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A
continuous rampart, built by the Dutch from
mid 17th century onwards and added to by
the British, encircles the city, interrupted
by 14 massive bastions. The best way to
see the fort is to walk the length of the
walls (90 minutes), and the best time to
do it is during the evenings. Start at the
most impressive section, where the Star,
Moon and Sun bastions glower forbiddingly
over the neck of the peninsula. The ramparts
south of the harbour are pierced by the
Old Gate, above which is a British Coat
of Arms (on the inner side, the gate is
crowned by the initials of the Dutch East
India Company, VOC, and its coat of arms),
and south of the harbour the Zwart (Black)
Bastion is believed to be the only surviving
part of the original Portuguese fortifications.
The circuit of the walls continues via the
Akersloot and Aurora bastions to the Point
Utrecht bastion, topped by a modern lighthouse,
then to Flag Rock, the southernmost point
of the walls, before looping back north
through the Triton, Neptune, Clippenberg
and Aeolus bastions. The final section between
the Aeolus and Star bastions is closed,
as it is part of a military base. While
some of the bastions retain their original
Dutch names, the Triton, Aeolus, Neptune
and Aurora bastions were renamed by the
British in honour of the Royal Navy ships
of the line which took part in the British
seizure of Sri Lanka from the Dutch during
the Napoleonic Wars.
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