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73-460: The concrete ring was secretly constructed in 1938-1939 as a "strategically important" supply route for construction of Nazi Germany's Westwall fortifications, at total cost of about 3.3 million Reichsmark . As a military project, it was not shown on road maps. After minor use early in World War II, the ring was disused, but survived the war largely intact. Immediately after the war, parts of

146-477: A 32 km (20 miles) line near Saarbrücken against weak German opposition. The assault was to have been carried out by roughly 40 divisions, including one armoured , three mechanised divisions, 78  artillery regiments and 40 tank battalions . The French Army had advanced to a depth of 8 km (5.0 miles) and captured about 20 villages evacuated by the German army, without any resistance. But

219-688: A German military screen, not a real defense." According to General Siegfried Westphal , if the French had attacked in force in September 1939, the German army "could only have held out for one or two weeks." The Saar Offensive on 7 September was the one limited land action by the Allies during the Phoney War. The French attacked the Saarland , which was defended by the German 1st Army . The assault, whose strategic purpose

292-484: A ban on bombing raids which might endanger civilians, Britain and France agreed at once, and Germany agreed two weeks later. The RAF therefore conducted a large number of combined reconnaissance and propaganda leaflet flights over Germany. These operations were jokingly termed "pamphlet raids" or "Confetti War" in the British press. On 10 May 1940, eight months after the outbreak of war, German troops marched into Belgium ,

365-516: A bomb has fallen on a Rhineland factory. Is that war? they ask. During the September Campaign in Poland, the British government under Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain still hoped to persuade Germany to agree to peace. Although London hospitals prepared for 300,000 casualties in the first week of the war (Britain and France did not realise that Germany used 90% of its frontline aircraft in

438-518: A bombing raid over the Wilhelmshaven port on the 4th of September, though this proved costly. There were occasional dogfights between fighter planes, and the RAF dropped propaganda leaflets on Germany. The U.S. foreign correspondent William Shirer was assigned to Berlin at the onset of World War II. In his diary entries on 9 and 10 September 1939, he wrote about the puzzlement felt by many: Apparently

511-568: A consequence of its attack on Finland, the Soviet Union was expelled from the League of Nations , and a proposed Franco-British expedition to northern Scandinavia was debated. However, the British forces that were assembled to aid Finland were not dispatched in time before the Winter War ended. Instead, they were sent to Norway to help in its campaign against Germany. On 20 March, shortly after

584-447: A defensive posture. This would allow time for Britain and France to build up their own military resources and eventually attain economic and naval superiority over Germany. To this end, Britain initially committed to sending two divisions to France, and two more eleven months later. The Polish Army's plan for defense, Plan West , assumed the Allies would quickly undertake a significant Western Front offensive that would provide relief to

657-457: A heated debate in the House of Commons during which Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was under constant attack. A nominal vote of confidence in his government was won by 281 to 200, but many of Chamberlain's supporters had voted against him while others had abstained. Chamberlain found it impossible to continue to lead a National Government or to form a new coalition government with himself as

730-541: A non-political background. Throughout the Phoney War, most of the military clashes, such as the Battle of the Atlantic , occurred at sea. Among the notable incidents were: British war planning had called for a "knockout blow" by strategic bombing of German industry with the RAF's substantial Bomber Command . However, there was considerable apprehension about German retaliation, and when President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed

803-470: A single foundation. There are two typical sorts of barrier: Type 1938 with four rows of teeth getting higher toward the back, and Type 1939 with five rows of such teeth. Many other irregular lines of teeth were also built. Another design of tank obstacle, known as the Czech hedgehog , was made by welding together several bars of steel in such a way that any tank rolling over it would get stuck and possibly damaged. If

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876-652: A time – worked on the Siegfried Line. Transport of materials and workers from all across Germany was managed by the Deutsche Reichsbahn railway company, which took advantage of the well-developed strategic railway lines built on Germany's western border in World War I . Working conditions were highly dangerous. For example, the most primitive means had to be used to handle and assemble extremely heavy armour plating, weighing up to 60 tonnes (66 short tons ). Life on

949-531: A week they have been formally at war with Germany. But has it been war? they ask. The British, it is true, sent over twenty-five planes to bomb Wilhelmshaven. But if it is war, why only twenty-five? And if it is war, why only a few leaflets over the Rhineland ? The industrial heart of Germany lies along the Rhine close to France. From there come most of the munitions that are blowing up Poland with such deadly effect. Yet not

