The Maginot Line: An Impervious Line of Defence (Sort of)

welcome to another episode of megaprojects i am your host simon and this video is brought to you by squarespace from websites and online stores to marketing tools and analytics squarespace is that all in one platform where you can build a beautiful online presence and run your business check out squarespace through the link in the description below that helps support the show more on them in a bit and today we're going to talk about the maginot line there are some french pronunciations in this one i have a pronunciation dictionary here i'm going to try my best but uh i'm not french could you tell [Music] it was the equivalent of a giant protective wall to ward off any potential invaders a surefire way to keep the enemy at the gates or at least it was supposed to be as it turns out the maginot line has come to be a metaphor for expensive efforts that offer a false sense of security the maginot line was a vast series of defensive structures built between 1929 and 1940 along france's eastern border the purpose of this great defensive line which stretched for 1517 kilometers from the alps to the english channel was very simply to keep the germans out but as i will come to the entire fiasco that was the french involvement in the early stages of world war ii showed that no matter how mighty the fortress there will always be a back door europe was a shell-shocked place in the aftermath of the largest war the world had ever known 20 million people had died during the conflict 1.7 million of them french nearly 4.5 percent of the country's population germany had suffered similar numbers of casualties and the hostility between the two neighbors continued to rumble on even after peace was signed the treaty of versailles was meant to provide rehabilitation for europe but as we now know it also provided plenty of angry ammunition for a certain mustachioed fellow who would lead germany back to war just 20 years later now the treaty of versailles may have been acceptable at the time but with reparations totaling 33 billion dollars which doesn't sound too bad until you consider that that's nearly half a trillion dollars today and it was set to be paid until 1984. this was a crippling set of terms that enraged many in germany things began to unravel as early as 1923 when germany defaulted on a reparation payment for the first time and this was not just someone not being very good at bookkeeping germany had already made their feelings about the treaty well known france responded by sending troops into the rural region of germany to flex their muscles a bit and intimidate the germans who at this time were still operating under severe military limitations placed on them thanks to the same treaty of versailles but make no mistake about it germany may not have been in a position to wage war with france at that point but it was slowly rearming itself in direct contradiction to the treaty a fact that the french well they knew all too well okay so with our luxury of hindsight here in the future the whole situation now does look a bit like a car crash just happening in slow motion the british they objected to the treatment of the germans by the french more out of colonial rivalry than genuine care it must be said which split the allies at a time that well they should have probably stuck together the french were in an awkward position though they had emerged victorious from the great war the reality was that their economy industry and indeed population paled in comparison to what lay just across the border much of the fighting in world war one heard occurred on french soil which just decimated northeastern parts of the country but germany while they lost the war they kinda remained relatively unscathed military leaders knew full well that world war one had been won because of the assistance of the british and the americans but with both now just stepping a little back from a commitment to defend france on the same scale again another full frontal war really could see france quickly overrun now by the end of the 1920s the general consensus was that france would need to be ready to face germany alone there was considerable debate over how france could best defend itself modernists such as char de gaulle preferred to focus on aircraft and armor divisions rather than static line which quickly drew comparisons to the dreaded trenches of world war one the idea for a massive defense line was first proposed by marshal joseph joth who had excelled as commander-in-chief during world war one but it was aldre imagino france's minister for war who lobbied the government relentlessly to build the line which finally began in 1929. maginot didn't live to see the line constructed and he died of typhoid fever in 1932. it was only after his death that he was awarded the posthumous honor of having the line named after him [Music] okay so yes the obvious reason for the maginot line was to keep invaders from the country but the whole plan came with some very specific purposes there was a huge population imbalance between france and germany which had been further aggravated by france's declining birth rate since the end of world war one the french had a population of around 39 million while over in germany it was more like 70 million a strong defensive position was seen as key to saving manpower the hellish images of thousands of soldiers marching into the jaws of death on the battlefield during world war one had highlighted the astonishingly high casualty rate that this new type of warfare could bring quite simply france just couldn't afford to do that again the french also believed holding the germans at the maginot line would provide some invaluable time to mobilize the entire french army which was estimated to take between two and three weeks it's doubtful the french ever thought the line would be entirely impregnable but it would at least slow the germans down so the regions of al-sass and lorraine had been returned to france under the terms of the treaty of versailles but they were always seen as vulnerable to german attack again due to their proximity to the border this area was also home to significant manufacturing and it became known as france's industrial basin the maginot line it'd be heavily fortified in this area in particular in order to prevent this vital zone from falling back into german hands and finally but most importantly military planners hoped that by heavily reinforcing the line across the french german border it would encourage a circumvention by the germans either through the mountainous terrain of switzerland or through belgium which had entered into a military alliance with france and well sitting in here in the future we know exactly what happened that is exactly what happened [Music] the vaginal line was built in several phases that began in 1929 and were carried out by the service technique dugine technical engineering service and overseen by the commissioned organization derision fortified or commission of fortified regions the vast majority of the measuring line was constructed by 1939 at a reported cost of 3.3 