The palace in Meir was built in 1745 and was subsequently transformed into an imperial and royal residence respectively, after which it finally became a palace for the public.
One century after the quays were re-aligned by Napoleon, the port was deemed unsuitable for navigation. The re-alignment works lasted from 1877 until 1887. The medieval fortress was demolished in the process.
Actually Antwerp never was a hanseatic city. However, the German Hanseatic League owned two buildings here from 1468 onwards. In 1564, it built the Hanseatic House in Nieuwstad.
The Spanish ramparts were expanded in the south with a citadel in the second half of the sixteenth century. The citadel was designed to protect and control the city.
The city district known as “Het Zuid” is built on Antwerp’s former citadel. This pentagonal structure was built in the sixteenth century under Spanish rule.
Antwerp’s fortress was fortified in the Middle Ages with a wall made of Tournaisian limestone, which you can still see today in a new-build project in Zakstraat.
The Fortress of Antwerp was fortified in the Middle Ages with a wall built of Tournaisian limestone. The wall was cut through when Vleeshuisstraat was built.