1022-531: The Sitzkrieg ("the sitting war": a word play on blitzkrieg created by the British press). In French, it is referred to as the drôle de guerre ("funny" or "strange" war). In March 1939, Britain and France formalized plans for how they would conduct war against Nazi Germany. Knowing their enemy would be more prepared and have land and air superiority, the Allies' strategy was to fight off any specific German aggressive actions, but to essentially maintain

1095-557: The Battle of Hürtgen Forest . The battle in the heavily forested area claimed the lives of 24,000 American soldiers, along with 9,000 so-called non-battle casualties — those evacuated because of fatigue, exposure, accidents and disease. The German death toll is not documented. After the Battle of Hürtgen Forest, the Battle of the Bulge began, a last-ditch attempt by the Germans to reverse the course of

1168-591: The First World War . The Limes programme began in 1938 following an order by Hitler to strengthen fortifications on the western German border. Limes refers to the former borders of the Roman Empire ; the cover story for the programme was that it was an archaeological study. Its Type 10 bunkers were more strongly constructed than the earlier border fortifications. These had 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) thick ceilings and walls. A total of 3,471 were built along

1241-727: The German invasion of Denmark and Norway in April 1940. This caused the Allied troops previously earmarked for Finland to be redirected to Norway. Fighting there continued until June, when the Allies evacuated, ceding Norway to Germany in response to the German invasion of France. On the Axis side during the Phoney period, Nazi Germany initiated attacks at sea in the autumn of 1939 and winter of 1940 against British aircraft carriers and destroyers, sinking several, including

1314-555: The Moscow Peace Treaty concluded the Winter War, Édouard Daladier resigned as Prime Minister of France, in part due to his failure to come to Finland's defense. In February 1940, Norway became a focus of attention as evidenced by the Altmark Incident . The Allies openly discussed a possible expedition to northern Scandinavia (even though they had not received a request or consent from the neutral Scandinavian countries) and

1387-669: The Saar and Hunsrück . The British 21st Army Group, which included US formations, also attacked the Siegfried Line. The resulting fighting brought total US losses to approximately 68,000. In addition, the First Army incurred over 50,000 non-battle casualties and the Ninth Army over 20,000. That brought the overall cost of the Siegfried Line Campaign, in US personnel, close to 140,000. During

1460-554: The Second World War changed several times during the late 1930s. It came to be known as the "Westwall", but in English it was referred to as the "Siegfried Line" or, sometimes, the "West Wall". Various German names reflected different areas of construction: The programmes were given the highest priority, putting a heavy demand on the available resources. The origin of the name "Westwall" is unknown, but it appeared in popular use from

1533-573: The Siegfried Line , which was their fortified defensive line along the French border. On 7 September, the French commenced the limited Saar Offensive , but withdrew when their artillery could not penetrate German defenses. A further assault was planned for 20 September, but on 17 September, following the USSR's invasion of Poland, the assault was called off. In the air, the Royal Air Force (RAF) launched

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1606-637: The Soviet Union which was Germany's primary oil supplier. By April 1940, the execution of the Norway plan was considered, by itself, inadequate to stop the German Wehrmacht . The quiet of the Phoney War was punctuated by a few isolated Allied actions. The French invasion of Germany 's Saar district on 7 September was allegedly intended to assist Poland by diverting German troops from the Polish Front. But

1679-621: The Soviet Union 's assault on Finland on 30 November 1939. Public opinion, particularly in France and Britain, quickly sided with Finland and demanded action from their governments in support of "the brave Finns" against the much larger Soviet aggressors. The public believed that effective defense of the Finns was more achievable than what had been provided for the Poles in the September Campaign. As

1752-639: The Wehrmacht to withdraw at least six divisions from Poland. The following day, the commander of the French Military Mission to Poland, General Louis Faury , told the Polish Chief of Staff —General Wacław Stachiewicz —that the major offensive on the Western Front planned from 17 to 20 September had to be postponed. At the same time, French divisions were ordered to withdraw to their barracks along

1825-424: The French opted to fight a defensive war, forcing the Germans to come to them. General Maurice Gamelin ordered his troops to stop no closer than 1 km (0.62 miles) from German positions along the Siegfried Line. Poland was not notified of this decision. Instead, Gamelin incorrectly informed Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły that half of his divisions were in contact with the enemy and that French advances had forced

