. Battlefields of the World War, western and southern fronts; a study in military geography . Gironville on the crest of the upland (Fig. 81) betweenthe defiles of St. Julien and Cormeville blocks both of them, aswell as the national highway leading directly across the uplandto Commercy. The longer defile of Trondes, next to thesouth, is defended by forts on either side, while the remarkablegap of Toul (Fig. 92), through which the Moselle River quitecertainly flowed10 to join the Meuse before it was captured andturned northeast to its present course (Fig. 91), is ringed aboutwith a for
. Battlefields of the World War, western and southern fronts; a study in military geography . Gironville on the crest of the upland (Fig. 81) betweenthe defiles of St. Julien and Cormeville blocks both of them, aswell as the national highway leading directly across the uplandto Commercy. The longer defile of Trondes, next to thesouth, is defended by forts on either side, while the remarkablegap of Toul (Fig. 92), through which the Moselle River quitecertainly flowed10 to join the Meuse before it was captured andturned northeast to its present course (Fig. 91), is ringed aboutwith a formidable series of defensive works, including a line offorts on the crest of the main scarp. A whole series of importantrailways, roads, and canals converge upon this broadest andmost important of all the breaches in the outer rim of the Meuseplateau. Farther south there are several other gaps, but theylie beyond the limit of our present field of study. 10 W. M. Davis: The Seine, the Meuse, and the Moselle, in his GeographicalEssays, Boston, 1909, pp. 587-616. 36o BATTLEFIELD OF VERDUN x a. MEUSE PLATEAU 361 It is evident that the Commercy curtain is a naturally weaksector of the Meuse plateau defenses. But, while an enemymight be tempted to assail this part of the scarp, it is stronglyprotected by the projecting Hattonchatel bastion on the northand by the Toul bastion (Figs. 88 and 91, and PI. VI) on the , as we have just seen, the several defiles and theirapproaches are commanded by forts and batteries which standforth in their brutal majesty or sullenly conceal themselves in themidst of the In front of the Scarpa series of lakesand the marshy Foret de la Reine (Queens Forest) offer gooddefensive positions on the plain. A further element of strength is found in the outlying ridgeand butte of Le Mont and Mont Sec (Fig. 93 and PI. VI)near Apremont, erosion remnants of the plateau which manifestthe same northeast-southwest alignment characteristic of most
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