Read the following text and do the tasks that follow : The Maginot Line was one of the largest military structures ever built, second only to the Great Wall of China. It was a series of bunkers,…

Read the following text and do the tasks that follow :

The Maginot Line was one of the largest military structures ever built, second only to the Great Wall of China. It was a series of bunkers, forts, turrets, and obstacles that spanned more than 450 miles of France's border with Germany. Built between 1930 and 1940, it was one of the world's most impressive forts, yet it proved to be almost useless.

The Maginot Line was named after the man who argued for its construction, French Minister of War Andre Maginot. Andre Maginot had fought with the French against the Germans in the First World War. Much of this conflict took place along the Western Front, which was a line of trenches across which the two sides faced one another. Both sides dug in deep and each lost many men over little ground. Conditions were horrid for all and there was a stalemate for many years as neither side was able to move the other.

Maginot never forgot these awful conditions. He wanted to build a line of defenses that would give the French and advantage in a similar conflict. He feared, rightfully so that the Germans would attack France again. Germany's population nearly doubled France's. The line of defenses that Maginot pictured would allow a smaller French army to hold off a large German force. In 1929, Maginot convinced the French Parliament to fund his vision.

Though calling it a line makes it seem thin, the Maginot Line was in fact quite deep. It was fifteen miles wide at some points and varied in structure. There were outposts disguised as houses. These were manned by troops and rigged with explosives. There were antitank rails and obstacles. These were planted in the ground to prevent tanks and trucks from passing. There were bunkers armed with mounted machine guns and anti-tank guns. These were for pushing back attackers. And there were many large and small fortresses along the line. Each had mess halls, lots of supplies, and air conditioning. The Maginot line would give the French a supreme edge in the case of a head- on invasion by the Germans.

Unfortunately for the French, the Germans did not attack head-on. They positioned a decoy army in front of the line to distract the French. While the French waited, the Germans snuck a larger force through Belgium. Belgium is France's northeastern neighbor. The French did have some defenses along their border with Belgium, but this part of the Maginot line was weak. The Germans made quick work of these defenses. Within five days of their initial attack they were well into France.

Once they were in France, the Germans attempted to seize the main forts along the Maginot Line. They were not successful. The forts had proved to be strong, but they failed to hold back the Germans. The Germans had taken Paris, France's capital city. Soon after the French commander ordered his men to stand down. He commanded the French defenders to leave their bases along the Maginot Line. These soldiers were then taken to Prisoner of War (POW) camps.

A. Complete the following sentences using the words that are highlighted in the text. Two of them are not necessary. [5×1=5]

• a. The battle of Nuwakot which was fought in 1744 is also called the ..... of Nuwakot.
• b. A number of people became homeless during the ........ between the nations.
• c. Although she was new in the film industry, her performance was very ..... .
• d. I am sure she had a clear ......... of what she wanted to do.
• e. In some cases, the pet dogs have been abused and kept in ........ conditions.

B. Read the text again and write- TRUE if the statements agree with the information given in the text. FALSE if the statements contradict the information given in the text. NOT GIVEN if there is no information in the text. [5×1=5]

• a. France built the Maginot Line along its border with Germany in the 1930s.
• b. The line of trenches at the Western Front extended from the Belgium coast through northeast France.
• c. Andre Maginot was not able to convince the French Parliament to allocate funds for his project.

• d. The outposts built in the Maginot Line were used by the French people as a residential area.
• e. The German troops entered France through the Belgian part of the Maginot Line without any difficulty.

C. Answer the following questions. [5×1=5]

• a. Why do you think the Maginot Line is built ?
• b. Compare the size of population between Germany and France in the 1930s.
• c. Why are antitank obstacles planted in the ground ?
• d. How do the Germans fool the French army ?
• e. Do you think the German troops would have succeeded if they had not attacked France through Belgian part ? Give a reason.