Fort at the Ossenmarkt

Listen to the audio tour: https://523.myt.li/tours/1096365371/stops/1542625512/index.html

Fort Ossenmarkt now has a peaceful function as a gathering place for cultural and historical institutions, but it was built as a defensive fort during times of war. It is one of the many military reminders in Weesp, which historically played an important role in the defense of Amsterdam as part of the New Dutch Waterline. The location of the fort was strategically chosen to protect the Vecht, the locks, and the Amsterdam-Amersfoort railway. It was built around 1860 as one of the last forts of the New Dutch Waterline and is a marvel of brick architecture due to the unique construction of its round corridors. It was precisely that brick that soon made such forts vulnerable, as the high-explosive shell was invented in the late 19th century. And there was no thick wall that could withstand that! Thus, the forts lost their defensive function.

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