Fort Bourtange is a star fort

Star fort

A star fort, or trace italienne, is a fortification in the style that evolved during the age of gunpowder, when cannon came to dominate the battlefield, and was first seen in the mid-15th century in Italy....

 located in the village

Village

A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...

 of Bourtange, Groningen

Groningen (province)

Groningen [] is the northeasternmost province of the Netherlands. In the east it borders the German state of Niedersachsen , in the south Drenthe, in the west Friesland and in the north the Wadden Sea...

, Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

. It was built in 1593 under the orders of William the I of Orange

William the Silent

William I, Prince of Orange , also widely known as William the Silent , or simply William of Orange , was the main leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish that set off the Eighty Years' War and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. He was born in the House of...

. Its original purpose was to control the only road between Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 and the city of Groningen, which was controlled by the Spaniards during the time of the Eighty Years' War

Dutch Revolt

The Dutch Revolt or the Revolt of the Netherlands This article adopts 1568 as the starting date of the war, as this was the year of the first battles between armies. However, since there is a long period of Protestant vs...

.

After experiencing its final battle in 1672, the Fort continued to serve in the defensive network on the German border until it was finally given up in 1851 and converted into a village. Fort Bourtange currently serves as a historical museum

Museum

A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...

.

History

During the Eighty Years' War, the Spaniards had control over Groningen and the road leading from there to Germany. William, the leader of the Netherlands, saw it necessary to break off communications between Groningen and Germany. He decided that it would be optimal to build a fortification on the Bourtange passage, which was the main road leading to Germany. The fort was completed in 1593 in the design of a star fort with a network of canals and lakes which were used as moats (which were also constructed in the design of stars). At the time of its completion, the fort housed five garrisons. Soon after its construction, Spanish forces from Groningen besieged it, though the attack ended in failure.

Fort Bourtange faced another battle in 1672 against invading Germans. After capturing 18 cities and towns in the northern Netherlands, they demanded that the Fort be surrendered. The fort's governor

Governor

A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

, Captain Protts, refused this demand, and the Germans replied with a frontal assault. Thanks to the surrounding marshes and the time-tested fort defenses, the invading army was repelled successfully.

After its eventual secession and conversion into a village in 1851, living conditions began to deteriorate. Over 100 years later in 1960, the local government decided that to combat this growing problem the old Fort would be restored to its 1740-1750 appearance and made into a historical museum. This provided valuable tourism for the surrounding village. The Fort still remains a museum today.