Fort, vesting en -onderdelen, Fort Honswijk Schalkwijk (Houten 26)

English translation

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Description

Cluster 61. Remnant inundation sluice.

NEW HOLLANDIC WATER LINE

Introduction

REMANT INLET, INUNDATION SLUICE / CHECK SLUICE as a military-hydraulic engineering component of the inundation systems for the area east and south-east of Utrecht. The defence system of the New Hollandic Water Line was primarily based on the controlled flooding of (large) terrain surfaces. Controlled inundation required an ingenious system of waterworks, such as sluices, weirs and canals, with which the necessary water level could be quickly set and maintained within narrow limits. Many different types of sluices were employed, depending on their location in the system. Sometimes already existing shipping, drainage or check sluices were used, but many new ones were also built or existing ones (substantially) adapted. The inundation sluices at Fort Honswijk belonged to the latter category. These primarily involved a large inlet sluice for Lek water to the north-east of the counterscarp gallery at the tower fort. In addition, there were two smaller examples in the quay around the outside of the moat around the fort, one on the north-east side and one on the east side. One of the two sluices in the quay has been removed; the other, with a bridge on the diversion road above it, is still visibly present. The large sluice had a primary function for the inundation of the low areas to the south-east of the city of Utrecht and as a check sluice, with which a part of the wet moat around the fort could be maintained at the desired level. The inlet, inundation sluice / check sluice was partially demolished around 1985 during the reinforcement of the Lek dike, but the sluice heads are said to have been incorporated into the dike body.

Description

REMANT INLET, INUNDATION SLUICE / CHECK SLUICE

Inlet, inundation sluice / check sluice dating from 1845 in the Northern Lek Dike east of Fort Honswijk, consisting of three brick masonry heads and - as evidenced by a drawing of the fort from 1909 and (aerial) photographs - two approximately 35 metre long and 5.00 m wide culverts or chambers. Groove seatings for shutter planks have been provided in the heads at multiple locations, and the sluice was fitted with sluice gates on the Lek side. The shutter planks could be lowered and raised with windlasses, which were fitted with a sheet-iron protective cap at a later stage. The sluice chamber was sealed with a concrete wall in 1940, was later filled with earth, and subsequently in 1985 was presumed to have been partially demolished and incorporated into the dike body.

Valuation

REMANT INLET, INUNDATION SLUICE / CHECK SLUICE is of general importance on account of:

* Cultural historical values as a component of the New Hollandic Water Line as designed by C.R.T. Kraijenhoff and initially implemented from 1815 by him, Jan Blanken and Major-Engineer Willem Offerhaus, and subsequently strengthened and improved by others over approximately 125 years.

* Archaeological and architectural historical values, in particular as an expression of construction related to military-strategic engineering, which was based on the system of inundation and access defence (19th century).

This concerns an expression of historical hydraulic engineering related to military-strategic building construction, namely a large inlet, inundation sluice / check sluice from 1845.