billion french francs which would be roughly 1.2 trillion francs today if francs existed then they don't so let's just do it in dollars and that's about 204 billion dollars today anyway when world war ii breaks out the maginot line was one rough continuous line but it's easier to separate it into two the main fortified section the line ran from switzerland along the german border to luxembourg the second part was a significantly lighter section running from the same spot all the way north to the english channel now this was very much a tale of two lines the heavily fortified southern section and sort of the weak wobbly not very good northern section the reason behind this dual line has really been debated ever since the french may have assumed that a german invasion coming through belgium would have significantly slowed down the attack and that this attack would have drawn the british into the war while the northern section was indeed much lighter than the south it was still well defended though and the french could have believed that it would have sufficed now this wasn't a defense line like you might be thinking we tend to have an idea of trenches like in the first world war one line for the french and one for the germans but in reality the maginot line was much more than this depending on what part of the line you were on it could be anywhere from 20 to 25 kilometers deep this area was composed of various fortifications and military facilities including border guard posts infantry shelters barricades communication center supply depots machine gun anti-tank gun placements and of course the mighty fortresses it was basically this entire ecosystem that had been set up to protect france now the size of it is unparalleled throughout history except for the great wall of china of course in total 1.5 million cubic meters of concrete and 150 000 tons of steel which is enough to build 150 eiffel towers by the way we used to construct this vast protective line now just before we really get into the line i'm going to break down all of its component parts for you really get into the details i do want to take a quick moment to tell you about the fantastic sponsor of today's episode to really make it possible and that is squarespace now a couple of things maybe you've got an idea for a website or a business podcast something like that knocking around in your mind and you're like maybe that's a good idea maybe i should pursue it well the only way to find out whether it's worth pursuing is to get it out there into the world and see if people want it and that should be done with a website on squarespace squarespace allows you to create a powerful website for whatever you're up to you want to sell something online yes easy to set up a store with squarespace you want to do a podcast sure squarespace can handle that too if it 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megaprojects to save 10 off your first purchase of a website or a domain there is also a link below and let's break down the line shall we [Music] the maginot line began with the border post line which included block houses these were small houses that could be used by infantry located directly on the border and normally with 360 degree views of their surroundings there were 5 000 of these block houses along the line and the role of those inside was to act as the first line of alarm in case of a surprise attack outpost and support point line a further five kilometers behind the border there was a line of anti-tank emplacements these would have been required to hold up a mechanical advance the best it could but in reality it was primarily to give the main point of defense more time to prepare the principal line of resistance this area around 10 kilometers behind the border would provide the sternest of resistance in front of the line there were anti-tank obstacles made up of large metal rails implanted vertically into the ground in groups of six there were also plenty of anti-infantry obstacles too comprised of thousands of kilometers worth of barbed wire if the enemy did make it through this though they would still face the hellish prospects of the fortresses and the casemates directly behind the principle line of resistance laid the first substantial infantry bunkers known as casemates which would have been occupied by 20 to 30 men these concrete bunkers often had two floors with a firing level at the top and a support level below where soldiers could eat and sleep in total there were 352 of these casemates along the line interestingly these bunkers were built with 12 feet concrete walls in the front but relatively weaker walls in the rear so counter-attacking french forces would be able to re-easily take them that's pretty smart petit uvraj these small fortresses which numbered nearly 100 were connected to a group of casemates with underground tunnels and housed further support facilities such as messels infirmaries and supply depots by far the most important element on the line were the 45 large fortresses these were massive structures that often contained their own power stations ventilation systems and even a connection to a small narrow gauge electric railway system to move between the bunkers and bring in supplies there were normally six combat blocks sat further forward from the main fortress with underground tunnels connecting the whole system around 500 to 1000 men would have been stationed in the guru of raj which were 15 kilometers apart with the casemates and patio vraj between them telephone network while battlefield radios had begun to be used during world war one the quickest way to get information off the battlefield was still by telephone and if your country is being invaded you're probably gonna want to stay in touch this vast telephone network connected every bunker every fortress and every observation post on the line these 78 observation posts were often situated in the hills surrounding the line and served the dual purpose of both reporting on the fighting and calling in artillery support which was located further back between 500 and a thousand meters behind the principal line of resistance came the infantry reserve shelters each occupied by a company of soldiers which is 200 to 250 men while the word reserve might make you think that these troops would be held back in fact these reserve shelters were designed in such a way that occupants would be able to hold out for prolonged periods while under attack and were very much the second significant line of defense they came with water supplies kitchens and electric generators and would also be used as a staging point for any possible counter-attack flood zones the planned defense of the maginot line would not only come in a military sense specific areas usually natural basins or rivers could be flooded by the french forces to act as additional barriers for the invaders this was normally done by constructing dams and levees on certain sections of rivers that could be opened and closed short noticed safety quarters in total there would have been about half a million military personnel situated along the line and many more would