Brest Fortress

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Brest Fortress in Brest, Belarus, formerly known as Brest-Litovsk Fortress (the Polish name of the city was Brześć Litewski), was the biggest 19th century fortress of Russian Empire, one of the western Russian fortresses. It is located at the confluence of the Mukhavets river and the Bug river with total area 4 km². The construction lasted from 1836 till 1842.

A stretch of the ring barrack of the Citadel with projecting semi-tower on the left

The fortress changed hands twice during the Polish-Soviet War and eventually stayed within Polish borders, a development that was formally recognised by the Treaty of Riga in 1921. In 1930 the fortress became infamous in Poland during the "Brest elections" and the Brest trial. During the Polish September Campaign in 1939 the city was defended by a small garison of four infantry battalions under Gen. Konstanty Plisowski against the XIX Panzer Corps of Gen. Heinz Guderian. After four days of heavy fighting the Polish forces withdrew southwards on September 17.

Satirical drawing from "Hasło Łódzkie" newspaper, 5 October 1930. The text: "From the series: 'Most popular Polish spa towns' - Brest-on-the-Bug." The picture is a reference to the Brest trial and the "Brest elections", when many Polish politicians of the Centrolew party were imprisoned in the Brest Fortress (pictured).

The territory was attached to the Belarusian Soviet Republic in 1939 in accordance with the Ribbentrop-Molotov pact.

In the summer of 1941 it was heroically defended by Soviet soldiers against the German Wehrmacht in the first days of Operation Barbarossa, earning it a title of Hero-Fortress.

The core of the fortress is a citadel in the shape of a red-brick two-storied ring barrack, 1.8 km long, with 500 rooms to accommodate 12 thousand soldiers. The citadel is on the island, formed by the Bug river and the two branches of the Mukhavets river. The three manmade islands, bridgeheads around the citadel are formed by the branches of the Mukhavets river and ditches (moats, fortified by earthworks, 10 m high ramparts with casemates inside the defense works.

A stretch of the rampart on the Kobrin fortification by the contemporary Main Entrance to the War Memorial

The Kobrin fortification is the northeastern biggest island, featuring 4 fortification curtains with detached 3 ravelins and a caponier. The Terespol fortification is the western island, featuring detached 4 lunettes. The Volyn fortification is the southeastern island, featuring 2 fortification curtains with 2 detached ravelins.

External links

• [Satellite photo of the main fortress, from Google Maps]

• Satellite photos of external forts: [link][link][link][link][link][link]

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