It is the only remaining gate of the original 4 town gates of Lo and also one of the few remaining town gates and defence towers in West Flanders. The canals of which the course is still easy to follow, served as fortification and demarcation of the town limits. Because of this, we know that Lo had a
diameter of only ca 400 m.
In 1581-1582, the medieval ramparts were demolished by order of the Duke of Anjou and the Prince of Orange. The West gate in its present form goes back to the 14th century and was restored in 1852 and in 1991.
Next to the West gate stands the legendary Caesar tree. It is a taxus, a conifer with needles that resemble the needles of a pinetree. A taxus can reach the age of a thousand years.
According to the legend, Julius Caesar tethered his horse to the tree and rested in its shade on his journey to Great Britain.
