Picture of The arched gateway to Fort Kyk over Al: the only standing remains of the Dutch fortification (Kyk over Al, Guyana)

Arched gateway to Fort Kyk over Al is the only standing remains

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On a small island in the mouth of the Mazaruni river, you can find the scarse remains of an old Dutch fort which overlooked the Mazaruni, Cuyuni and Essequibo rivers.
Guyana is, mostly, a country of nature: the immense rainforest, waterfalls, wildlife; indeed, the number of inhabitants of the entire country is lower than many cities elsewhere. Contrary to what you might expect, the history of the country is quite interesting and has left behind several traces. The country had been inhabitated for a long time by indigenous Amerindian people before the first Europeans set foot on Guyanese soil in the 16th century. Columbus already saw the lands of Guyana in 1498, Sir Walter Raleigh was in the Guianas searching for El Dorado, but the Dutch were the first to establish colonies here: Essequibo, Berbice and Demerara, all located close to the Atlantic Ocean. One of the depots for indigenous goods was built on a small island at the junction of the Mazaruni and Cuyuni rivers; soon, a small fort was built in 1616 for protection. This would develop in the de facto capital of the Dutch colonies in Guyana. The fort was called Kyk over Al. Meaning See over All, it described well what the function of the fort was: to establish a fort on a strategic location overseeing the Mazaruni, Cuyuni and Essequibo rivers.
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