Tour Kessler - Kaysersberg

The 22 meter high Kessler Tower or "Kessler Turm" is the tallest of the 6 original defense towers around Kaysersberg. The square tower was built in 1371. The original gateway to the tower is the one at the top. It was accessed by a ladder, which was removed to protect it from attackers!

A memorial plaque on the wall of the tower commemorates the 20 internees who were awaiting deportation during the Nazi occupation:

"In memory of the 79 internees who became victims of Hitler's barbarism. On February 15, 1943, the occupying forces organized the Kaysersberg review committee. Violent demonstrations led to the arrest of about thirty people, 20 conscription evaders were imprisoned in this tower awaiting their tragic The patriot Henri JAEGLE was shot in the camp Struthof, followed by the names of 20 conscripts in the resistance.
Today, the Kessler tower has a more peaceful image with a stork's nest on the tip of the pavilion roof.

Willem Vandenameele