For several reasons fort island Pampus, situated east of Amsterdam in the former Zuyder Zee, is something special. First of all because it is the smallest of all the islands described on this site. In the second place because Pampus, unlike most of the other islands, was completely built by man; an artificial island then. And last but not least because Pampus, as part of the 'Stelling van Amsterdam'  (Defense Line of Amsterdam), is listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1996.

Anyway, Pampus is not really unique. There is another fort island, which also belongs to the Defense Line of Amsterdam. It is situated near IJmuiden, right in the mouth of the Noordzeekanaal, the canal that was constructed between 1863 and 1876 to give the port of Amsterdam direct access to the North Sea. This fortress was built from 1881 till 1888 on the north bank of the new canal. As a result of the widening of the canal mouth in 1929 the fortress got separated from the mainland, so it became an island. As this island is not permanently inhabited it does not get further attention on this site. But the similarity of these two fortresses, near Muiden and IJmuiden, guarding the old as well as the new sea approach sea to Amsterdam, is too striking to remain unmentioned.

As often occurs with military objects, Pampus has always been surrounded with some kind of a shroud of mystery. For a long time it was a strictly forbidden area for unauthorized people, even after the fortress was no longer in use as such. Now Pampus is open to everyone who wants to go there, but it seems that a bit of that atmosphere of mystery is still lingering on the island.

Fort island Pampus was built by the end of the 19th century as the tailpiece of the Defense Line of Amsterdam, consisting of 42 fortresses in total. Its purpose was to protect the Dutch capital against an possible (German) attack from sea. The island was projected on a natural shallow in the then Zuiderzee, that was raised to the desired level with 45,000 cubic meters of sand. The total costs for the construction of the fortress, which took eight years to complete and required the sinking of 3,800 piles, came to ƒ 800.000,- (€ 365.000,-), a huge amount at that time.

In 1895 the fort was commissioned and handed over to the Dutch War Ministry. It was designed for a permanent garrison of about 200, but only at the time of the mobilization for World War I that number of military were actually deployed on the island. The anticipated attack failed to materialize. Pampus never saw real combat action.

When in 1932 the Afsluitdijk was completed, which cut off the IJsselmeer from the open sea, the fort lost its strategic significance. In 1933 the last military fort keeper left and the island was abandoned.

During World War II The Germans demolished and removed the massive steel gun turrets with the four heavy 24 cm guns, to recycle the metal. The island was also occasionally used as a practice target for aerial bombings. In the post-war years the fort island decayed to its present state of a somewhat mysterious ruin. 

In 1986 plans were developed to restore the island to a certain extent and make it accessible for the public. The Stichting Pampus (Pampus Foundation) was founded to realize these plans. Five years later the first visitors could be welcomed on the island. Nowadays the yearly number of people visiting the island and taking a tour around the still impressing fortress exceeds 40,000. Since 2003 the island has been officially designated as a national landmark.

Pampus in Google Earth
(click on the image to enlarge)
 

You can only get to Pampus by boat, and that's how it should be with a real island. Shipping company NACO provides a ferry service from a landing close to the Muiderslot castle, strategically situated on the mouth of the river Vecht. When looking back after the ferry boat has pushed off you have a nice view of the Grote Zeesluizen (Great Sea Locks) of the town of Muiden, a place of constant frenetic yachting activity during the summer months. In front the island Pampus soon emerges, a flat mound with a house on it, not looking very spectacular. After a trip of about 20 minutes the ferry moors at the landing stage in the island's little harbor. 

Here the actual tour begins, at the only piece of road that can be found on the island. Coming from the harbor you have three options: left to the  'fort keepers' residence, right to the restaurant 'Het Scheepskameel' and straight on to the fortress. The whole road barely measures a few dozens of meters. 

I take the road straight on, which leads to the main entrance of the fortress. Here you have two options, make a walk around the island or descend into the interior of the fort. I choose the latter. Two stone stairs lead into a strange, somewhat mysterious world that remind of a system of underground caves.

It is fun to be on your own, while straying through the barely-lit rooms, about eighty in number. But if you are here for the first time it's strongly recommended to join the free guided tour (included with the ferry ticket) to learn more about the history of this impressive construction.

When walking towards the slanting daylight you suddenly find yourself at the bottom of the dry moat, completely surrounding the inner fort. It is about 250 meters long and served as the last line of defense in case of a landing on the island by enemy troops. The concrete walls and floors emphasize the grim appearance of the fortress here. You can clearly imagine that for the intruders, lying under the fire of the defenders entrenched in the inner fort, this moat was an obstacle that wasn't easy to negotiate.

As you are penetrating deeper into the fort it gets darker and more mysterious. The sound of dripping water leads me to a more spacious chamber where the central water basin is located. An ingenious system led all rainwater that fell on the island to this basin, where it was collected to fill the need for fresh water of the garrison. The feeling to be in a system of underground caves is here stronger than anywhere else in the fortress. 

After some more straying through the gloomy tunnels and chambers I let the distant daylight lead me back to the outer rooms. Here it is clearly visible that the construction is in a bad condition. The Pampus Foundation has developed plans for a limited restoration, although it is not the intention to bring the island back to its original state. Apart from the fact that this would exceed the financial means by far, the Foundation adheres to preservation of its current character of a fortress ruin. As a result, the restoration plans aim at the prevention of further decay.

Once in the open air again I decide, before returning with the ferry to Muiden, to take a walk all around the island. On Pampus this requires less than 15 minutes, with plenty of time to enjoy the magnificent views of the IJmeer lake, bristling with boats large and small on this beautiful day in June. Amsterdam, with its new district of IJburg currently being built, Almere and Muiden can be clearly distinguished on the horizon. 

Walking back to the ferry there's still one question that keeps bothering me: where is the radio beacon Pampus, one of the principal navigational aids for the air traffic around Schiphol Amsterdam airport? This VOR/DME station with the designation PAM, transmitting on a frequency of 117.80 MHz, is very well known with every Dutch Flight Simulator enthusiast.

When I present this question to 'fort keeper' Nanette she tells me that you will search for it in vain on Pampus. The station PAM is not on the island itself, but a few miles to the south, across the water on the mainland. It is located in a meadow between the towns of Muiden and Muiderberg. So, in this case its name is a bit confusing.

On my way back home I decide to bike via Muiderberg and take some pictures of the beacon, to complete my exploration tour to Pampus in an appropriate way.
 

More about Pampus and related information

www.pampus.nl
Official website of the Stichting Pampus (Pampus Foundation).
Dutch and English language.

www.pampus.info
Photo gallery met historical pictures of Pampus and on-line forum.
Dutch language only, but the photos are worth seeing.

www.stelling-van-amsterdam.nl
Official website of the Stichting 'Stelling van Amsterdam' (Defense Line of Amsterdam Foundation). Dutch language only.

www.stelling-amsterdam.org
Official website of the Military Heritage Greater-Amsterdam Foundation about the 'Stelling van Amsterdam' (Defense Line of Amsterdam). Dutch and English language.

www.noord-holland-tourist.nl/nl/stelling.htm
Website by the joined VVV's (Tourist Information Boards of the Province of Noord-Holland with information on the 'Stelling van Amsterdam'.
Dutch language only.

whc.unesco.org
Unesco World Heritage website.

August 2003