Last forts of Liège fall

On 16 August 1914 the last forts defending Liège capitulated. Contemporary chronicles give the dates 16 and 17 August, because the individual forts surrendered over a period of several dozen hours. Twelve days after German troops entered Belgium, the first great battle on the Western Front came to an end.

Artillery that crushed concrete

The Germans had already taken the city itself on 7 August, but the ring of forts still blocked the roads and railway lines leading into the heart of Belgium. The concrete fortifications, designed in the 19th century, were considered almost impregnable. The Germans, however, brought up artillery the defenders had not foreseen: 420 mm heavy siege mortars, known as “Big Berthas”, and Austro-Hungarian 305 mm Škoda mortars.

From 12 August their shells, weighing hundreds of kilograms, rained down on the forts one after another. Concrete roofs cracked, and dust and gases from the explosions filled the corridors. On 15 August a shell struck the magazine of Fort Loncin. A huge explosion destroyed the fort and killed a large part of the garrison. The badly injured commander of the defence, General Gérard Leman, was pulled from the rubble and taken prisoner.

The end of resistance

After the fall of Fort Loncin the resistance of the remaining fortifications quickly weakened. On 16 August the last forts west of the city surrendered. The German march through Belgium could get under way in full strength. Four days later German troops entered Brussels, and soon afterwards they stood before Namur and on the French border.

Significance

The defence of Liège lasted longer than the Germans had assumed and became a symbol of Belgian resistance. The fall of the forts showed, however, that modern heavy artillery could destroy even the strongest fortifications. All armies quickly learned this lesson: 19th-century forts ceased to guarantee security, and soon on the Western Front their place was taken by networks of trenches.