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Chillon was part of the defenses of the Rhone valley. In fact it closed a narrow point of the North bank of the Lake of Geneva. There was already a medieval castle when it was decided in the beginning of the 20th century to built a flanking casemate here. It was armed with two 7,5 cm guns while the upper floor housed the observation post. The Swiss have built several flanking casemates in the beginning of the 20th century. Their main armament consisted mostly of two 7,5 cm guns, but some also had machine-guns and search lights. They consisted of several levels with a maximum of four. Compared with those casemates Chillon was relatively small with only two guns and an observation post. The casemates were normally built in a steep slope, preferably out of sight and fire of the enemy. Later the casemates received camouflage which consisted of a frame with wire mesh. This was painted in the right colours, so it ressembled a rock. As you can see the camouflage frames of Chillon are very large which makes them quite hard to open. |