An incredible fortress on a mountaintop was abandoned during the Second World War.

       Fort de Malamot is a defensive barracks on the summit of Mont Malamot in the Alps. Sat on the border between Italy and France, during use it could house around 200 troops.

       The fort, at an altitude of 2,850m (9,350ft), was built in 1889 by the Italians to monitor the Mont Cenis Alpine pass to France to counter any attacks that could come from ？？Lake Bianco and the northern slope of Mount Pattacroce

       It was served by the military road Bivio Varisello-Giaset-Malamot , approximately 8,700 metres long and currently no longer passable in its entirety by motor vehicles.

       Fort de Malamot was the highest-altitude military construction in Italy until the construction of the Chaberton battery, in Susa Valley, ten years later.

       READ MORE Beautiful European river city that's a 'special jewel' and survived 20 bombings [REPORT]

       It was a two-storey stone fortress made up of three separate buildings that followed the mountainous contours of the terrain. It had two rows of loopholes for close-range defence and two caponiers for machine guns.

       To the northwest there was a protected walkway which led to the observatory on the top of Mount Malamot, mere metres from the boundary stone then present.

       This observatory, left following the abandonment of the entire barracks, was then used again in the ‘30s for cave work.

       DON'T MISS

       One of the oldest countries that's 8 years behind the rest of the world [LATEST]

       Britain's 'most miserable' town that's about to become part of London [REPORT]

       Unearthed World War 1 discovery tears two families' lives apart [INSIGHT]

       Following Italy's defeat in the Second World War and the conditions of the Treaty of Paris, the Mont Cenis area were ceded to France, including Mount Malamot.

       The barracks, already abandoned during the Second World War, are currently in a poor state of conservation. Nothing remains of the floors of the three buildings, much less of the roof.

       Today, the barracks offer exceptional views over the Mont Cenis Lake, with immense turquoise waters and unspoilt mountain pastures.