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The Maginot Line. Elizabeth Allan-Cole Bridgette Gross Corrina Chow Susan Chen. The Maginot Line. What was the Maginot Line?. A continuous stationary fortification that covered the entire Franco-German frontier. It was a defensive maneuver by France to keep the German’s out
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The Maginot Line Elizabeth Allan-Cole Bridgette Gross Corrina Chow Susan Chen
What was the Maginot Line? • A continuous stationary fortification that covered the entire Franco-German frontier. • It was a defensive maneuver by France to keep the German’s out • A permanent subterranean fortifications -barracks, mess halls, ammunition dumps, and even movie theatres.
The Purpose of the Maginot Line • France’s way of defending themselves from Germany after the war. • It was brilliant in conception and effective in practice • It was costly, but it was to produce a feeling of security throughout France • France had to leave the Rhineland, which their occupation of the Rhineland was keeping the German’s from meddling in the affairs of France and their allies
The Failure of the Maginot Line • There were two gaps- (one of them was minor and didn’t really matter), The other was Belgium. • If the French were to isolate Belgium with forts, then they would be blocking their allies (Belgium is one of the allies) • France believed that Belgium would come to them for aid if Germany were to try to enter through Belgium to get to France • What really happened was Germany did go through Belgium, but Belgium did not have a chance to ask for help. Germany was able to invade France. Because of the large gap, the Maginot line failed • There were other similar attempts like the Maginot line in eastern Europe, but they had issues as well