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In the 19th century the defensive forts
gradually became out-of-date due to the
development of the artillery guns. By
inventing a more effective artillery in
1859, the centre of defence was transferred
to the protruding forts. The gun-lock was
also invented at that time, which made it
possible to fill the guns from the back. The
invention and usage of more effective
explosives (pyroxylin, nitroglycerine,
melinite and trotyl) also modified the
strategic methods. The development of
firearms also caused major changes in the
warfare. Early in the 19th century the
rifle-range of the hand-guns which were
filled with “black gunpowder” was about
100-200 meters while at the end of the 19th
century magazine arms were used whose
effective range was about 2000 meters. Based
on the above mentioned military
achievements, it can be stated that the
fortification system in Komárno was the last
strength of the contemporary warfare, but
after a few years of its building it also
became out-of-date.
By shifting the defence centre, a new type
of fortress was invented in the 19th century
which can be divided into two main elements,
namely the central fortress (citadel - in
the case of Komárno, it means the Old and
New Fortress) and the protruding forts,
respectively the chains of fortifications.
In 1809 an enormous defensive ring was
built. Between the Small Danube and the
Apály island, this chain of fortification
was built from earth. It went well past the
town walls built in the 17th century. The
fortification work was conducted by the
palatine of the country and that part of
the fortification system was named
Palatine Line for him.
At that time colossal plans were prepared
but the original plans according to which
the fortress could house 200.000 soldiers
changed a lot during its completion. The
first plan dates back to 1810. Unfortunately
it could not be finished, as it required a
large sum of money. However, it was
significant from the point of future plans,
as it encouraged other architects to work
out further plans played a significant role
in the final formation of the fortress in
Komárno. The subsequent plans were a lot
more modest, and they correspond to the
shape of the present fortification system.
For the next construction project, four out
of the six bastions on the Palatine Line
stayed in the foreground temporarily
probably to ensure the protection of the
town in case of a military attack. After the
preparatory work, the final construction
work started, during which the enormous
fortification line was built from stone and
brick. Five bastions and the walls of the
fortress which connected the bastions were
built between 1839 and 1847. The sign “1844”
which can be seen on the east façade of the
Bratislava Gate next to the first bastion,
does not indicate the beginning of
construction work but the year when the gate
was built.
The function of the defence line, which was
built about 2-2.5 km from the central
fortification, was to protect the region
between the rivers Danube and Vaag. The five
bastions are connected with walls and other
ramparts so the building complex forms a
closed line. All the bastions have a
pentagon shape. There is no doubt that the
Palatine Line is a perfect example of the
contemporary fortress architecture, as
during its building all the knowledge was
applied. The Palatine Line also represents a
transition between the old fortification
system and up-to-date defence form. The five
bastions of the Palatine Line are basically
the same; they only differ to a minimal
extent. (different angles, forming the
corners and the angles of refraction of the
retranchment wings). These differences are
not because of the features of the ground
but because of the ”relations of the
bastions to each other” (the protection of
the adjoining bastions etc.). The designers
validated Daniel Speckle’s basic principles,
according to which the side walls of the
bastions had to be perpendicular to the
defence line of the adjoining bastion. This
basic principle was validated to the full
extent in case of the first three bastions,
while in case of the fourth and fifth
bastions it was only partly followed.
The defence line is parallel with the water
ditches which connect the adjoining
bastions; on the wing, which leads from the
adjoining bastion to the bastions between,
it corresponds with the line of the
counterscarp. The walls which connect the
two bastions are broken a bit in the middle,
thereby dividing the wall into two wings; at
the breaking a bastion was built on which a
gun-emplacement was formed. On the walls of
the fortress they placed two batteries on
each of the right and left wings of the
walls and the third was placed in the centre
of the middle bastion. The batteries stood
out from the walls so that from the middle
bastions the defenders could open fire at
the enemy from two floors. The walls between
the batteries are lower and there is a
narrow path there. In the walls there is a
wide passage which connects the adjoining
bastions.
The passage was divided into 23-23 halls,
from each of which four loopholes faced the
ditches. Two sets of three casemates with
four loopholes each were connected to the
two passage wings. In case of full usage of
the passage in the region between the two
adjoining bastions, 200-210 guns faced the
water ditches out of the loopholes of the
escarpment. The length of the escarpment
between the two bastions was about 2 x 185
m.
Apart from bastion I, the bastions of the
Palatine Line are all symmetrical. The
asymmetrical shape of bastion I is
explained by its function, because it had
to protect not only the bank of the river
Danube but also the main gate of the town
(Bratislava Gate) due to its position. The
groundplans and sizes of bastions II and IV
are exactly the same. Bastion III was the
central bastion of the Palatine Line. Its
ramparts and walls enclosed an angle that
was more blunt than the adjoining
bastions’angle. In the left wings of the
earthen ramparts of bastions I, II and III,
two-storey ammunition depots were
established. In the conception of building
the Palatine Line, they tried to blend the
defence elements developed in the 16th -17th
centuries (heavy artillery defence on the
façade, reinforced side parts) in one
complex defence system. The walls of bastion
II, which form a blunt angle, surround an
empty interior. Its main part consists of
the retranchement and a semicircular
building, which has seven artillery
casemates. The name “retranchement” was
given and used by a famous French military
engineer, Vauban, who planned this fort
element in the second half of the 17th
century. The two symmetrical wings of the
retranchement closed an angle of 173°
towards the forefield. Its side-wings stick
out towards the body of the fortress,
closing the gorge from inside. The width of
the bastions in the Palatine Line is
approximately 210 meters. Let’s see now the
main measurements of bastion II for a more
accurate orientation: gorge 210 meters,
side-walls of the bastion 60 meters, front
walls 108 meters, the front walls close a
145°-angle at the salient, and a 110°-angle
at the corners. The height of the escarpment
from the level of the ditch to the cornice
is about 7 meters.
The walls that strengthen the ramparts of
the bastion are connected with the
protruding side-wings of the retranchement.
There is a gate on both sides of the
retranchement. The interiors of the bastions
in the Palatine Line are empty (not having
been banked with earth), the width of their
earth ramparts is approximately 23 meters,
and a 10 meters –wide pathway was built on
them for the cannons. We can approach the
pathway from the interior on the side-ramps.
The length of the route between the right
and left flank of the bastion through the
passages formed in the side of the
contraescarpment is 540 meters – exclusive
of the length of the retranchement. The
length of both of the wings of the
retranchement is 70 meters from the
capital, 140 meters altogether. The
protruding wings, both with lengths of 20
meters, are joined to these. Adding up the
above mentioned figures, we can state that
the length of the passages and casemates of
a bastion is about 720 meters. If we add to
this figure the length of the passages of
approx. 370 meters formed in the fort walls
which adjoin the bastions, we can conclude
that the total length of the passages and
casemates of the Palatine Line is about 5
km.
Finally, we can state that the Palatine Line
originates from uniting the previously
developed, independent fort elements. The
large number of loopholes formed for the
small arms ammunition and heavy artillery
emplacements, as well as the huge capacity
of military quarters, aknowledge that the
Palatine Line was a unique masterpiece of
its era.
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