User:Arneke23/Citadel of Diest

The citadel of Diest was built in the first half of the 19th century. When Belgium seceded from the Netherlands in 1830, the citadel was built as a defense mechanism for this new state. It was built to prevent the enemy from advancing towards the capital Brussels in the event of an attack. The citadel was part of the Fortifications of Diest.

Location and functions
The citadel is located on the hills on the Demer. Major Laurillard-Fallot (1787-1842) was responsible for its design. The structure has the shape of a bastioned pentagon with sides of about 190 meters. The whole was surrounded by a dry moat and in front of the gate was a drawbridge. The citadel is located on a site of 28ha and the buildings themselves cover an area of 10,200 m². The citadel remained very well preserved and is the only preserved example in Flanders.

On August 26, 1895, the Royal Decree appeared declassifying the core fortress. The citadel served for a few more years as a barrage fortress to protect the railroad, but suffered the same fate on April 20, 1906. After the declassification, a disciplinary company was stationed in the citadel. In the period 1930-1940 it housed a depot of the Third Army Corps. During World War II the citadel was in use by the Germans and after the surrender the Allies used it for a short time as a prison. In 1946 the citadel was placed at the disposal of the city by the National Defense Department and 63 emergency houses were built there. Three years later, all kinds of renovation works started to prepare the citadel as accommodation for the First Parachute Battalion. They arrived on 2 August 1953. In 1968, the two city fronts of the citadel were partially demolished to make way for new buildings.

Since 1996 the citadel has been a protected monument. Together with the other parts of the Diestsesteenweg defence works, Fort Leopold, the Schaffensepoort, and the guard-locks of the Zichem and Leuven gates, it provides a good idea of the military architecture of the second quarter of the 19th century. In 2011, the citadel became vacant. The future of the citadel has not yet been determined. The city of Diest started looking for a new destination for the site.

In 2012, the city council of Diest decided to build a new hospital on the site. This new building should have been ready by 2023, as agreed in an agreement in principle between "stad Diest" and the "vzw Vereniging Diestse Ziekenhuizen". These plans were dropped in 2017 and a new destination is being sought for this listed site.

The citadel is home to various sports clubs, cultural associations, educational institutions and youth work. The municipality has made plans for better access with a new staircase and elevator. This should also make the citadel more attractive to tourists. In cooperation with private parties, the municipality will make plans for the further development of the citadel.

Sport
Since 2016, the citadel also serves in cycling as a spectacular arrival point for the cycling race Dwars door het Hageland. The riders then climb along the old cobblestone road to the Allerheiligenberg where at the top lies the finish.

The site is also used annually as the course for the Combat Edition of the Gladiator Runs, a series of obstacle-runs in which participants must overcome tough obstacles and their fitness and strength are severely tested