Fort Mont-Valérien, Military fortress on Mont Valérien, Suresnes, France

Fort Mont-Valérien is a pentagonal fortress sitting atop a hill with a memorial to Fighting France inaugurated in 1960. The compound spans multiple municipalities and combines historical military structures with modern memorial and exhibition spaces.

The fortress was originally built in the 19th century under King Louis-Philippe as a defensive installation. During World War II, the German army occupied it and used it as an execution site until liberation arrived in 1944.

The name Mont-Valérien derives from Saint-Valère, a martyr venerated on the hill, where hermits settled from the late Middle Ages and a calvary drew pilgrims until the Revolution. Since 1945 the site has been a national memorial: Charles de Gaulle consecrated the fortress on 18 June 1945, and the Mémorial de la France combattante, inaugurated on 18 June 1960, stands against its southern wall.

The fortress itself is a working military site, so individual access is limited: the military pigeon museum opens to individuals during the annual European Heritage Days and to groups by appointment. The Mémorial de la France combattante stands outside the walls, against the southern enclosure, and can be reached without entering the fort. The site lies on the Mont Valérien hill in Suresnes, about two kilometres west of Paris.

The fortress houses Europe's last active military dovecote and a museum dedicated to military messenger pigeons. These specialized birds played a surprisingly important role as messengers during wartime conflicts.