Koningsdijk
1673
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The Koningsdijk was built in 1673 on the border between the Southern Netherlands (later Belgium) and the Republic of the Netherlands. This border was determined by the positions of the warring parties at the end of the Eighty Years' War in 1648. Hulst had been conquered by the Dutch at the end of the war, while the Land van Waas had remained in Spanish hands. At De Klinge it was decided to make the national border coincide with the former border between the Land van Waas and the Hulsterambacht. There was no natural border in this period and the administrative border simply ran straight through the polder.
During the Dutch War (1672-1678), the Republic came into conflict with powerful France. Hulst feared an invasion and had the dikes cut around the city to strengthen the fortress. A consequence of this was that the countries along the Spanish side of the border also experienced flooding. This inspired the local polder to work on a dyke on the border to prevent the Dutch from flooding their lands.
When the Bedmar Line was built in 1701, the Koningsdijk was reinforced and included in the border line. The Koningsdijk formed the connection between the fortresses Bedmar and Verboom. The dike was also preserved after the War of the Spanish Succession because of the permanent threat of inundation. Today a recreational cycle path has been constructed on the top of the dike, from which you have a beautiful view of the polders along both sides of the border.