History of the Maginot Line - Hardcover

Contrary to what we have been told, the Maginot Line functioned perfectly and did everything that was expected of it. After the war, the Maginot Line wrongly became the ideal scapegoat for the greatest military and political disaster ever suffered by France. Marc Halter, author of this book, removes the mysteries that have long surrounded the legend of the Maginot Line. He explains the true history of these fortifications, their genesis, their functions, their construction, and the fierce fighting that took place in Alsace-Lorraine and in the Alps. He also restores the memory of the undefeated defenders of the fortress who can be counted among the first French Resistance fighters of 1940. Brian Chin, an American artist, brings a detailed knowledge of every aspect of this modern fortress system to his presentation of the settings and characters of this era. His realistic drawings bring us inside this closed world of concrete and reveal the secrets of this remarkable achievement. Author of numerous articles and essays, Marc Halter is President of Fort Schoenenbourg in Alsace and an expert on the Maginot Line, which he has presented to thousands of tourists from all over the world. Brian B. Chin has a degree in history from the University of California. He has worked in Hollywood for 20 years as artist He is the author of a book on the harbor defenses of San Francisco as well as a graphic album on the taking of a German fort at Metz in 1944.

A Frenchman born in 1958, Marc Halter is a teacher who is passionate about history and philosophy. The history of the Maginot Line has been part of his life since his birth. His grandfather Nicolas worked for several years on the construction of Fort Hochwald, and his father Emile served as an officer in 1940 at the Fort of Galgenberg. Marc Halter is head of the Society of Combat Veterans of the Maginot Line of the Haguenau Sector, and President of the Association of the Friends of the Maginot Line and Fort Schoenenbourg, which he has presented to thousands of tourists from all over the world. Author of numerous articles and essays, he is committed to establishing an accurate history of the period and to the rehabilitation of the memory of the combat veterans.