Fort de Roppe
Fort de Roppe, also known as Fort Ney, was built between 1875 and 1877. It is part of the second ring of fortifications around the city of Belfort in northeastern France. This set of forts was built as part of the Séré de Rivières system and incorporated improvements to deal with the improvement in efficacy of artillery in the late 19th century. Description The Fort de Roppe is located at the summit of a hill near the town of Roppe, to the north of Belfort. It was sited to control the road to Colmar in co-operation with the fort at Giromagny, as well as the road to Basel, to protect the Fort de Bessoncourt's flank, and to support Fort du Salbert. The rectangular fort initially mounted fifty artillery pieces and was garrisoned by more than 650 men. The guns were mounted in the open air on top of the ramparts and in a casemate. Three more batteries were located in the immediate vicinity of the fort. The armament of the fort varied considerably from year to year. In 1886 the fort mounted four 155mm long guns, five 138mm guns, nine 120mm long guns, two 220mm mortars, and several smaller weapons.