Citadel of Huy, Fort in Huy, Belgium
The Citadel of Huy is a fort on a rocky outcrop above the Meuse in Huy, Belgium. Its long wall of light tan masonry, pierced by rows of small rectangular loopholes, runs along the hilltop and steps back around a taller central section. A steep slope of dry vegetation and bare trees drops from the wall to a stone embankment at the river.
A medieval castle stood on this site as far back as the 9th century, but it was torn down in the early 1700s. The stone fort seen today was built between 1818 and 1823, during the period of Dutch rule over what is now Belgium.
The fortress holds a museum dedicated to the political prisoners held there during the Second World War, with original cells and personal objects left behind. Walking through the site gives a direct sense of what daily life inside the prison was like.
A cable car has linked the lower town to the fort since 1957; it was out of service after a 2012 helicopter accident and reopened in 2024. The fort stands on a rock above a bend in the Meuse, with views several hundred metres along the river in both directions. Paths on the site are uneven, so sturdy shoes help.
During the Second World War, the fort held thousands of political prisoners and became one of the largest internment camps in Belgium. After the war, it was briefly used to detain Belgian collaborators before eventually opening to the public as a memorial site.
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