Brancourt-Stellung (AOK 7)

[Tom Oliviers]

Hello

After we went four times to this stellung, we think we found most bunkers (especially those in the front line, which is still for 100% intact over a distance of 5km in bird-view. we walked all trenches and found in total 54 remaining structures.

I've put them all in high resolution on my flickr-account:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/144472810@N08/collections/72157721446697336/

there are many special bunkertypes in this stellung, here a list of what we found:

1x befehlstelle

4x beobachtungsstände (deckenplatte or turmdecke)

6x JUBEL-stände, of which one with remaining beobachtungsschnecke and one once equiped whith a 5-eckige beobachtungsturm

2x Geschützstände (OB with wellblech in the flank)

2x 5,3cm Fahrpanzer emplacements

1x zwischenraumstreiche for 2x revolverkanone (not proved)

4x MG-stände (turm)

5x double MG-stände with beobachtungsturm in the middle

1x twin MG-stand complex, two seperate MG-bunkers connected with a large tunnel, also one of the bunkers have an observationpost

2x single MG-stände

5x unterstände

6x wellblechs

1x large untertreteraum

7x fuchslocher (dugouts)

1x tunnelcomplex (HQu, westfalen-Höhle)

1x freiburger-ecke, a trench system carved out in the rocks on the top of a hill/mountain

1x brücke (old bridge, not shure ww1, but there is a ww2 fresco written on the wall)

1x baustoff-depot, where some piles of concrete bags are left in the woods

Please note, some parts of this magnificent stellung are in private property, last time we where "busted" (we didnt know of the private status of that forest), and the hunters told us that we where lucky, in bad cases it could cost us 147€ fine. We could convince them with my measurements and notes that we only had interest in the bunkers on the field

in addition a measured plan of a MG-turm which we found in this stellung.

Best Regards
Tom Oliviers, Frontratten Antwerpen (ex Bunkerfreaks Antwerpen)

a quick overview of the location of this brancourt-stellung. on the top it connects to the siegfriedstellung towards saint gobain, below it ends on the bank of the river aisne and ailette. the bunkers in Pinon are allready another stellung which will investigated lateron.

In the back, near the thüringer-höhle, are many kilometers remaining with complex trench-systems, which are part of the Siegfried-II-stellung, also those we investigate later.

another map with all the trenches we investigated in the last half year. Here you see the siegfriedstellung which converts into Brancourt-stellung near prémontré.

another sketch, not measured but this is the situation of what we found in the woods (without artillery-piece offcourse  )

another sketch of one of the observationposts

Edited 30 January , 2023 by Tom Oliviers

[Tom Oliviers]

a sketch of a JUBEL-stand (Jnfanterie Unterstand und Beobachtung Erste Linie) with a 5-eckige beobachtungsturm

a double MG-stand with observation in the middle, thisone is special because it has a huge building-mistake in the leftern-flank of the bunker.

[Tom Oliviers]

the zwischenraumstreiche for (perhaps) two revolverkanone

wellblech with fuchsloch-entrance underground

[Tom Oliviers]

the situation with the two fahrpanzer-emplacements, all structures where measured in detail on the terrain

a double observationpost with deckenplatte, the large room in the middle could be a commanding-post

on the plan i drew MG-toren, which means MG-tower in flemish, but this is wrong

Edited 30 January , 2023 by Tom Oliviers

[Howard]

There are some good trench maps of that area on TrenchMapper, e.g. Id: m_000791 but sadly not a German one.

Howard

[Tom Oliviers]

thanks howard

I cannot find out how to open trenchmapper correctly, every time its a real struggle, the eg ID doesnt give any results. I think im doing it completely wrong, any help is welcome

Tom

[Howard]

2 hours ago, Tom Oliviers said:

thanks howard

I cannot find out how to open trenchmapper correctly, every time its a real struggle, the eg ID doesnt give any results. I think im doing it completely wrong, any help is welcome

Tom

There are two versions of TrenchMapper, one for the public and one for WFA members. In look and usage they are identical except for the zoom levels available.

In either version, when it opens with the usual Ypres map, right click and you should get the menu here. Choose Map id jump and enter m_000791 but make sure there are no trailing spaces, commas etc. That should give you this map:-

Name: Coucy
Sheet: 70D SW
Scale: 1:20,000
Edition: 1A Local Mar 1918
Trenches corrected to 9/1/1918. Printed 9/01/1918
Id: m_000791

I hope it works!

In the left hand panel is the red number 74 indicating 74 maps for that area, use the drop down to choose one. For other tools, right click and choose the tool. A useful one is to add a marker.

In the Help section there some How-To-Videos. Have a look at those, if there is one you feel should be there, lets us know.

Howard