Bomvrij militair object, Betonnen werken tussen Fort Hinderdam en Fort Kijkuit Hinderdam (Stichtse Vecht 26)

English translation

The text above is the record as published by the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed, in Dutch. The English below is a machine translation made by TreeAlive, not by the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed; it has not been checked by a person. Where the two differ, the original is the record. Report a translation error: privacy@treealive.com

Description

Cluster 12. Group Shelters Type P.

NEW HOLLANDIC WATERLINE

see also monument number: 531406

Introduction

GROUP SHELTERS TYPE P as 20th-century, serially constructed additions to the existing defence. The Group Shelters Type P were built according to more or less uniform or standard designs (especially) in the years 1939-1940 in multiple locations in the Netherlands. The total number of constructed examples amounts to approximately 700, of which in the New Hollandic Waterline approximately 570; the majority (c. 400) of these still exist. The construction programme of the Group Shelters Type P was not completed at the outbreak of the Second World War and a number of examples are known never to have been completed. Type P (also called 'the pyramid' owing to its distinctive shape) is presumably the most well-known type of concrete defensive structure in the Netherlands. The type emerged from the so-called VIS 77 (Instructions for Installation of Positions no. 77), from 1928 and had among other purposes the function of forming part of the defence of a number of new accesses, including especially (motorway) roads. The Group Shelter Type P usually came into being in the immediate vicinity of already existing or contemporaneously realised casemates, gun emplacements, fortifications or trenches. Because the trenches and other earthworks were subsequently levelled or demolished almost everywhere, the concrete shelters nowadays often lie partly below ground level. The entirely closed front or forward side of the Group Shelters Type P was in many cases covered by earthworks which could form part of a glacis for protection of the trench or a covered way. These earthworks are now mostly no longer present or only barely recognisable, but particularly on forts or in otherwise uneven terrain they are sometimes still present. Numerous examples of Type P were built in inundable areas, in a number of cases with a still-visible timber-pile foundation; in others a surrounding foundation platform or also a trough against inundation water is visible.

Description

The GROUP SHELTERS TYPE P have been preserved in limited numbers in the northern part of the complex, at the level of Nederhorst den Berg and lie there to the east of the former Reevaart, on the transition to the peat-lakes area and partly even on so-called settlement mounds. In the southern part of the complex several examples lie in a clearly linear relationship along and in the vicinity of the eastern Vecht riverbanks and dykes between the settlements Overmeer and Vreeland. The shelters are one storey high and, usually executed in reinforced concrete of approximately 100 to 180 cm thick cast concrete, formed a shellproof military shelter which could provide protection for 10-12 personnel of infantry / artillery, at protection class W 12-15 or W 21-28. On the Eastern Front most belong to the heaviest class. Group Shelters Type P were built on a rectangular ground plan with dimensions ranging from approximately 5.50 x 7.20 x 4.70 m to 6.50 x 8.20 x 4.90 (w x d x h). The visible height above ground level varies however. Both blind side walls and the rear wall are executed vertically up to approximately 3 m height. Above this these walls bend inward at approximately 45° before continuing into a flat roof. On the right in the rear wall is an (later either closed or left open), usually square access opening at locally varying height above ground level. The entirely vertical, closed front wall reflects the 45° angles and thus ends as a 'truncated pointed gable'. In a number of cases iron hooks or brackets were cast into the wall(s) which could serve for fixing of camouflage material. A characteristic component on top of the Type P shelter is the conical, concrete 'outlet', which was intended for use of a periscope. These periscopes were in practice however rarely or never installed. The interior of the Group Shelters Type P consists of a short passage (usually with a concrete retaining wall or balustrade and usually a few descending steps) and from there a 'lock chamber' directed to the left which had to be closable by means of a (consisting of multiple parts) heavy steel door with bolts. Via a second, similar door the right-hand access led to a rear space, virtually square in shape, the actual shelter. The entrance could be covered by gunfire from this space through a rifle embrasure. The steel doors were however rarely or never installed and the entrances were later often closed with brickwork and plastered. 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 firearm for covering the entrance.

Valuation

The GROUP SHELTERS TYPE P are of general importance because of:

* Cultural-historical values as part of the New Hollandic Waterline 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 over approximately 125 years.

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

These are components from the period 1939-1940. These components are examples of reinforced concrete personnel shelters (Type P / Pyramid).

* Ensemble value and situational values as components of the New Hollandic Waterline and owing to the functional and physical coherence with the other components of the complex.

* The components are representative (characteristic) because they are clearly recognisable as components of a deconcentrated defence line added to the existing fortification system.

* The components are preserved in fairly good condition and can still be well recognised in the field as built components.