Fort de Fléron

Fort de Fléron was built between 1881 and 1891 according to the plans of General Henri Alexis Brialmont.[1] One of the larger forts of Liège, it was armed with heavy artillery in rotating turrets, concentrated in a central massif.The service areas were placed directly opposite the barracks, which opened into the ditch in the rear of the fort (i.e., in the face towards Liège), with lesser protection than the two "salient" sides.[2] The large weapons were all German products, made by Krupp in Essen, but the armor was by Cockerill (Belgium), Ateliers de Creusot (France) or Gruson (Germany).[9] When the Liège's fortifications proved unexpectedly stubborn, the Germans brought heavy siege artillery to bombard the forts with shells far larger than they were designed to resist.[2] Fléron's armament was upgraded in the 1930s to become part of the Fortified Position of Liège II, which was planned to deter a German incursion over the nearby border.[2] This was accompanied by improvements to ventilation, protection, sanitary facilities, communications and electrical power.An air intake tower was added on the other side of the now-vanished Line 38 railroad tracks, which has itself been demolished.