Search form

menu menu

€1.8m investment puts spotlight on Namur citadel

01:00 11/12/2017

Namur’s citadel is no longer lying in the dark ages. A new eco-lighting system has set the historical site alight, following a €1.8 million investment by the city, Walloon Region and European Regional Development Fund.

The installation is part of a smartening-up of the city designed to attract more visitors. It also improves Namur’s green credentials: replacing sombre halogen spots with 295 LED lights will reduce energy consumption by more than 60%.

Towering over the city at the confluence of the rivers Meuse and Sambre, the 80-hectare citadel is one of Europe’s largest fortresses. Its ancient stone walls, precipices and turrets flank both sides of the river. As night falls, the new Philips Lighting illuminations play with a nuance of two white lights, creating an atmospheric vision that can be seen from far.

At the inauguration in October, citizens were treated to a weekend of sound and light shows, tracing momentous events in the history of the citadel and its European dimension. They included its occupation by France, the Anglo-Dutch siege of 1695 and Belgium's independence in 1831.

Other shows are planned to mark national holidays and cultural events, such as end-ofyear festivities, the Belgian national holiday on 21 July, Namur in May street theatre festival and the international film festival Fiff.

Written by Sarah Crew