1898-554: The Germans immediately declared a counter-blockade, while the Soviet Union helped Germany with supplies bypassing the blockade . After World War II, it was discovered that Nazi Germany's armed forces were vulnerable throughout the September Campaign. They had not yet reached full fighting strength and might have succumbed to a determined opponent, or at least suffered serious damage. At the Nuremberg trials , German military commander Alfred Jodl said that "if we did not collapse already in

1971-463: The Limes Programme defence line. The Western Air Defence Zone ( Luftverteidigungszone West or LVZ West ) continued parallel to the two other lines toward the east and consisted mainly of concrete flak foundations. Scattered MG 42 and MG 34 emplacements added additional defence against both air and land targets. Flak turrets were designed to force enemy planes to fly higher, thus decreasing

2044-462: The Limes programme: Type 107 double MG casemates with concrete walls up to 3.5 m (11 ft) thick. One difference was that there were no embrasures at the front, only at the sides of the bunkers. Embrasures were only built at the front in special cases and were then protected with heavy metal doors. This construction phase included the towns of Aachen and Saarbrücken , which were initially west of

2117-569: The Maginot Line. This quick cessation of fighting by the French contributed to the "Phoney War" characterization. In the war's early months, antagonism between the British and German populations was not as bitter as it would later become. British pilots mapped the Siegfried Line while German troops waved at them. On 30 April 1940 when a German Heinkel He 111 bomber crashed at Clacton-on-Sea in Essex —killing its crew and injuring 160 people on

2190-582: The Polish forces in the East. However, the Poles' assumption was proven wrong by the passivity of the Phoney War. Nazi Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 marked the beginning of World War II. Within 48 hours, in fulfillment of their treaty obligations to Poland, the United Kingdom and France declared war on Germany. While most of the German army was engaged in Poland, a much smaller German force manned

2263-457: The Polish invasion), Germany did not launch the expected full-scale air bombardment of British cities. Combatants feared massive retaliation for attacking civilian targets. German pilots who bombed Scottish naval bases said they would have been court-martialed and executed if they bombed civilians. But both sides found that attacks on military targets, such as the British attack on Wilhelmshaven, could lead to high losses of aircraft. In contrast to

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2336-845: The Siegfried Line was the subject of a popular song: " We're Going to Hang out the Washing on the Siegfried Line ". A French version by Ray Ventura ( "On ira pendre notre linge sur la ligne Siegfried" ) met a great success during the Phoney War ( Drôle de guerre ). When asked about the Siegfried Line, General George S. Patton reportedly said "Fixed fortifications are monuments to man's stupidity." Phoney War Asia-Pacific Mediterranean and Middle East Other campaigns Coups Luxembourg The Netherlands Belgium France Britain 1941–1943 1944–1945 Germany Strategic campaigns The Phoney War ( French : Drôle de guerre ; German : Sitzkrieg )

2409-711: The South African conflict. Credit for coining "Phoney War" is generally given to U.S. Senator William Borah who, commenting in September ;1939 on the inactivity on the Western Front , said: "There is something phoney about this war." "Phoney War" customarily appears using the British spelling (with an 'e') even in North America, rather than adopt the American spelling, "Phony", although some American sources do not follow

2482-599: The Western Allies did not conduct major military actions during the Phoney War, they did implement economic warfare , especially a naval blockade of Germany , and they shut down German surface raiders . They meanwhile formulated elaborate plans for large-scale operations designed to cripple the German war effort. The plans included opening an Anglo-French front in the Balkans, invading Norway to seize control of Germany's main source of iron ore , and imposing an embargo against

2555-650: The accuracy of their bombing. These towers were protected at close range by bunkers from the Limes and Aachen-Saar programmes. The Geldern Emplacement lengthened the Siegfried Line northwards as far as Kleve on the Rhine and was built after the start of the Second World War. The Siegfried Line originally ended in the north near Brüggen in the Viersen district. The primary constructions were unarmed dugouts, but their extremely strong concrete design afforded excellent protection to

2628-513: The area between the French border and the German lines, and then to probe the German defenses. On the 15th day of the mobilization, the French Army was to start an all-out assault on Germany. The offensive in the Rhine river valley area began on 7 September. Since the Wehrmacht was occupied in the attack on Poland, the French soldiers enjoyed a decisive numerical advantage along their border with Germany. Eleven French divisions advanced along

2701-462: The border with the Netherlands , along the western border of Nazi Germany , to the town of Weil am Rhein on the border with Switzerland. The line featured more than 18,000 bunkers , tunnels and tank traps . From September 1944 to March 1945, the Siegfried Line was subjected to a large-scale Allied offensive . The official German name for the defensive line construction program before and during

