French defences

[Guest]

Hello,

I would like to know if the French army built or used pillboxes or battlefield defences similar to the British?, I have an excellent book on pillboxes, but I can not see any French pillboxes, I find few photographs on Google of French army trench or strongpoint defences, I understand that the French did not really built either defences or trenches as well as the allies or the Germans?.

[mebu]

Yes they did. A big subject.....best first step is to visit theFrench Forum pages 14-18, there have been many posts and photos there.

Mebu

[Cnock]

URL=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/35/92190385.jpg/][/url]

French WWI bunker at De Panne (Belgium)

Cnock

URL=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/12/woesten.jpg/][/url]

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

entrance French WWI bunker at Woesten

Cnock

[Guest]

Yes they did. A big subject.....best first step is to visit theFrench Forum pages 14-18, there have been many posts and photos there.

Mebu

Thank you , where exactly is this forum?, url?

[mebu]

If you google forum pages 14-18 you should find it. This forum has much discussion on such matters.

Would send link but not sure how to.

As Cnock has shown, there are also many in Belgium. These are listed by the Flemish authority, if you google

inventaris.onroerenderfgoed.be you will find it (inDutch)

The French built many, many, and quite a few still exist.

Hope this helps, Peter

[tim_oz]

Pages 14-18 are here http://pages14-18.mesdiscussions.net/ if you don't speak French the Googley translator makes it quite readable.

Pillboxs and bunkers are essentially defensive structures (no point wasting resources if you intend to advance and leave them behind) which is why the British really only started building concrete ones in any number in 1917/1918 in preparation for the German offensives that were expected. In the French sectors, particularly Lorraine and the Vosges where both sides adopted a defensive position there are a number of French bunkers still around from 1916 onwards, unfortunately the otherwise excellent Pillboxes of the Western Front does not go so far south.

Tim B