Fort, vesting en -onderdelen, Bloklaan 9

English translation

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Description

Cluster 15. Fort construction and earthworks, (remains of) roads, gun emplacement sites, remises, wet moat with outer banks, breastworks and military zone historically marked by stone posts.

NEW HOLLANDSE WATERLINIE

Introduction

FORT CONSTRUCTION AND EARTHWORKS, (REMAINS OF) ROADS, GUN EMPLACEMENT SITES, REMISES, WET MOAT WITH OUTER BANKS, BREASTWORKS AND MILITARY ZONE HISTORICALLY MARKED BY STONE POSTS as basic components of defensive works. Forts were usually constructed on the basis of previously constructed earthen structures, which served as a foundation and prevented subsidence in (wet and soft) soil. In the construction of the forts, besides this usually already tactically 'preformed' earthen body - which could itself already fulfil a defensive role - a specific layout was also realised which was intended to increase the defensive strength, inter alia through the inclusion of gun emplacement sites, ensuring the safety of the garrison and facilitating internal and external transport and traffic. This resulted, among other things, in earthen coverings for various structures, to make them less vulnerable to enemy fire, earthen ramparts that covered the buildings and open areas and determined the contours, and paved paths and parade grounds. Forts were usually surrounded by one or more wet or dry moats to impede any approach to the rampart or fort grounds as long as possible. Forts were normally only accessible via one or more bridges or via a narrow isthmus. Where for reasons of water management or other reasons a permanent direct connection between inside and outside existed, this was executed in such a way that it could not or only with great difficulty be crossed. The application of so-called chevaux de frise, monks and / or barriers was customary for this purpose. Along the outer side of the moats there was often a road or path. This component could be laid out both in the form of a covered way (glacis / enveloppe), as well as at or above ground level. These roads or paths could have different functions, ranging from public road to maintenance path, and also from military covered way to exclusive access road to the fort. Outside the wet moat there is moreover often a zone (historically and still in part) marked with boundary posts as such over which the Ministry of War had jurisdiction, the Military Land. Fort Spion was largely surrounded by the extensive Loosdrechtse Plassen, but within this a separate moat. The virtually east-west oriented Bloklaan was and is a dike connection running through these ponds created by peat extraction. The fort was laid out in the axis of the Bloklaan, with the road led south around the fort, whereby this could also partly serve as a maintenance road for the moat bank. The zone over which the Ministry of War had jurisdiction extends beyond the maintenance road partly over the water surface of the ponds.

Description

FORT CONSTRUCTION AND EARTHWORKS, (REMAINS OF) ROADS, GUN EMPLACEMENT SITES, REMISES, WET MOAT WITH OUTER BANKS, BREASTWORKS AND MILITARY ZONE HISTORICALLY MARKED BY STONE POSTS of Fort Kijkuit. The fort consists essentially of a virtually circular earthen structure, which is surrounded by an equally virtually circular wet moat whose main contours were realised in the years 1844-1847. The earthworks and slopes lie at different levels, which among other things reflect the locations of some underlying structures and of coverings and gun emplacement sites. The fort moat and the outer banks, with diversion road (south side) and maintenance path, are still present and easily recognisable. West of the work - outside the moat, on the gorge side - extra fortifications were added around 1886 in the form of earthworks and gun emplacement sites. Part of the road and path system within and around the fort is still recognisable.

Valuation

FORT CONSTRUCTION AND EARTHWORKS, (REMAINS OF) ROADS, GUN EMPLACEMENT SITES, REMISES, WET MOAT WITH OUTER BANKS, BREASTWORKS AND MILITARY ZONE HISTORICALLY MARKED BY STONE POSTS are of general importance because of:

* Cultural-historical values as part of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie as designed by C.R.T. Kraijenhoff and initially realised from 1815 by him, Jan Blanken and major-engineer Willem Offerhaus and subsequently strengthened and improved by others for more than 125 years.

* Architectural-historical values in particular as an expression of military-strategic construction, which is based on:

a. the system of inundation and access defence (19th century),

b. the race with increasingly powerful offensive means (19th century)

The component is an example of an earthen layout with roads and paths and of an ensemble of structures with earthen covering for various functions, with a wet moat and a military zone marked by means of boundary posts, the whole from the period 1844-1847, but improved and extended in later development phases, among other things with an earthwork located on the gorge side of the fort.

* Ensemble value and situational values because of its location within the system of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie in general, because of the basic relationship with the other components of the complex and in particular because of the virtually intact relationship with the field of fire.

* The component is highly representative because it shows the system of access defence in a largely undamaged physical environment.

* The component is well preserved because it shows in virtually unchanged form the system of protection by means of earthen covering.