Based on new defensive concepts, such as dispersal and concealment, the Group Fortification was to be, in case of attack, an impassable barrier for French forces.

At the perimeter of Group Fortification Marne protection is provided by a set of infantry positions, fortified barracks and artillery batteries scattered over a wide area and concealed by the natural topography.

From 1899, the Schlieffen plan of the German General Staff designed the fortifications of the Moselstellung, between Metz and Thionville to be like a lock for blocking any advance of French troops in case of conflict.

[5] Covering an area of 205 ha, the Feste Freiherr von der Goltz was built from 1907 to 1916, in the woods between Jury, Mercy and Ars-Laquenexy.

The same day, the troops of General Krause took position on a line from Pagny-sur-Moselle to Mondelange, passing to the west of Metz by Chambley, Mars-la-Tour, Jarny and Briey.

After an initial withdrawal, on 6 September 1944, the German lines now rely solidly on the western sector of the forts of Metz, especially on fortifications Lorraine, Jeanne D'Arc and Driant.

[note 1] When hostilities resume after a rainy month, the soldiers of the 462th Volks-Grenadier-Division still hold firmly the forts of Metz, though supplies are more difficult under the artillery and the frequent bombings.

[10] On November 9, 1944, the Air Force sends no less than 1,299 heavy bombers, B-17s and B-24s, to drop 3,753 tons of bombs, and 1,000 to 2,000 books on the fortifications and strategic points in the combat zone of IIIrd army.

The Group Fortification Jeanne-d'Arc, Old Feste Empress, probably because it was controlled by the staff of the 462th Volks-Grenadier-Division and defended by a battalion of fusiliers, is the last of the forts of Metz to surrender, December 13, 1944.

[14] The objective of the German staff, which was to stall US troops at Metz for the longest possible time before they could reach the front of the Siegfried Line, is largely achieved.