Fort Lucey...

Fort Lucey is located some 55 miles or so south south-east of Verdun. Like Fort d'Ecrouves a few short miles further south, it is yet one more link in the massive chain of fortifications built to defend France against German invasion in the immediate aftermath of the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 - 1871. This fort is quite unlike any of the Verdun forts and extremely unusual in that it is square in plan with a heavy artillery battery connected to the main fort by an underground corridor completely "out on a limb" some distance roughly north west of the main body of the fort proper. It is the only instance of a fort built in this style that we have encountered to date. The other unusual feature of the fort is the huge Mougin 155 double artillery turret planted squarely right slap bang (if you'll pardon the pun) in the middle of the fort. To give you some idea of exactly what a Mougin turret looks like this photo -  RIGHT  - shows German infantry posing on just such a turret after the fall of France in 1940. Personally, we have found and visited very few Mougin turret installations anywhere and sadly this statistic was not about to change despite us managing to get into Lucey because every turret in the fort, Mougin or otherwise, has been removed or demolished leaving gaping voids in the concrete superstructure wide open to the sky. Not withstanding that sad fact this is still a pretty awesome fort to wander around and really well worth the effort.

In conjunction with the other two forts in the immediate area, Trondes and Brouly, Fort Lucey defends the towns of Lucey and Lagney; and more importantly it prevents movement along the next valley north from that which Fort d' Ecrouves defends. These valleys were extremely important tactically because they provide a natural artery funnelling any invader from the east straight on towards Paris.

The initial construction phase began on this fort on September the 1st. 1874,  and it was finished on the 1st. January 1877 at an initial cost of one and three quarter million Francs, a massive sum at that time and equivalent to almost 22 MILLION Euros now. As with all the forts of this period extensive modifications were necessary in order to keep ahead of the rapidly evolving German artillery, both in terms of their guns and their ammunition.

It does not appear that the fort was subject to any further modification during the so called "Travaux 17" programme - literally translated as "1917 works" - so common in the Verdun forts and those in the same area. During the battle of Verdun in 1916 Fort Vaux had fallen for the simple want of drinking water and as a result an urgent need was identified to provide all the forts with interconnection between fighting compartments AND a secret route in and out of the fort. In early 1917 work was therefore begun on the forts with the digging of a series of tunnels beneath the existing floors accessed by deep vertical pits and ladders or sloping tunnels with stairs. The original intention was to line these tunnels properly with reinforced concrete but sadly many did not progress much beyond the wooden pit prop and bare rock wall stage. These pit props have long since rotted away and any Travaux 17 in such condition is highly dangerous!

LEFT  is a translated version of the floor plan of Fort Lucey, shown here by kind permission of Cedric and Julie Vaubourg. I would seriously recommend a visit to their excellent site where incredibly comprehensive information and absolutely masses of superb photographs document this fort, and many other forts throughout the whole of France. The sheer amount of work they have done absolutely beggars belief and they must input practically every minute of their spare time into documenting the French fortresses. It is very much a "must see" site and there is a picture link to it here  ABOVE RIGHT .

Our visit to Fort Lucey was extremely interesting to say the least! On a cold, snowy Sunday morning in February 2013 we began a rather hairy drive up a steep, frozen forest track in our very low slung Volvo estate. We passed several well constructed arched masonry entrances on the side of the track into what appear to be Abri Caverenes, or infantry shelters, parked up and set off on foot looking for the fort entrance. Sadly I had gone in completely in the wrong direction but sooner rather than later we worked out where I had gone wrong and found ourselves approaching the moat where we could see a very new and extremely sturdy, grey painted steel half door with a gaping hole right next to it beckoning us enticingly into the blackness of the fort interior. After getting our camera kit ready we tentatively wandered in and waited for our eyes to adjust to the darkness.

The fort interior is in remarkably good shape though sadly it has suffered somewhat at the hands of graffiti taggers. It was particularly distasteful to find evidence of right wing neo-Nazi types amongst the graf though thankfully there is little sign of any other vandalism beyond the prolific spray can moronity. It was very easy to navigate the fort with the help of Cedric and Julie's floor plan and we managed to wander out onto the top of the fort where the open walkways between the barrack blocks appear as deep rectangular pits in the carapace - see if you can spot them on the aerial photograph above. The weather was very misty at this time of day and so sadly, decent photographs of the fort exterior were very difficult to achieve.

