by Hans Noltes HollandTheRideWay

The New Dutch Waterline

From way back water has not only been an enemy to the Netherlands, but also an ally in times of war. As early as the days of Roman rule the River Rhine was the northern border of the Roman Empire. In the war of independence against the Spanish oppressor (1568-1648) the Spanish Duke of Alva complained that every time he seized a Dutch town or village he had to cross water. Time and again water as an instrument of defence turned out to be very effective. To this very day the city of Leyden celebrates the relief of Leyden on 3 October 1572 when inundation compelled the Spanish troops to withdraw from Leyden’s city gates. Something similar happened in 1672 when the invading French army had to withdraw after land in the Old Dutch Waterline had been flooded.

In order to stop enemies invading from the south or the east a defense system had to be built. By flooding the land with between forty and fifty centimetres of water the enemy could be prevented from advancing into the country on foot or with horse artillery, at the same time making it impossible for them to advance by boat. An ingenious system of sluices, dikes and canals protected both western Holland and the capital of Amsterdam from the enemy. This water defense line was formed by the New Dutch Waterline and the Fortress Ring of Amsterdam.

As a matter of fact, more defense lines can be found in the Netherlands. In the period of the Cold War, when an imminent invasion by the Soviet Army was feared, the Dutch relied on the protection provided by the IJssel Line in eastern Holland.

Between 1815 and 1885 the Old Dutch Waterline was improved and made capable of withstanding modern artillery. It shifted towards the east, thus encompassing the city of Utrecht. The resulting New Dutch Waterline, which from north to south is about 85 kilometres long and 3 to 5 kilometres wide, could be flooded within three weeks and was provided with fortresses, bunkers, line dikes and group shelters. All told, the New Dutch Waterline comprises about 1,000 constructions related to defense works.

The function of the fortresses was to prevent the enemy from entering the country on higher grounds such as sand ridges, dikes, railroad tracks and roads. In these so called accesses there are some 18 fortresses. To guarantee an open line of fire round the fortresses the surrounding area was divided into three zones of 300, 600 and 1000 metres from the fortress. The Prohibited Areas Act of 1853 only allowed the construction of wooden buildings within the first zone. In times of danger these buildings could be demolished quickly.

These prohibited areas were kept in existence for a long time and slowed down the development of the eastern part of urban Utrecht. The New Dutch Waterline also comprised fortified cities like Muiden, Naarden, Gorinchem and Woudrichem.

Three times a state of emergency was proclaimed for the New Dutch Waterline. First in 1870 when the Franco-Prussian war threatened to turn into a European war. The second time was during the First World War and the last time was in 1939 when the Second World War broke out. Invading German troops, however, were flown across the Waterline and after the Second World War the defenses fell into disrepair. The Ministry of Defense sold fortresses to private buyers and Staatsbosbeheer (the National Forest Service in the Netherlands).

The Dutch government’s current plans aim to infuse new life into the New Dutch Waterline as a green belt east of the urban agglomeration of western Holland by developing new residential areas and opening it to tourism. Many fortresses have already started new lives as apartment buildings, wine warehouses, art centres and conference centres. Or they have been returned to nature so that bats and other animals can find quiet shelters there.

The fortresses are often restored by volunteers. Hard work and subsidies are the ingredients that enable them to reconstruct a fortress in its original state (with the exception of the surrounding areas which have become overgrown since the Second World War and which, from a military angle, should be cleared in order to create an open line of fire). The fortress of Werk aan de Korte Uitweg is an example of a small fortress of the New Dutch Waterline. It supports the much larger fortress of Honswijk on the River Lek. Here the original line of fortresses, the hidden communal road, group shelters and fields of inundation have been preserved reasonably well. Its beautiful location and interesting history of restoration and renovation make a visit to the fortress certainly worth your while.

The Fortress Ring of Amsterdam

Being the capital of the country, Amsterdam had to be protected against enemies. If the New Dutch Waterline collapsed the Dutch army would have to be able to withdraw to a National Redoubt to make a last stand. Therefore, between 1880 and 1920, a ring of fortresses (42 in total) was built round the capital, the Fortress Ring of Amsterdam, also called the armour of the capital. Within this 135-km ring the army and the population would have to try and make out for themselves for a while. For this reason the supply of food within the ring would have to be guaranteed. The military commanders also wished to have planes at their disposal and so a meadow south of Amsterdam was allocated to be used as a military airfield. Later this airfield became our Amsterdam Airport.

After the Second World War the fortresses round Amsterdam lost their military significance and the state was no longer prepared to invest in the fortresses. With the help and efforts of a great many volunteers and with government subsidies many fortresses have found a new destination in the past few years, which as a result prevents complete disrepair. Preservation through development is the motto here. In 1996 the Fortress Ring of Amsterdam was included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List (to be found under the heading ”Amsterdam Defense Line”).

As early as the 70's Wijnimport J. Bart (wine importers Bart ) discovered that inside fortresses the conditions for the storage of wine were excellent: a constant temperature, the right percentage of air humidity and a low level of light intrusion. “Some dew on the bottle makes it all the more attractive”. In the 80's Wijnimport J.Bart bought the Fort benoorden Purmerend from the Dutch state.

However, it turned out that this fortress did not meet the needs of modern business management in the field of wholesale - hotels, restaurants, so it had to be adapted to these needs. The greater part of the thick layer of sand which used to be there to absorb the impact of shells has been removed, thus creating storage facilities. Now the fortress contains about 1m bottles of 700 different kinds.

Another measure that had to be taken for logistic reasons was the creation of better accessibility for lorries. To this end a large entrance for lorries was constructed at the front of the fortress and a dam was built across the moat. The concrete of the fortress was so strong that the help of Swiss tunnel engineers had to be called in. They made the holes in the walls. It was also quite a challenge to make offices in a building that had always been dark, musty and moist. Now there are modern work stations that have ample light intensity, ventilation and climate control for some thirty staff.

Wijnimport J. Bart could realize their plans for the renovation of the Fort benoorden Purmerend before the Fortress Ring of Amsterdam had been included in UNESCO’s World Heritage List. If they had sent in their application for this kind of exploitation of the fortress later, it would, no doubt, have been far more difficult to gain approval. Now the fortress has an appeal that Wijnimport J. Bart as importers of exclusive wines would never have been able to find elsewhere. Standing on top of the fortress you can see its vines and take in the beautiful scenery of the Beemster polder, another Dutch World heritage.