The Dunkirk lighthouse
Built between 1838 and 1843 to replace the unreliable signal from the Leughenaer Tower, the Dunkirk lighthouse was built on the site of the former Risban fort, itself built in the second half of the 17th century by the famous engineer Vauban to protect the town from enemy attack.
With a height of 63 metres, it is a first rate light, that is to say that it is the first light that you see when you are coming in from the open sea. It carries for 25 nautical miles and it signals at a frequency of two white flashes every ten seconds.
Until it was automated in 1985 it was looked after by a lighthouse keeper. The keeper's wife, a Lights and Buoys assistant, was part of the team. She cared for the light and every morning climbed up to it to put up curtains to protect the lenses from the sun's rays and every evening went up again to take them down.
First two photos by Jens Fink-Jensen.
Photo on the right: Port Museum.
Photo by Jens Fink-Jensen.
Now visits to the lighthouse are organized by the Musée Portuaire which opens the light to the public on Sundays in summer. From the light's platform, visitors can enjoy a spectacular view over the ship-repair yard, port installations, movements of ships in the port entrance and out at sea, as well as over the maritime plain to the hills of Flanders. You have to earn the view; there are 276 steps to get there.