2774-537: The building site and after work was monotonous, and many people gave up and left. Most workers received the West Wall Medal for their service. German propaganda, both at home and abroad, repeatedly portrayed the Westwall during its construction as an unbreachable bulwark. At the start of the war, the opposing troops remained behind their own defence lines. As a morale booster for British troops marching off to France,

2847-678: The carrier HMS  Courageous . Aerial combat began in October 1939 when the Luftwaffe launched air raids on British warships. There were minor bombing raids and reconnaissance flights on both sides. Fascist Italy was not involved militarily in the European war at this time. With the German invasion of France and the Low Countries on 10 May 1940, and the ascension of Winston Churchill to British Prime Minister in that same month along with

2920-532: The contour of the land allowed it, water-filled ditches were dug instead of tank traps. Examples of this kind of defence are those north of Aachen near Geilenkirchen . The early fortifications were mostly built by private firms, but the private sector was unable to provide the number of workers needed for the programmes that followed; this gap was filled by the Todt Organisation . With this organisation's help, huge numbers of forced labourers – up to 500,000 at

2993-653: The countryside and soon became completely unfit for defense. The bunkers were used for storage instead. With the D-Day landings in Normandy on 6 June 1944, war in the West broke out once more. On 24 August 1944, Hitler gave a directive for renewed construction on the Siegfried Line. 20,000 forced labourers and members of the Reichsarbeitsdienst (Reich Labour Service), most of whom were 14 to 16-year-old boys, attempted to re-equip

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3066-405: The entire length of the Siegfried Line. They featured a central room or shelter for 10–12 men with a stepped embrasure facing backwards and a combat section 50 cm (20 in) higher. This elevated section had embrasures at the front and sides for machine guns. More embrasures were provided for riflemen , and the entire structure was constructed so as to be safe against poison gas . Heating

3139-458: The exit of the Roermonder Kurve at nearly 200 km/h (120 mph),, killing 13 spectators and injuring another 42. Although the actual event was not stopped to avert panic in the crowds, racing was subsequently banned from the ring by the government, after a total of five competitions attended by an estimated 300,000 people. Subsequently, a southern section of the road was removed, while

3212-539: The first clashes took place on the Siegfried Line. The section of the line where most fighting took place was the Hürtgenwald (Hürtgen Forest) area in the Eifel , 20 km (12 mi) south-east of Aachen. The Aachen Gap was the logical route into Germany's Rhineland and its main industrial area, so it was where the Germans concentrated their defence. The Americans committed an estimated 120,000 troops plus reinforcements to

3285-516: The forest was "private property" and could not be bombed; neither could weapons factories, as the Germans might do the same to England. In 1939, some officers of the British Expeditionary Force who were stationed in France tried to set up recreational hunting to pass the time. They imported packs of foxhounds and beagles, but were thwarted by French authorities who refused to make the countryside available. The Winter War started with

3358-459: The front. Sleeping accommodations were hammocks. In exposed positions, similar small bunkers were erected with small round armoured "lookout" sections on the roofs. The programme was carried out by the Border Watch ( Grenzwacht ), a small military troop activated in the Rhineland immediately after the region was re-militarised by Germany from 1936 onwards, after having been de-militarised following

3431-560: The ground—the German crew members were laid to rest in the local cemetery with RAF support. Wreaths with messages of sympathy were displayed on the coffins. When British Member of Parliament (MP) Leopold Amery suggested to Kingsley Wood , the Secretary of State for Air , that the Black Forest should be bombed with incendiaries to burn its ammunition dumps, Wood amazed the MP by responding that

3504-444: The half-hearted Saar operation fizzled out within days and France withdrew. In November 1939, the Soviets attacked Finland in the Winter War , eliciting much debate in France and Britain about mounting an offensive to help Finland. However, the necessary forces for the offensive weren't assembled until after the Winter War concluded in March. The Allied discussions about a Scandinavian campaign triggered concern in Germany and resulted in

3577-415: The half-hearted offensive was halted after France seized the Warndt Forest, 7.8 km (3.0 sq mi) of heavily mined German territory. The Saar Offensive did not result in the diversion of any German troops from the Polish Front. On 12 September, the Anglo-French Supreme War Council gathered for the first time at Abbeville . It decided all offensive actions were to be halted immediately as

