Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

J.C.J. van Speijk Lighthouse

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Year first lit
  
30 September 1834

Focal height
  
37 metres (121 ft)

Opened
  
1833

Phone
  
+31 72 506 2007

Construction
  
brick tower

Height
  
28 m

Province
  
North Holland

Year first constructed
  
1833

J.C.J. van Speijk Lighthouse

Location
  
Egmond aan Zee, Netherlands

Tower shape
  
tapered cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern on one-story keeper's house

Markings / pattern
  
white tower, grey lantern and observation room

Address
  
Vuurtorenplein 1, 1931 CV Egmond aan Zee, Netherlands

Hours
  
Open today · 7–9PMFriday7–9PMSaturdayClosedSundayClosedMondayClosedTuesdayClosedWednesdayClosedThursdayClosed

Similar
  
Museum van Egmond, Slotkapel Egmond, Egmond Abbey, Hoge vuurtoren van IJmui, Westerlichttoren

Egmond aan zee vuurtoren j c j van speijk j c j van speijk lighthouse phare 29 july 2015


The J.C.J. van Speijk Lighthouse is a lighthouse on the North Sea coast near Egmond aan Zee, in the municipality of Bergen, North Holland, in the Netherlands. The foundation of the lighthouse, shaped like a tomb, is the official Dutch memorial to Jan van Speyk, a hero to the Dutch people.

Contents

The treacherous sea near Egmond necessitated the construction of two lighthouses, which were built in 1833. The northside of the light is red to warn for dangerous shallows near the coast north of Egmond. As soon as a ship leaves the danger zone it sees the white light. The south tower, on the Torensduin, was deactivated in 1891 and demolished in 1915. The north tower is still there, and is declared a Rijksmonument.

Van Speijkmonument

The lighthouse was selected in 1834 as the national J.C.J van Speijkmonument, to honor the memory of the Dutch naval hero. The original idea was to build a new tower as a monument, but there were insufficient funds, so the existing tower was reconstructed. The monument was designed by Jan David Zocher and built by J. Bos from dimension stone.

After the construction of the North Sea Canal and the two lighthouses at its mouth, in IJmuiden, the van Speijk lighthouse was equipped with red windows, to avoid confusion. In 1891 it was equipped with a rotating light; in the same year, the south tower was extinguished.

In 1984, the 150th anniversary of the lighthouse and monument was celebrated; a commemorative booklet was published by the Museum van Egmond.

Timeline

  • 1823: Decision to build a lighthouse is made
  • 1833: Construction starts
  • 1834: Construction finished, lighthouse keepers appointed, fire is lit
  • 1838: Royal decree to renovate lighthouse
  • 1841: Renovation as monument finished
  • 1879: Light extinguished temporarily (15 February to 15 March)
  • 1891: Rotating light installed
  • 1915: Day screens removed
  • 1922: Electric light installed, balcony redone in concreted, lighthouse renewed
  • 1936: Characteristic changed to Iso 10s
  • 1967: Lighthouse declared Rijksmonument
  • Webcams

    The lighthouse has five webcams to keep an eye on the coast. The webcams can be accessed through visitegmond.nl.

    References

    J.C.J. van Speijk Lighthouse Wikipedia