Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

Fort-les-Bancs is a stronghold built in the middle of the 19th century on the town of Virignin, in the department of Ain. Located at 492 metres above sea level, it dominates the village village and was designed to control the strategic parade from Chambéry to Belley and Lyon. Its name would come from the impressive horizontal limestone strata of the massif, evoking giant stone benches.

Construction of the fort began in 1840 and was completed in 1849, with an official inauguration in 1850. Destined to strengthen the defence of Pierre-Châtel's fort, he quickly lost his military utility after the Savoy's attachment to France in 1860. Never engaged in a conflict, he was decommissioned in 1889, then reassigned to cantonment and training for the troops.

The book illustrates the military architecture of its time, marked by defensive concerns related to border tensions before territorial unification. Its history also reflects the geopolitical evolution of the region, where fortifications became obsolete with the expansion of national borders. Today, it bears witness to this often unknown strategic heritage.

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