Trois années de fouilles archéologiques à la citadelle de Namur (1982-1984) : un premier bilan

Today, the Namur citadel extends its defenses over an area of 8 hectares. It grew around a core consisting of the medieval count's castle to which successive lines of defense were added in the 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th c. The present paper brings a historical survey of the evolution of these fortifications.

Since 1982, an Archaeological and Historical Cell has been able to carry out excavations, which mainly consisted of rescue interventions. The Cell works within the framework of a non-profit association which manages the citadel as a tourist site.

The research work mainly concerned the architectural components — chapel, guardhouses and ramparts. It yielded information which complements the archival sources only where the topography of the site and the construction technique are concerned. An abundant array of remains testifying to the material conditions of daily life did, however, come to light, as did indications of pre-medieval occupations, though no stratigraphic contexts are available for these.