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Fort Plassendale

1581 in the Habsburg NetherlandsBuildings and structures in West FlandersForts in BelgiumMilitary installations closed in 1783Military installations established in the 16th century
Military installations of Belgium
Atlas de Wit 1698 pl109 Plassendaal KB PPN 145205088
Atlas de Wit 1698 pl109 Plassendaal KB PPN 145205088

Fort Plassendale is a former fortress, located in Oudenburg, Belgium at the crosspoint of the Ghent-Bruges-Ostend canal and the Plassendale-Nieuwpoort canal. The fortress served during the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), the War of Devolution (1667–1668), the Franco-Dutch War (1672–1678), the Nine Years' War (1688–1697), the War of Spanish Succession (1701–1713) and the war of Austrian Succession (1740–1748). Due to its location, it was mainly of logistical importance. As of 2025, the only remaining structure is the so-called Spanish Toll House (Dutch: Spaans Tolhuis), which is being restored since 2018. The fortress as a whole was built in commission of the Franc of Bruges, according to the plans made by Pieter Pourbus after the Act of abjuration (1581). It served during six different wars and was demolished shortly after the nearby port of Ostend was declared a Free-trade zone by Joseph II in 1781. Among the permanent residents were inn keepers, brewers, lock keepers, contractors, and boat-pulling people (so-called ketsers). In the inheritance documents of the local population, traces were found of porcelain, brought in by the Ostend trading company, as well as pole vaulting material to jump over ditches and specially designed eel forks.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Fort Plassendale (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Fort Plassendale
Plassendale,

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Wikipedia: Fort PlassendaleContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 51.209444444444 ° E 3.0038888888889 °
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Address

Plassendale 12
8460 (Oudenburg)
West Flanders, Belgium
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Atlas de Wit 1698 pl109 Plassendaal KB PPN 145205088
Atlas de Wit 1698 pl109 Plassendaal KB PPN 145205088
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Fort Napoleon, Ostend
Fort Napoleon, Ostend

Fort Napoleon in Ostend is a polygonal fort built in the Napoleonic era. It has recently been restored and is open to the public. France had occupied the Austrian Netherlands (a territory roughly corresponding to the borders of modern Belgium) during 1792 and 1793 in the Flanders Campaign of the French Revolutionary Wars. During the War of the Fifth Coalition, Napoleon Bonaparte expected a British assault from the sea on the port of Ostend, and the fort was constructed in the sand dunes close to the mouth of the harbour in 1811. The British attack never materialised and the fort was used for troop accommodation and as an arsenal until the end of the French occupation in 1814 when it was abandoned.During World War I, the fort was used as accommodation for a German headquarters, and decorated with murals by German soldier Heinrich Otto Pieper. The heavy coastal artillery battery "Hindenburg" was stationed nearby; it had been transferred there from Fort Heppen, Wilhelmshaven in 1915, and it was armed with four 280 mm (11 inch) guns of 1886-1887 vintage in heavily armored turrets on semi-circular concrete platforms. It was captured by the Belgian army in 1918. The fort was also used as German artillery headquarters during World War II. After the war, it served as a museum and then a children's playground before falling into decay. In 1995, the fort came into the care of Erfgoed Vlaanderen vzw (the Flemish Heritage Association) and following a five-year restoration programme, was opened to the public in April 2000.