Fort Driant

Battle of Fort Driant
Part of World War II, Lorraine Campaign
An American P-47 Thunderbolt dive bombing Fort Driant before the initial attack
Date 27 September 1944 – 13 October 1944 Location Southeast of Metz, France Result German victory
Belligerents
United States	Germany
Commanders and leaders
George S. Patton (Third Army) Walton Walker (XX Corps) Stafford LeRoy Irwin (5th Infantry Division )	Otto von Knobelsdorff (1st Army) Heinrich Kittel (Metz garrison)
Strength
~10,000	~1,300-3,000
Casualties and losses
64 killed, 547 wounded, 187 missing and assumed captured	Unknown

The Battle of Fort Driant was a constituent battle in the 1944 Battle of Metz, during the Lorraine Campaign and the greater Siegfried Line Campaign. The battle was on occupied French territory between the forces of the United States Third Army under the command of General George S. Patton and the forces of Nazi Germany under General Otto von Knobelsdorff.

Fort Driant was located five miles southwest of Metz, just west of the Moselle River. Originally built in 1902 and named after Colonel Émile Driant, the fort was continuously reinforced throughout World War II by both the French and German armies. Fort Driant was made from steel reinforced concrete, it was also surrounded by a deep dry moat and barbed wire. It housed five main gun batteries of 150mm guns, infantry trenches, and armored machine gun and observation posts. From its commanding position, it could direct heavy fire in the Moselle Valley. The fort could also bring down flanking fire that produced heavy casualties amongst the men of General Walton Walker's XX Corps.

Third Army's intelligence section had already determined that the Germans intended to make the most of the ring of forts around Metz, the ancient gateway city through which so many invading armies had passed. Metz was to be the linchpin in the Germans' defensive strategy. An army had not directly taken the city since 1552. It had been captured after a 54-day siege during the Franco-Prussian War and had been fortified by the Germans in World War I. However, the string of fortresses were left in ruins.

When the U.S. Third army arrived at Metz, they were quickly drawn into a stalemate with the German defenders for weeks over control of the city and its perimeter. Upon sustaining heavy losses attacking the fortifications, it was clear to the Americans that Fort Driant would have to be taken to establish effective control of the fortifications around the city. Patton declared the fort an easy target, and committed elements of the 5th Infantry Division to the attack.

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