Infantry blockhouse K-S 31 - Orlicke mountains, Czech Republic - Military Installations on Waymarking.com

The extended system of fortifications was built to defend the former Czechoslovakia during the second half of the 30s. The heavy fortified installations with infantry blocks were built in the border sections with high defence priority. They were solid, mostly two-storey constructions which were armed with machine guns as well as with anti-tank guns, if necessary with mortars, too. The typical characteristics of these blocks were the armoured cloches (bells) and cupolas which served for the observation of the battlefield. Other tasks were the fire control and the command of the machine guns. In case of war each infantry block was able to operate independently. Besides other facilities each infantry block had its own well, filter room and engine room, in which the electric power was generated. The infantry blocks were individually shaped to the corresponding terrain and constructed in accordance with their combat tasks. They differed in their dimensions, outlines, wall and ceiling dimensions, armament and garrison. Nevertheless they consisted of standardized construction and design elements. For a usual infantry block about 1300 to 1500 m3 of concrete and up to 120 tons of steel reinforcement were needed. They could stand artillery shelling up to calibre 305 mm. Until September 1938 228 heavy independent blocks were structurally finished.

The plan of upper floor of the infantry blockhouse K-S 31

The infantry block K-S 31 (code name "U besídky") is a one-sided installation with an armored cupola and one protection wing, construction strength II, on the right side, which was built in the framework of the same subdivision. Concreting took place from April 23 to 28,1937. 1110 m3 of concrete were used. 20 soldiers were considered as the crew. With its anti-tank gun model 36 and its heavy machine gun model 37 on top of it, and a heavy twin-machine gun model 37 the block should act and have effect into the deep valley of the river Wilde Adler (Wild eagle) to the railway line. Two light machine guns model 26, which were the same weapon the gunner had in the armored cupola, provided security to the rear. During the German occupation the armored cupola and the two embrasures of the main weapons were removed. No test shelling took place, so that the block remained relatively unharmed in its construction. In 2001 it was scheduled for the program of the coming military museum Lichkov.

Era: WW II Related web site: [Web Link] General Comments: Not listed

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