IJzertoren West Flanders

The unusual 1950 IJzertoren is built of drab purple-brown brick and topped with power-station-style windows. This colossal 84m-high ‘peace’ tower is at once crushingly ugly and fascinating. It’s set behind the shattered ruins of the 1930 original, the mysterious 1946 sabotage of which remains controversial. The tower is probably Flanders’ foremost nationalist symbol: its 22 floors house a very expansive museum related to WWI and Flemish emancipation.