Journey through the Defences of the Festung Saint-Malo (FR)-2

Abstract

The Festung (Fortress) Saint-Malo was defended by about 500 German military structures constructed, in the period December 1941-June 1944, under the direction of the Organisation Todt. They diversify from simple tobrucks (Vf 58, Vf 61) up to the great bunkers of the Cite d’Alet. This article is a survey presenting some of them on the East side of the Festung, deemed of interest. Many of them remain visible and accessible and witness the confidence of the Germans in static military offensive and defensive structures. The Kullak artillery battery, the Pointe de la Varde support point, the Bastion de Saint Ideuc base, the Hopital des Rosais base have lost their military value and because of their obsolescence with respect to the modern military doctrines based on a rapid first strike and precision bombing, they will never recover a military one. Their bunkers remain silent witnesses of a recent tragic period in the life of Saint-Malo. On the contrary, the bunkers of the Les Ormeaux artillery battery and the cisterns of the Ville Besnard logistic base are well integrated in the urban context and support the actual exigencies of Saint-Malo.