of the Alpine Line. Under the terms of the armistice, the frontier became a demilitarized zone, at least as far as French forces were concerned, deep. It was nominally occupied by Italian forces, but the French forces had surrendered to the Germans. Units The 72nd Alpine Fortress Battalion was, on mobilization in 1939, the source of the 82nd, 92nd and 102nd BAFs, as the battalion's four companies grew in size. The battalion was stationed at Briançon at the Fort du Randouillet and the Fort de Queyras. After mobilization the reorganized battalion held the Gondran-Aittes quarter, occupying ouvrages Janus, Gondran and Les Aittes. Interval troops held the crest of the Gondran massif and the road at Clôt Enjaime. In May 1940 the battalion took up its positions as soon as high-altitude snows permitted. The battalion saw action on 23 June against the Italian 30th Infantry Regiment at the avant-poste Chenaillet, losing 19 captured in foggy conditions. After the June 25 armistice the 72nd returned to Briançon, then moved on to the southeast of Gap, where it was dissolved on 31 July. Active-duty personnel were incorporated into the Vichy French bataillon départmental des Hautes-Alpes at Gap and a guard unit at Briançon. 1944 During the Occupation, the completed ouvrages had been provided with caretakers and were kept in good condition. With the Normandy landings, the French Resistance was instructed to impede German reinforcements from reaching northwest France by sabotaging the choke points through the Alps. The Petit Saint-Bernard, the Mont-Cenis and the Col de Larche were to be blocked. On 15 August 1944, the Operation Dragoon landings were accomplished by the Allies against light opposition. Briançon, which had been occupied by the German 5th Gebirgsjäger Division, was evacuated on 24 August and occupied by Resistance forces. However, the Germans remained in the surrounding fortresses, and the 90th Panzergrenadier Division mounted an unsuccessful counterattack against American patrols and French forces, operating from the Fort du Randouillet. The newly arrived 4th RTM and 3rd Moroccan under Colonel Molle mounted an offensive to drive the Germans over the Col du Montgenèvre starting on 4 September, and taking Gondran, Infernet, Croix-de-Bretagne, Chenaillet and Janus the same day. Randouillet and the Fort des Têtes were captured on the 6th, but German forces on the crest of the Col du Montgenèvre continued to fire into Briançon. The area around Les Fourches and Restfond was captured by French and