3650-432: The lack of hostilities on land between the Allies and Germany, the fighting on the seas was real. On 3 September, the British liner SS  Athenia was torpedoed off the Hebrides with the loss of 112 lives in what was to be the start of the lengthy Battle of the Atlantic . On 4 September, the Allies announced a blockade of Germany to prevent her importing food and raw materials to sustain her war effort;

3723-498: The late 1940s, the ring was used for auto and motorcycle racing. The all-time lap record was set in September 1949 by Bavarian Georg "Schorsch" Meier on a supercharged BMW 500 motorbike at 216 km/h (134 mph), and in September 1951 Toni Ulmen set the all-time record for cars, driving his Veritas 2000 RS to 212 km/h (132 mph). On August 31, 1952, for reasons never completely explained, Berliner Helmut Niedermayr crashed his Formula Two Reif/Veritas-Meteor at

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3796-410: The leader. So on 10 May, Chamberlain resigned the premiership but retained the leadership of the Conservative Party. Winston Churchill , who had been a consistent opponent of Chamberlain's policy of appeasement , became Chamberlain's successor. Churchill formed a new coalition government that included members of the Conservatives , Labour and the Liberal Party , as well as several ministers from

3869-460: The line for defensive purposes. Local people were also called in to carry out work, mostly building anti-tank ditches. Even during construction, it was becoming clear that the bunkers could not withstand newly developed armour-piercing weapons. At the same time as the reactivation of the Siegfried Line, small concrete " Tobruks " were built along the borders of the occupied area. Those bunkers were mostly dugouts for single soldiers. In August 1944,

3942-423: The massive Dunkirk evacuation , the Phoney War ended and the real war began. "Bore War" was the initial term used by the British. It was likely a pun on the Boer War fought four decades earlier in South Africa . Eventually, the Americanism "Phoney War" became the favoured phrase on both sides of the Atlantic. This term gained currency in the British Empire and Commonwealth in large part to avoid confusion with

4015-533: The middle of 1939. There is a record of Hitler sending an Order of the Day to soldiers and workers at the "Westwall" on 20 May 1939. At the start of World War II, the Siegfried Line had serious weaknesses. After the war, German General Alfred Jodl said that it had been "little better than a building site in 1939" and, when Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt inspected the line, the weak construction and inadequate weapons caused him to laugh. Despite France's declaration of war against Germany in September 1939, there

4088-405: The month, southern parts of Norway were in German hands. The fighting continued in the north until the Allies evacuated in early June in response to the German invasion of France ; the Norwegian forces in mainland Norway laid down their arms at midnight on 9 June. The debacle of the Allied campaign in Norway , which was actually an offshoot of the never-realised plans to aid Finland, forced

4161-743: The occupants. For camouflage they were often built near farms. Standard construction elements such as large Regelbau bunkers, smaller concrete " pillboxes ", and " dragon's teeth " anti-tank obstacles were built as part of each construction phase, sometimes by the thousands. Frequently vertical steel rods would be interspersed between the teeth. This standardisation was the most effective use of scarce raw materials, transport and workers, but proved an ineffective tank barrier as US bulldozers simply pushed bridges of soil over these devices. "Dragon's teeth" tank traps were also known as Höcker in German ('humps' or 'pimples' in English) because of their shape. These blocks of reinforced concrete stand in several rows on

4234-403: The occupation of Norway. These developments alarmed the Kriegsmarine and the Nazi government. Such an expedition would threaten their iron ore supplies and gave a strong argument for Germany to secure the Norwegian coast. Codenamed Operation Weserübung , the German invasion of Denmark and Norway commenced on 9 April. From the 14th, Allied troops were landed in Norway, but by the end of

4307-402: The pattern. The first known recorded use of the term in print was in September 1939 in a U.S. newspaper which used the British spelling. Other contemporaneous American usages specified "Phony" since both spellings were acceptable. In Great Britain, the term first appeared in print in January 1940. The Phoney War was also referred to as the "Twilight War" (by Winston Churchill) and as

4380-400: The post-war period, many sections of the Siegfried Line were removed using explosives. In North Rhine Westphalia , about thirty bunkers still remain. Most of the rest were either destroyed with explosives or covered with earth. Tank traps still exist in many areas and, in the Eifel , they run over several kilometres. Zweibrücken Air Base was built on top of the Siegfried Line. When the base

