Fort Ebersberg

Fort Ebersberg
Part of Swiss Border Line
Northern Switzerland
Camouflaged gun position at Fort Ebersberg
Fort Ebersberg
Coordinates 47°34′19″N 8°34′46″E / 47.57194°N 8.57931°E / 47.57194; 8.57931
Site information
Owner Private
Controlled by Switzerland
Open to
the public		 Yes
Condition Preserved
Site history
Built 1940
Materials Concrete, deep excavation

Fort Ebersberg, also known as Fort Rüdlingen, was built 1938–1940 in the Swiss Canton of Zurich to guard the Rhine against a German invasion at the opening of World War II. It is the only such position in the Zurich canton, located near the town of Berg am Irchel. The fort was part of the Swiss Border Line defenses, Swiss military designation A5438.

Description

The fort was built between 1938 and 1940, buried in sandstone on a north-facing slope. In 1978, the weapons were removed. The fort was decommissioned April 2003.[1] Ebersberg's primary weapons were two semi-automatic 75mm guns in separate blockhouses,[2] intended to hamper a German crossing of the Rhine.

Present situation

The surface installations at Ebersberg are accessible and have interpretive displays. The subterranean parts of the fort are not accessible to the public.[3] The site is maintained in preservation under a long-term lease by the Military Historical Foundation of the Canton of Zurich. Although the guns were removed, the remainder of the equipment remains. Public tours are available.[1]

Bunker at the Rüdlingen bridge

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Die Festung Ebersberg" (in German). Bunkeranlagen der Schweiz. Retrieved 13 January 2011.
  2. ↑ Kauffmann, pp. 157-158
  3. ↑ "Artillery Fortress Ebersberg (A5438)". STIWOT. Retrieved 13 January 2011.

References

  • Kauffmann, J.E., Jurga, R., Fortress Europe: European Fortifications of World War II, Da Capo Press, USA, 2002, ISBN 0-306-81174-X.
  • This article incorporates text translated from the corresponding German Wikipedia article as of January 12, 2011.
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