Honswijk was originally a small village near the river Lek. This site was choosen to built a fort because this could close the strategically important banks and digues of the river. The construction of the fort started in 1844 and it was completed in 1849. It was one of the most important forts of its time. After a visit by king Willem II the fort was called after him, but this name wasn't used very much. The main task of the fort was the defense of the Northern dike and the nearby indundation sluice. Like other Dutch forts of those time it featured a very large gun tower, in fact the largest of its type in the Netherlands. With a diameter of 40 m. and three levels of embrasures and guns on the roof it had an impressive firepower. Unfortunately with the introduction of the rifled guns the high towers became too vulnerable. To solve this problem Honswijk was extensively modified between 1879 and 1884. The upper floor of the tower was demolished to give it a lower profile. At the same time a large gallery was built on the front side of the tower.

Nowadays nothing remains of the village Honswijk. Because of military restrictions it wasn't allowed to expand and was later abandonned. The fort is now still army terrain and used by the Explosive Ordnance. However sometimes groups are allowed to visit. Parts of the fort have been extensively changed for the post-war use. Fortunately the tower still remains unaltered.