4453-417: The project finished and ready for action. During the Battle of France , French forces made minor attacks against some parts of the line, but the majority was left untested in battle. When the campaign finished, transportable weapons and materials, such as metal doors, were removed from the Siegfried Line and used in other places such as the Atlantic Wall defences. The concrete sections were left in place in

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4526-451: The remaining portion was asphalted for local traffic. 51°8′26.5″N 6°17′16.5″E  /  51.140694°N 6.287917°E  / 51.140694; 6.287917 Westwall The Siegfried Line , known in German as the Westwall (= western bulwark) , was a German defensive line built during the late 1930s. Started in 1936, opposite the French Maginot Line , it stretched more than 630 km (390 mi) from Kleve on

4599-435: The remains of the Siegfried Line as a historical monument . It was intended to stop reactionary fascist groups from using the Siegfried Line for propaganda purposes. At the same time, state funding was still being provided to destroy the remains of the Siegfried Line. Consequently, emergency archaeological digs took place whenever any part of the line was to be removed, for example for road building. Archaeological activity

4672-402: The ring were used by U.S. and British military units. In 1947, the Grenzlandring, also known as the Wegbergring or Wegberg-Ring , was locally "rediscovered" when Carl Marcus, mayor of nearby Rheydt , drove one night along what seemed to be a more or less straight country road. When he passed a bicycle rider more than once, he suddenly realized that the road was in fact circular. Beginning in

4745-428: The war in Poland is all but over. Most of the correspondents a bit depressed. Britain and France have done nothing on the western front to relieve the tremendous pressure on Poland.… One week after the Anglo-French declaration of a state of war the average German is beginning to wonder if it's a world war after all. He sees it this way. England and France, it is true, are formally fulfilling their obligations to Poland. For

4818-430: The war in the West. The offensive started in the area south of the Hürtgenwald, between Monschau and the Luxembourgish town of Echternach . German loss of life and material was severe and the effort failed. There were serious clashes along other parts of the Siegfried Line and defending soldiers in many bunkers refused to surrender, often fighting to the death. By early 1945, the last Siegfried Line bunkers had fallen at

4891-424: The year 1939 that was due only to the fact that during the Polish campaign, the approximately 110 French and British divisions in the West were held completely inactive against the 23 German divisions." General Wilhelm Keitel stated: "We soldiers had always expected an attack by France during the Polish campaign, and were very surprised that nothing happened.... A French attack would have encountered only

4964-409: Was an eight-month period at the outset of World War II during which there were virtually no Allied military land operations on the Western Front . World War II began on 1 September 1939 with Nazi Germany 's invasion of Poland . Two days later, the "Phoney" period began with declarations of war by the United Kingdom and France against Germany, but with little actual warfare occurring. Although

5037-400: Was from a safety oven, the chimney of which was covered with a thick grating. Space was tight, with about 1 m (11 sq ft) per soldier, who was given a sleeping-place and a stool ; the commanding officer had a chair. Surviving examples still retain signs warning "Walls have ears" and "Lights out when embrasures are open!" The Aachen-Saar programme bunkers were similar to those of

5110-428: Was no major combat involving the Siegfried Line at the start of the campaign in the West, except for a minor offensive by the French. Instead, both sides remained in a safe position behind their defences, during the so-called Phoney War . The Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda drew foreign attention to the unfinished Westwall, in several instances showcasing incomplete or test positions to portray

5183-544: Was not able to stop the destruction of those sections, but furthered scientific knowledge and revealed details of the line's construction. Nature conservationists consider the remains of the Siegfried Line valuable as a chain of biotopes where, thanks to its size, rare animals and plants can take refuge and reproduce . That effect is magnified by the fact that the concrete ruins cannot be used for agricultural or forestry purposes. Small bunkers with 50 cm (20 in) thick walls were set up with three embrasures towards

5256-535: Was ostensibly to assist Poland, was stopped after a few kilometres and the French forces withdrew. According to the Franco-Polish Alliance , the French Army was to start preparations for a major offensive three days after the beginning of mobilization . The preliminary mobilization had occurred in France on 26 August. By 1 September, full mobilization was declared. The French forces were to gain control over

5329-447: Was still open, the remnants of several old bunkers could be seen in the tree line near the main gate. Another bunker was outside the base perimeter fence near the base hospital. Once the base was closed, workers, digging up the base's fuel tanks, discovered lost bunkers buried below the tanks. Since 1997, with the motto "The value of the unpleasant as a memorial" ( Der Denkmalswert des Unerfreulichen ), an effort has been made to preserve

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