair is then connected by an earth covered tunnel to the next pair.
We have gone down underground again and beneath the moat into the counterscarp wall of the fort.
here a gallery opens onto the moat to allow the defenders to shoot at anyone attacking through that area.
Opening off the same corridor is the first of the 75mm double turret installations. sadly the turret is long gone leaving just the reinforced concrete collar.
We are back top sides again now in the next peace time barrack block group.
The courtyards are rapidly becoming overgrown despite the army clearing them about ten years ago.
TJ is looking into one of the magazines.
These windows into the magazine allowed the interior to be illuminated by Kerosene lamps placed on the window ledge outside.
Inside the magazine.
Moving on now, this was the boulangerie (bakery).
All that remains of one of the ovens.
Yet another turret collar where an artillery turret once stood.
Topsides again but on the ramparts now. The courtyards by the masonry barrack blocks are clear to see despite the mist.
This huge hole in the ground was where the Mougin double 155mm artillery turret once stood.
Back inside again now. The green line on the wall probably denotes the fact that this area was bombardment proof.
In the Verdun forts there is a similar line in such areas but it is always red.
A loophole for a rifleman to shoot out into the moat.
Up the ladder was originally an armoured observation cupola but it has been demolished.
Interestingly barbed wire screw pickets have fallen in from the surface.
The remains of another turret installation.
...and the arty farty picture of the trip
The generator beds are very obvious here in the fort's usine (generator room).
Cast iron columns helped to reinforce the roof of the connecting tunnels.
Here one has shattered, presumably from a heavy artillery round impact above.
Entering the gorge caponniere. This area of the fort sticks out into the ditch of the moat by the main entrance and protects it on three sides.
All the galleries in the caponierre are mutually supporting giving interlocking fields of fire.
This firing point affords an infantryman a clear shot at anyone walking along the top of the counterscarp wall.
An oculus in the domed roof. These usually mean there was an optical signalling station located here.
Heading back towards the war time entrance now.
This shot should give you an idea of what this area looked like when the lights were on.
With the mist lifting we headed off around the moat to find the gorge caponniere.
...and here it is.
On our way back down off the top of the hill we stopped to have a look in these Abri Cavernes - reinforced infantry shelters.
Inside the shelter stairs lead down to a second room. It is not any deeper underground but has been built further down the slope of the hill.
...and sadly it has become the dumping ground for joyriders and the playground of the masses of spray-paint moronity
A misty, moisty morning!
And we're out of the starting blocks
This is relatively sophisticated as French military toilet facilities go
The first of the underground bombardment proof barrack dormitories used in war time.
A tunnel leads up to the above ground masonry built peace time barrack blocks.
There are several pairs of peace time barracks blocks facing each other and each pair is then connected by an earth covered tunnel to the next pair.
We have gone down underground again and beneath the moat into the counterscarp wall of the fort.
here a gallery opens onto the moat to allow the defenders to shoot at anyone attacking through that area.
Opening off the same corridor is the first of the 75mm double turret installations. sadly the turret is long gone leaving just the reinforced concrete collar.
We are back top sides again now in the next peace time barrack block group.
The courtyards are rapidly becoming overgrown despite the army clearing them about ten years ago.
TJ is looking into one of the magazines.
These windows into the magazine allowed the interior to be illuminated by Kerosene lamps placed on the window ledge outside.
Inside the magazine.
Moving on now, this was the boulangerie (bakery).
All that remains of one of the ovens.
Yet another turret collar where an artillery turret once stood.
Topsides again but on the ramparts now. The courtyards by the masonry barrack blocks are clear to see despite the mist.
This huge hole in the ground was where the Mougin double 155mm artillery turret once stood.
Back inside again now. The green line on the wall probably denotes the fact that this area was bombardment proof.
In the Verdun forts there is a similar line in such areas but it is always red.
A loophole for a rifleman to shoot out into the moat.
Up the ladder was originally an armoured observation cupola but it has been demolished.
Interestingly barbed wire screw pickets have fallen in from the surface.
The remains of another turret installation.
...and the arty farty picture of the trip
The generator beds are very obvious here in the fort's usine (generator room).
Cast iron columns helped to reinforce the roof of the connecting tunnels.
Here one has shattered, presumably from a heavy artillery round impact above.
Entering the gorge caponniere. This area of the fort sticks out into the ditch of the moat by the main entrance and protects it on three sides.
All the galleries in the caponierre are mutually supporting giving interlocking fields of fire.
This firing point affords an infantryman a clear shot at anyone walking along the top of the counterscarp wall.
An oculus in the domed roof. These usually mean there was an optical signalling station located here.
Heading back towards the war time entrance now.
This shot should give you an idea of what this area looked like when the lights were on.
With the mist lifting we headed off around the moat to find the gorge caponniere.
...and here it is.
On our way back down off the top of the hill we stopped to have a look in these Abri Cavernes - reinforced infantry shelters.
Inside the shelter stairs lead down to a second room. It is not any deeper underground but has been built further down the slope of the hill.
...and sadly it has become the dumping ground for joyriders and the playground of the masses of spray-paint moronity
...and that's your lot for today Hope you enjoyed it...