That said we hope you enjoy what we did manage to take...

We have arrived at Fort Lucey on a very cold and foggy winter day in February!   Safely inside via the war time entrance.   A little detour off the entrance corridor brings us into the guard room latrine.   Onward along the corridor leads us towards the north east artillery observatory.   Ever deeper into the darkness of the fort...   This is one of the war time barrack blocks shielded by reinforced concrete. Ahead the stairs at the end of the corridor lead us up into the air once more.   We have come out amongst the first of the masonry built peace time barrack blocks.   We are off down another underground corridor now and back into the darkness again!   We have travelled underneath the moat and we are now in a counterscarp gallery in the fort outer wall.   This was the first of the turret installations we found but sadly the turret is long gone leaving only the concrete surround.   A staircase leads us up again having crossed back under the moat and back into the fort proper.   A short earth covered corridor leads us from the first peace time barrack block onto the second.   These single story barrack blocks face each other over a small courtyard.   The barrack blocks are cold and cheerless now but when they had windows and doors and a roaring fire I suspect they were much nicer if a little noisy!   The remains of a fire place within a barrack block.   TJ looks into the darkness at the head of the stairs next to the magazine.   The magazine was illuminated by lanterns set behind glass outside the magazine walls.   Inside the magazine now the illumination windows are obvious.   We have entered the boulangerie (bakery).   All that remains of one of the bread ovens.   We are off down tunnels again!   Above us would have been a turret but again it has been removed.   These steps lead up to the ramparts.   On the ramparts. The infantry exit is at the bottom of that flight of stairs just left of centre.   The rectangular "holes" in the ground are the courtyards in front of the masonry built peace time barrack blocks..   This huge hole is all that remains of the enormous Mougin double 155mm armoured artillery turret.   In the mist in the distance we can just about make out another infantry exit on to the ramparts.   On our way back into the fort again now along a corridor made of reinforced concrete.   A loophole allows an infantryman to fire out onto anyone in the moat who shouldn't be there.   The remains of an armoured observation cupola. Note the barbed wire screw pickets which have fallen down the shaft from the ramparts above.   A twin 75 mm armoured artillery position, one of two - again the turret is long gone.   We have crossed beneath the moat once again and this time we are in the double caponniere.   This is all that remains of one of the secondary battery 155mm armoured artillery turret installations.   A bit arty-farty I suppose!   Although there are no Travaux 17 pits or tunnels to catch you out in Fort Lucey that still doesn't mean you are safe!   The outer room of the usine (generator room).   The inner room of the usine where the generator beds are readily apparent.   Some of the tunnels out to the artillery emplacements have a cast iron column holding up the roof at some point. This one has snapped, presumably under bombardment?   This was the second twin 75mm turret installation.   We have entered the gorge caponniere.   Grenades could be dropped out of the lower window whilst the high window offers a firing point for infantry to repell an attack via the moat.   The field of fire takes in the top of the counterscarp wall.   An "oculus" - usually the home of an optical signalling station.   Descending towards the war time entrance corridor again.   This is how it may have looked when the lights were on!   Situated beyond the doorway on the platform is the 155 Moughin battery.   Light at the end of the tunnel once more!   ...and the mist is lifting at last!   Time for a quick wander round the moat...   ...to the gorge caponniere which protects the main entrance to the fort.   We have left the fort and started back down the track through the woods. This is the entrance to an infantry "Abri caverne" - a safe shelter for infantry under bombardment.   Steps inside the caverne's main room drop down to a lower room which is not actually underground any deeper than the first room, but actually constructed further down the slope of the hillside.   The second room has become a joyrider's dumping ground and a tagger's paradise.         Click above to visit this incredible site covering the Great War fortifications of France... Click above to return to our urbex site main page...     Click above to visit our Verdun fortifications mini site...