Moats and ravelins

Submitted by gerda on Mon, 02/27/2017 - 12:12

A citadel was never built separately. Instead it was the centrepiece of a sophisticated design, with moats and other obstacles. A wide moat encircled the citadel’s outer walls. This moat was bordered with a wall, called contrescarp, on the outside. Here archaeologists found remnants of that wall and the steps that led to the moat.
In 1750, Empress Maria Theresia ordered that a ravelin be built here. This is an outwork, which was surrounded by a new moat, which provided additional protection as a minor fortification built outside the defences. The ravelin in this location protected the citadel’s main entrance, which was nearby.

Link: 
Credits for the illustrations
GISid: 
094
Afbeelding: 
Detail from a sixteenth-century map of the citadel, indicating the steps to the moat
The citadel and the indication of the ravelin that was built here to protect the main entrance
Archaeologists unearthed the cobbled incline adjacent to the moat wall
There was an older brick staircase just under the incline
Latitude: 
51.21
Longitude: 
4.39

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