| Ouvrage Simserhof | |
|---|---|
| Part of Maginot Line | |
| Northeast France | |
 Personnel entrance at Simserhof | |
  Ouvrage Simserhof | |
| Coordinates | 49°03′42″N 7°20′55″E / 49.06167°N 7.34861°E |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Ministry of Defense |
| Controlled by | France |
| Open to the public | Yes |
| Site history | |
| Built by | CORF |
| In use | Preserved |
| Materials | Concrete, steel, deep excavation |
| Battles/wars | Battle of France, Lorraine Campaign, Battle of the Bulge |
| Ouvrage Simserhof | |
|---|---|
| Type of work: | Large artillery work (Gros ouvrage) |
| sector └─sub-sector | Fortified Sector of Rohrbach └─Légeret |
| Work number: | O 300 |
| Constructed: | 1929-1936 |
| Regiment: | 153rd Fortress Infantry Regiment (RIF), 155th Position Artillery Regiment (RAP) |
| Number of blocks: | 10 |
| Strength: | 28 officers, 792 men |
Ouvrage Simserhof (French pronunciation: [uvʁaʒ simsəʁof]) is a gros ouvrage of the Maginot Line, located in the French commune of Siersthal in the Moselle department. It faces the German border and is adjoined by the petit ouvrage Rohrbach and the gros ouvrage Schiesseck. Located 4 km west of Bitche, the ouvrage derived its name from a nearby farm (Hof in German). It was part of the Fortified Sector of Rohrbach. During the Battle of France in 1940, the Simserhof supported its neighboring fortifications with partially successful covering artillery fire. After the surrender of France, it was repurposed by the Germans as a torpedo storage depot, and later resisted the American advances of late 1944. The Americans briefly occupied the fort in the first days of 1945 until the German counter-offensive of Operation Nordwind, which allowed them to take back control of the Simserhof. The fort was finally liberated by the 100th Infantry Division on March 15, 1945. Following the war, it was initially repaired for the French Army and later converted into a Maginot Line museum in the early 1960s. Retained by the Ministry of Defense, Simserhof now functions as a museum, and has the most extensive visitor infrastructure of any of the preserved Maginot fortifications.