Scrabble?! REDUITS

Definitions of REDUITS in various dictionaries:

The Swiss National Redoubt (German: Schweizer Reduit; French: Réduit national; Italian: Ridotto nazionale; Romansh: Reduit nazional) was a defensive plan developed by the Swiss government beginning in the 1880s to respond to foreign invasion. In the opening years of the Second World War the plan was expanded and refined to deal with a potential German invasion, that was planned, but never carried out. The term "National Redoubt" primarily refers to the fortifications begun in the 1880s that secured the mountainous central part of Switzerland, providing a defended refuge for a retreating Swiss Army. The National Redoubt encompassed a widely distributed set of fortifications on a general east-west line through the Alps, centering on three major fortress complexes: Fortresses St. Maurice, St. Gotthard, and Sargans. These fortresses primarily defended the alpine crossings between Germany and Italy and excluded the industrialized and populated heart of Switzerland. The Swiss heartlands were defended by the defenses of the "Border Line", and the "Army Position" somewhat farther back. While not intended as an impassable barrier, these lines contained significant fortifications. Conversely, the National Redoubt was planned as a nearly impregnable complex of fortifications that would deny an aggressor passage over or through the Alps by controlling the major mountain passes and railway tunnels running north-to-south through the region. This strategy was intended to deter an invasion altogether by denying Switzerland's crucial transportation infrastructure to an aggressor. The National Redoubt has been the subject of debate in Swiss society, with many fortifications decommissioned by the early 21st century.