Schoolpoort

The Schoolpoort was between Waterslootse poort and the Haagpoort. It was named after the Latin School (expensive, for regent families) on the street that ran closest to it, Schoolstraat. It was a land-only gate. The image from 1816 seems to show a water gate, but the closest water on the city side is the Oude Delft gracht, over a hundred and fifty yards away.

The round tower and added buildings were almost as small as the Koepoort. Provided with many open windows for sharpshooters, the Schoolpoort stuck out into the singel to give them good angles at any enemies trying to scale the city wall.

The gatekeeper lived above, and there was a jail below.

On July 10, 1584, after Balthazar Gerards assassinated William of Orange in his home, he tried to escape over the Schoolpoort and is thought to have thrown his pistol into the singel from there. The pistol was never recovered, but four days later in front of the Stadhuis and a crowd, Gerards was tortured and his body quartered. One piece was hung on each of the major gates, the Haagpoort to the north, the Oostpoort to the east, the Rotterdamse Poort to the south, and the Waterslootse Poort to the west. His head was displayed on a spike at the Schoolpoort.

As was the case with the Koepoort, the Schoolpoort didn't lead to another city. Across the singel were gardens and bleaching fields owned by citizens who lived within the walls.

The Schoolpoort was the first of Delft's medieval gates to be demolished. About a hundred years after Leeuwenhoek's death, it was too dilapidated to be worth repairing, so the city council decided to tear it down in April 1829. The photo below of its foundation comes from the current project in the area, the Spoorzone. Learn more about archeology in the Spoorzone: images and video.