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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Fort d'Hauteville, briefly renamed Fort Carnot in 1887, was part of the Séré de Rivières system, a network of fortifications built after 1874 to secure French borders. Located in Hauteville-lès-Dijon, it overlooks Dijon and is a key element of the defensive belt protecting the city, alongside other forts such as the Motte-Giron or Mont-Afrique. This system was designed after the defeat of 1870-1871, placing Dijon in the "second line" of defense, behind places like Verdun or Belfort.

The fort was built from 1877 to 1880, adopting a polygonal plan surrounded by deep ditches, with barracks and a powderbox protected by caponières. During World War I, he hosted military units, including the 7th Regiment of Territorial Artillery. His role changed tragically in 1942, when he became an extension of Dijon prison to intern 3,821 Jews, resistors or prisoners, before their transfer to Drancy and the Nazi camps.

After the war, the fort was listed as a historical monument in 2006, then bought by the commune in 2010. Since 2025, it has been home to the Choillot Museum. Between 1940 and 1944, he also served as a place of detention for political prisoners, resistors and Germans, where they set up a chapel decorated with murals in a casemate. Its architecture reflects the military engineering of General Séré de Rivières, marking the defensive history of the Gold Coast.

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