Middelburg

From the beginning of the Eighty Years' War, Middelburg was destroyed several times and the area around the town came under the influence of the sea. When the States conquered neighbouring Aardenburg in 1604, the Spaniards immediately started to fortify Middelburg. Instead of stone walls and wooden gates, there were cannon-fire-resistant earthen ramparts and small bastions. The castle was lowered and fortified. Later, large bastions were added at the corners of the rampart. Today, the shape of the bastioned city is still clearly recognizable. The position of the two bastions on the border can be recognized by the plot shapes. Even the contours of the eastern bastion are still clearly visible, thanks to a recent reprofiling.

Ontdek de Zwinregio