Fort Belgica, one of many forts built by the Dutch East India Company, is located in the Banda Islands, Maluku Province, and is one of the largest remaining European forts in Indonesia.
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Constructed in 1611, the fort was an important defensive structure commanding over the bay of Bandanaira. Its construction gave the Dutch an edge over other colonial powers in the area, and still remains the largest extant structure on the Banda Islands.[1]
It should be noted that at the time when the fort was constructed, "Belgium" was used as the Latin name for the whole of what are now the Netherlands and Belgium, and has not yet become the name of the southern part exclusively.
This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on in the Cultural category.[2]
Belgica Fort - UNESCO World Heritage Centre Accessed 2009-02-27.
Ring, T., et al. (1994), International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania, Taylor & Francis. ISBN 1884964044