Place de Toul

Situation of the Place

The place was organized in 1874 and the following years with detached forts built around the old enclosure Vauban.

The purpose of this old enclosure, located on left bank of the Moselle, at the western top of the loop formed by this river between Bridge-Saint-Vincent and Frouard, was to control the communications between Paris and Strasbourg, which converge towards this place to cross the threshold of Foug and to join the valley of the Meuse with Pagny.

Summary description

The first works raised in 1874 constitutes a pentagon whose tops are consisted the Fort Saint-Michel, the Redoute de Dommartin, the Fort of Tillot, the Fort of Domgermain and the Fort of Écrouves. Built in the objective to answer an imminent danger, one adds to it the Redoute of Justice, kind of sentinel advanced in the direction of perforated of Foug. One extends a few years later the line of defense to the south by building the Fort of Blénod and to north the Fort of Lucey connected to the position of Ecrouves by a defensive station which will become the Fort of Bruley. In the east, the Fort of Villey-the-Dryness constitutes projecting, connected to Dommartin by the Redoute de Chaudeney One supplements the device by the Fort of Gondreville finished in 1887 and which reinforces the head with bridge on the Moselle.

After 1885 and the appearance of the mélinite one extends the defensive perimeter towards the North-East by the construction of small works to triangular profile. The Work of Bouvron, the Work of Francheville, the work of Ropage, the Ouvrage Is Old man-Canton and works it of Villey-Saint-Etienne constitute the new rampart built as from 1888. One also builds advanced works to reinforce the faces is and southern. The Work of Fontenoy, the Work Top of the Fields and the Ouvrage of Fays constitute a line of outposts. One also at that time builds the work of Chanot (future Fort of Chanot), the work of Bicqueley, the work of Gye, the work of charms.

In 1899, the constitution of the high commission of the fortified towns definitively fixes the layout of the principal line of defense. the layout takes again the principal fulcrums existing but adds new works and corrects the layout. One adds in the North-East the Ouvrage of the Bell, the Ouvrage of Corrosive the and the Fort of the Old man-Canton. The Extremely of Lucey and its additional battery (which becomes the Fort of Trondes) become an external position. One establishes the Fort of Chanot and the Fort of Tillot. One also undertook the reinforcement of all the forts except fears of Dommartin.

The program of 1900 is supplemented by a program into 1908 which includes/understands in addition to the evoked reinforcements, the construction of various shelters, batteries armoured, batteries with open sky, roads, etc, as well as deforestations. The line of defense becomes a principal zone of defense marked out by the higher forts indicated around whose centers of resistance are organized. Ahead, a certain number of advanced positions will be organized on natural fulcrums offering of the favorable conditions to defense. Behind, the core is consisted the Fort Saint-Michel, the village of Dommartin, the barracks of the plate of Justice and the Barine Coast.

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