The Fortenroute is a bike route that takes you along the fortresses of the Defence Line of Amsterdam. You’ll be cycling through beautiful landscapes, along the rivers Vecht, Waver and Amstel,...
Just like the Defence Line of Amsterdam, the Beemster Polder is listed as a World Heritage site by UNESCO. This route will take you and your bike along five fortresses: the Fort North of Purmerend,...
The Haarlemmermeerpolder is a polder of straight lines crossed by a historic dike that was constructed for the army, the Geniedijk. The Haarlemmermeer Route measures approximately 35 kilometres (22...
The Vuurlijn (firing line) runs along the south side of the Defence Line of Amsterdam. This bike route follows the Vuurlijn, taking you along the Fort near Kudelstaart, the Fort along the Drecht,...
The GPS bike tour of fortresses around the town of Abcoude provides great insight into the development of the Defence Line forts. Starting at the batteries along the river Gein (1805-1810),...
The Defence Line buildings that can be found along the river IJ and in the capital of Amsterdam are less well-known but had a pivotal function, supplying food, water and fuel to the troops. This...
Near the town of Beverwijk is where the front of the Defence Line of Amsterdam comes closest to the high dune fields. Measuring 38 kilometres (23.5 miles) the Western Front Route runs from Beverwijk...
Departing from the picturesque town of Weesp, the River Vecht Route takes you across the Ossenmarkt, along Weesp city hall and the windmills De Vriendschap and De Eendracht. Later on you’ll...
This bike tour partly follows the borders of the IJsselmeer, the enormous lake that was created by closing off the Zuiderzee (literally: South Sea) by a dam. Cycling the Zuiderzee Route will give...
The Krayenhoff Route brings you to fortresses built on former Posten van Krayenhoff locations. This system of military posts was a forerunner to the Defence Line of Amsterdam. Constructed around the...
Cycle through the Schaalmeerpolder, a beautiful peat meadow area, and watch a variety of birds, take a look in visitor centre De Poelboerderij, and see the Fort near Spijkerboor, the Beemster...
This cycling route takes you to fortresses, villages and sluices. Among the first things you’ll encounter is the scenic town of Spaarndam, which is well worth a visit. This quaint old fishing...
The themed bike route Verdediging van de hoofdstad (Defence of the capital) is a tour of 26 kilometres (16 miles) that takes you along the Fort north of Spaarndam, the Fort south of Spaarndam, the...
This cycling route takes you along a beautiful peatland area where birds such as the godwit and the redshank breed. The route also runs along Fort Spijkerboor. This is the largest ad the most modern...
Grab the bike for a tour of the Haarlemmermeer! The bike trail takes you past Fort Vijfhuizen, Fort Aalsmeer, Fort Hoofddorp and the beautiful Cruquius pumping station. The Cruquius pumping...
Discover the Amsterdam Defence Line and cycle past all 42 forts on this 135km trail. To make the route more clear and accessible it’s divided in several parts, the so called fronts. A front...
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Passable part of an inundation in the form of elevated terrain, a road, (railway) embankment or waterway.
Collective term for projectile weapons.
Also called bulwark. An outward-projecting pentagonal structure, suitable for delivering flanking fire.
A storage site for military equipment. The parks in the Defence Line are spread out over sectors (sector parks) and groups (group parks).
A battery that is positioned behind armour plates.
A fort with one or more armoured artillery positions.
A number of artillery pieces combined into one group.
Shielded position from which defenders can harass the enemy.
A (low) defensive structure that extends into the moat and can be used to give flanking fire.
A space that is protected against enemy fire and is outfitted with a gun port, behind which a piece of artillery is placed.
An army division whose tasks include, amongst other things, the construction of temporary and permanent defensive structures. The term ‘engineer’ is derived from the French word ‘ingenieur’.
Also called covert way. A pathway that is protected from enemy fire by an earthen wall and can be used for transporting soldiers and military equipment.
Also called stop-log sluice. A temporary dam that stops the inundation water when beams are stacked up in its recesses.
Water purification system that improves the quality of drinking water by extracting iron.
Earthen elevation surrounding a defensive structure, featuring a breastwork.
A (wooden) shed where artillery and military engineering equipment were stored.
The part of a terrain that can be fired at.
Long-range flanking fire: fire support for the secondary forts. Short-range flanking fire: fire that covers the surroundings of the defensive structure itself.
Known in Dutch as ‘Vestingwet’. The act of the 18th of April 1874 that stipulated which forts would become part of the Dutch national defence system.
The side of a defensive structure that is facing away from the enemy.
In the Defence Line forts this is a casemate giving short-range and long-range flanking fire.
Undercarriage for a cannon or other heavy firearm.
Shell that is filled with highly explosive material.
The flooding of land to keep the enemy at bay.
Also called inlet sluice. A sluice that is constructed with the aim of letting water into a certain area.
An independent system of connected defensive structures.
Artillery that gives frontal fire over large distances, directly aimed at enemy positions.
A simple (temporary) defensive structure manned by a small number of soldiers.
An underground connecting passageway that is shellproof.
Known in Dutch as ‘Kringenwet’. Act of January 1853 that stipulates restrictions with regard to the construction of buildings in the vicinity of defensive structures, the so-called forbidden zones (‘kringen’), in order to guarantee a free field of fire.
A chart that is installed next to the gun port to give the operators of the artillery insight into the distances of targets and the corresponding firing angles.
A place of last refuge for the defenders of a fort, which can be defended independently.
A turret that is lifted up to give fire and is retracted and thus made almost invisible once the firing has stopped.
Position that provides shelter to retreating troops.
Battery that is situated in close proximity to a fort and performs some of the tasks that have been assigned to that fort.
The ability of a building to withstand gunfire thanks to brickwork, concrete or a bottom layer.
A shellproof depot for storing artillery and other essential military equipment.
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