To the south of the village of Willebroek, 12km/7.5miles from Mechelen, stands Fort Breendonk, the name of which many Belgians associate with the terror of the German occupation in the Second World War. The fort was built between 1906 and 1914 and was the last defensive position of Antwerp to surrender in October 1914. In the Second World War,
when the German army moved in, the SS set up a concentration camp here which up to 1944 held about 4000 prisoners of war, of whom 370 died or were executed. An impressive tour of the fort leads first to the cells and torture chambers and is accompanied by recorded evidence from former detainees. Of the working areas it should be remembered that the walls of the fort were first blown up and the debris then shoveled away by the prisoners. In the former printing press ("Studio") a film is shown about the history of the camp, and this is complemented by the museum in the Saal Jacques Ochs where can be seen drawings by this Belgian painter who was incarcerated in Fort Breendonk from 1941-1942.