Fort van Broechem

En un regard

Le château en bref

Set along the Steenweg op 't Fort in Broechem, this fort belongs to the last generation of works intended to reinforce the main belt of the Antwerp fortress. Decided by the law of 30 March 1906 to keep enemy artillery away from the city, it was begun in 1909, as the frieze over its entrance still recalls: "Fort de Broechem 1909-1912". Its trapezoidal plan, cast in unreinforced concrete, lies beneath masses of earth and remains surrounded by water. Access is by a flat concrete bridge extended by a drawbridge, leading to a projecting gorge front pierced by a round-arched passage with quoined corners. When war broke out, the cupolas were not finished and had to be completed with whatever was at hand. On 6 October 1914, during the siege of Antwerp, German artillery bombarded the fort and heavily damaged it. Decommissioned in 1947, the well-preserved work now lies within a military area and is not freely open to the public.