Fort des Ayvelles

About

The Fort des Ayvelles, briefly called Fort Dubois-Crancé (from the name of the politician born in Charleville), is a military work of the Séré de Rivières type built from 1877 on a ridge overlooking the city of Mézières, on the territories of the communes of Villers-Semeuse and Ayvelles in the department of Ardennes. It includes a main structure, the Fort, and a smaller attached structure, the Battery, both connected by a 600-metre protected road. Initially planned to deny the enemy access to the railway network with a node at Mohon and Charleville stations, the fort was on the front line during the German invasion in August 1914.