Schuilplaats, Betonnen werken Maarsseveen - De Klop

English translation

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Description

Cluster 27. Group Shelters Type P (pyramid).

NEW HOLLANDSE WATERLINIE

Introduction

Within the complex Concrete Works Maarsseveen - De Klop, GROUP SHELTERS TYPE P are located in several places, which were built as part of the defence of the accesses Maarsseveensche Dijk, Nedereindsche Dijk and Klopdijk / Kerkeindsche Dijk and of some small inundation and dam sluices in the bank area of the Vecht. Some of the specimens within the complex now lie within the built-up area of Maarssen; it is presumed that various other concrete works have been demolished or have become invisible.

Group Shelters Type P were built according to a more or less uniform or standard design (especially) in the years 1939-1940 in several places in the Netherlands. The total number of built specimens amounts to approximately 700, of which in the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie approximately 570; the majority (ca. 400) of these still exist. The building programme of the Group Shelters Type P was not completed at the outbreak of the Second World War and a number of specimens are known to have never been completed. Type P (also called 'the pyramid' because of its distinctive shape) is presumed to be the most well-known type of concrete defensive work in the Netherlands. The type originated from the so-called VIS 77 (Regulation for Setting Up Positions no. 77), from 1928, and had among other things the purpose of being part of the defence of a number of existing and new accesses, including especially (highway)s and (electrified or to be electrified) railways. The Group Shelter Type P usually came into being in the immediate vicinity of already existing or at the same time realised casemates, gun emplacements, fortifications or trenches. Because the trenches and other (earthen) works were subsequently almost everywhere levelled or demolished, the concrete shelters nowadays often lie partly below ground level. The front or face side of the group shelters Type P, which was completely closed from of old, was in many cases covered by earthworks which could form part of a glacis for the protection of the trench or a covered way. These earthworks are now usually no longer present or only with difficulty recognisable, but in particular on forts or in otherwise uneven terrain they are sometimes still present. There are various variants of Type P, both in terms of dimensions and protective class as well as in execution and detailing. For instance, there are specimens built in the protective classes W 15-21 and W 21-28 with dimensions ranging from approximately 5.50 x 7.20 x 4.70 m to 6.50 x 8.20 x 4.90 m (w x d x h). Numerous specimens of Type P were built in inundatable areas, in a number of cases a visible pile foundation was used, while often a retaining wall and occasionally a trough with stairs for the retention of inundation water was inserted in the then elevated, square access and in still others a projecting concrete foundation plate all around is present.

Description

GROUP SHELTERS TYPE P are single-storey, usually approximately 100 to 180 cm thick, reinforced cast concrete structures, shrapnel-proof, military shelters, which could provide shelter for 10-12 infantrymen / artillerymen. The three specimens on the Fort at Rijnauwen and the glacis belong to the heaviest class. One of them is almost entirely embedded in the northeastern main wall of the fort; the other two - one of which is unfinished - lie in the glacis. Of these, one lies in the southeastern part of the glacis, where the contour of the associated group nest is still recognisable, and the other lies approximately opposite Flank Battery 4. The Group Shelters Type P were built on a rectangular ground plan. The visible height above ground level varies. Both blind side walls and the gorge side are executed vertically to approximately 3 m height. Above this, these walls slope inward at an angle of approximately 45° and subsequently pass into a flat roof. On the right in the gorge side is at locally varying height above ground level an (later either sealed or not) access opening. The entirely vertical, closed front side reflects the 45° angles and thus ends as a 'truncated pointed gable'. In the façade(s) are cast iron hooks or brackets that could serve to attach camouflage material. A characteristic component on top of the Type P shelter is the conical, concrete 'outlet', which was intended for the application of a periscope. These periscopes, however, were never actually installed. The interior of the Group Shelters Type P consists of a short passage (usually with a concrete retaining wall and usually a few descending steps) and from there a 'lock' directed to the left which could be sealed by a (consisting of several parts) heavy, steel door with bolts. Via a second, comparable door the rear compartment could be reached turning right, the actual shelter. The access could be covered from this room by a firing port. However, the steel doors were never installed; in a number of cases wooden doors were. The ceilings located at approximately two metres above floor level are flat and rectangular. In a number of cases interior components are still present, such as (remains of) wooden benches or a support for the closure of the firing port for covering the entrance.

The Group Shelters belonging to the complex Concrete Works Maarsseveen - De Klop are clearly visible above ground level and are not (any longer) provided with an earth covering.

Evaluation

The GROUP SHELTERS TYPE P 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 reinforced and improved by others for approximately 125 years.

* Architectural-historical values in particular as an expression of military-strategic building art, which is based on: a. the system of inundation and access defence (19th and 20th century), b. the competition with strengthening offensive means (20th century) c. the system of 'living' field fortification (20th century)

These are components from the period 1939-1940, namely examples of reinforced concrete soldiers' shelters Type Pyramid (now) without earth covering.

* Ensemble value and situational values as part of the Nieuwe Hollandse Waterlinie. Also because of the functional and physical coherence with the other components of the complex.

* The components are partly representative (characteristic) because they were added as elements of a decentralised defence (line) to the existing fortification system and as such are recognisable, but their linear situation is no longer well recognisable.

* The components are reasonably well preserved because they are individually as built components fairly easily recognisable in the field.