have been based in the safety quarters while the most forward points would always be manned the fortresses would only be filled in the event of an attack or expected attack many of the soldiers would be primarily based in the safety quarters just a short train ride from the fortress housed close to the safety quarters the supply and ammunition dumps would have kept the entire line supplied and their proximity to the railway system means that supplies could be rapidly dispatched narrow gauge railway system a network of 600 millimeter narrow gauge railways transported the supplies around the battlefield using petrol-engined armored locomotives they were mainly used to move back and forth between the fortresses and the supply depots which could be up to 50 kilometers apart high voltage transmission lines while all of the fortresses had their own power supply they were all still connected to the civil power grid these transmission lines initially ran above ground but before the fighting commenced it was decided that they would be buried instead to reduce the risk of damage which sounds like a perfectly sensible idea [Music] much has been said about the maginot line over the last 80 years and its role in the collapse of france during world war ii but as the war neared there was a confidence about the maginot line which may have even bordered on the delusional newsreel footage of the mighty fortresses was beamed into cinemas and it's fair to say that the maginot became the pride of france even winston churchill famously said thank god we have the maginot line i mean you could just thank the french winston well the military leaders were quite as optimistic as another mata but the image of the impenetrable fortresses was one that was carefully cultivated in both france and britain certainly the french were in a bullish mood with regards to the impending nazi threat with many claiming that there was no need to worry and the maginot line would protect the country oh dear they're about to be disappointed [Music] war began once again in march 1939 as german tanks rolled into czechoslovakia and in september into poland if there were any doubts about the might of the nazis the following months would quickly dispel them the german blitzkrieg lightning war tore through europe at a breakneck speed it was only a matter of time until france would be tested the british expeditionary force had landed in france in september 1939 and they and their french allies began frantically reinforcing the section of the line that ran from luxembourg to the english channel while significant steps were taken and the line was certainly improved it was by no means watertight especially in an area around the ardennes forest now remember one of the primary purposes of the maginot line was to force the germans to circumvent their route into france switzerland and its vicious mountains would have proven an enormous obstacle but to the north lay the low countries of belgium the netherlands and luxembourg an area that any military commander would have gleefully preferred it must have been incredibly obvious what was going to happen but still that was exactly how it unfolded the germans used a decoy force which remained stationed opposite the maginot line while the actual invasion force composed of the second army smashed their way through the low countries and within five days of the start of the operation german soldiers were once again on french soil so well what happened the arden forest had played a key role with the french wrongly assuming that the thick forest provided enough of a natural barrier and as we know it did not the german panzers stormed through it and quickly began encircling the allied troops who began a frantic retreat westward the relentless push west came to a stop near dunkirk where the majority of british troops made their somewhat miraculous escape the battle of france lasted just six weeks with france officially surrendering on the 25th of june 1940. but the maginot line it hadn't fallen at this point the line had been cut off from the rest of france and despite the germans wrestling a few of the smaller fortresses away the areas of the line that saw action put up a ferocious defense even with many of the fortresses completely surrounded they fought on bravely even repelling sections of the italian invasion that came on the 21st of june but with the armistice signed the french soldiers were ordered out of their defensive positions and to abandon the maginot line [Music] though the maginot line was never tested to its full capacity it did see some intense fighting later in the war the allied invasion had once again seen the line largely bypassed but as hitler ordered his last major offense operation nordwind it was the allies who used the maginot line and according to historian stephen ambrose a part of the line was used for the purpose it had been designed for and showed what a superb fortification it was despite having the allies on the ropes operation nordwind ultimately failed and eight months later the war was over [Music] much of the maginot line is still present today and it's not really surprising these structures were designed not to be destroyed some of the larger structures were used as command centers for france's nuclear weapons in the decades after the end of world war ii though during the 1960s these were completely closed down many have been auctioned off for public use and are now in use as wine cellars mushroom farms and even as a nightclub as i mentioned at the start of the video the maginot line has become a metaphor for an expensive failure that offers a false sense of security but people often overlook the fact that the maginot line pretty much did what it was designed for which was to push the invaders to a different area and to slow them down when you consider how quickly france fell it's easy to criticize the maginot line but the truth is it had far more to do with french military field tactics and poor preparation for war which saw germany form a vast mobile army while the french still seemed stuck in 1918. without modern warfare it's unlikely we'll ever see something like the maginot line again and it will probably remain the last great defensive system of its type anywhere in the world a last hurrah to the olden days of castles and forts the way we fight changed forever in 1939 and unfortunately for the french the maginot line was just the wrong side of history so i really hope you found that video interesting if you did please do smash that like button below also you guys know by now that i'm making a lot of suggestions that you come up with in the comments so please use the comments below and let me know what you want to see on this channel also please do support the show by supporting one of our fantastic sponsors like today's sponsor squarespace squarespace.com forward slash megaprojects there is also a link below and thank you for watching you

Channel: Megaprojects

Views: 1,004,101

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Id: Q5K6Jg4Smvc

Length: 20min 51sec (1251 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 31 2020