Caedes

  Westkapelle 'Lighthouse'  

Click here to view at full resolution.
Uploaded: 06/23/18 7:20 AM GMT
Westkapelle 'Lighthouse'
Views: 567
Dlds: 257
Status: active

This 'lighthouse' is one of the two lighthouses in the village of Westkapelle, at the peninsula Walcheren, Zeeland, The Netherlands. It was built in 1470 initially as a brick church tower of the Saint Willibrord church. The church tower however was never completed by a steeple. Once one has decided to use this 'disadvantage' in an inventive way: in 1817, a red colored superstructure, with a lighthouse light and optics in it, was placed on top of this incomplete church tower. In 1831 the Saint Willibrord church was destroyed by fire, only the tower remained intact.

The light and the optics in this lighthouse superstructure were replaced by modernized versions already several times.

The tower consists of six floors and has a height of 53 meters (174 feet). The lighthouse is unmanned and is still open to the public (at regular intervals). The public then can climb the tower to the roof. The red colored superstructure with the light and optics in it is not accessible to the public however.

PS: at the background the sand dunes can be seen. Behind these dunes is the North Sea.

Comments

Post a Comment  -  Subscribe to this discussion

Leave a comment (registration required):

Subject: