What is a fortified town?
A fortified town is a town, village or military complex that is protected all round by defensive works: ramparts, bastions, moats and often outworks such as ravelins. In Dutch it is called a vesting or vestingstad. A fortified town is therefore more than a town with a town wall; the whole system of earthen ramparts and water is designed to withstand a siege.
Layout of a fortified town
From the 16th century onwards, fortress building changed with the rise of the cannon. High, thin town walls became vulnerable. They were replaced by low, thick earthen ramparts that absorbed cannonballs. Typical elements:
- Bastion: a five-sided projecting work at the corners of the rampart, so that defenders could fire along the walls and there were no blind spots.
- Curtain wall: the straight stretch of rampart between two bastions.
- Moat: a wide watercourse around the rampart.
- Ravelin: a detached outwork in the moat in front of the curtain wall.
In the Netherlands, the so-called Old Dutch system of fortification developed during the Eighty Years’ War, making extensive use of earth and water. Well-known, well-preserved fortified towns in the Netherlands include Naarden, Heusden, Willemstad and Bourtange.
Application: living and building in a fortified town
- Take the protected townscape into account: in the Netherlands the centre of many fortified towns is a beschermd stads- of dorpsgezicht (protected town or village conservation area). Stricter rules then apply to facade alterations, dormers or new buildings; check the municipality’s omgevingsplan (environmental plan).
- Ramparts and moats are often a rijksmonument (national monument): digging, raising or building on or against the rampart is usually not allowed without a permit.
- Archaeology: the ground of fortified towns often contains remains of older buildings and defensive works. Archaeological investigation may be required for groundworks.
- Soil and foundations: ramparts consist of heaped-up earth. Building on or next to a rampart requires a proper ground investigation because of possible settlement.
Related terms
- Bastion
- Bulwark
- Curtain wall
- Ravelin
- Moat
- Casemate
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