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.
The Brewers’ House was built by 1553 by Gilbert Van Schoonbeke. It supplied the breweries in Nieuwstad with water from the ditches around the fortifications and Herentalse Vaart.
Bonaparte Lock, which dates from 1811, was Antwerp’s first tidal lock. It was built at the same time as Bonaparte Dock and Willem Dock, which were commissioned by Napoleon.
Bonaparte Dock or the Small Dock (Klein Dok) was built in the sixteenth-century Nieuwstad district. This was a 25-hectare site with canals and a residential neighbourhood, called “Boerenkwartier” or the farmers’ neighbourhood.
The Blue Tower was built in the fourteenth century as part of the third city wall. The floor plan of this tower was incorporated in the newly-built Blauwtorenplein.
The palace served as the bishop’s residence until the French transformed it into a hotel for government officials. Napoleon spent the night there on several occasions.
The Bastion of Keizerspoort is part of the Spanish ramparts. After its excavation in 2003, it was preserved in the car park under the National Bank, where the public can visit it for free.
When Suikerrui was rebuilt in 2012, the Archaeology Department was given the opportunity to conduct research in the Aldermen’s House and “Den Teerling” city block.
