Het Steen Castle

Het Steen is one of the oldest castles in Europe and also one of the largest ancient castles, located in the old town center of Antwerp. The castle was built in 1200 as a fortress by the Roman Empire. 'Steen' in Dutch means 'stone', hence the name Stone Castle. In the 16th century, Charles V transformed the castle into a city gate that connected to the city walls, and it was later used as a prison, until it became a museum in the 19th century. Today's Het Steen is no longer as it was in the past.