Saturday, September 16, 2006

More Forts (2)

Fridaynight didn´t went completely as I planned, so with a bit delay some more fort pics as promised.

This time some pics from Fort Hinderdam (sorry only Dutch) a fort on a small island at the river Vecht. The fort is part of the "Stelling van Amsterdam" a ring of fortifications around Amsterdam developed between 1880 and 1914 and now an Unesco World Heritage Site. The fort was also part of the Hollandse Waterlinie. Although the Defense Line of Amsterdam was build between 1880 and 1914, the history of Hinderdam goes back to the Middle Ages when there was already a fortification that controlled the shipping traffic at the river Vecht. It was a place of dispute between the bishop of Utrecht and the count of Holland, because the river Vecht in those days was an important economic artery and those who controlled Hinderdam could charge toll, an important source of income for the rulers.

The first part of the current fort was build in 1673 and the fort was extended in 1880 during the development of the "Stelling van Amsterdam" and in 1934 a machinegun casemate was added.

Nowadays Fort Hinderdam is owned by the Nature Department and is fallen into decay. It´s a nature resort and a safe haven for bats and rare plants.

Here are some pice to give you an idea.

Enter at own risk

1 comment:

Julie said...

More beautiful pictures, Evert Jan. Makes me want to go back for another visit. :D Hope you and Noriko are well!