Martello-tower definition

mär-tĕlō
A short, circular tower, usually made of stone and located near a shoreline as a defensive fortification.
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Any of the circular forts of masonry built in the 19th cent. by the British on coasts to protect against invaders.
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A short sturdy round masonry fort, especially one constructed at various coastal points in the British Empire during the Napoleonic Wars.
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Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
martello-tower
Plural:
martello-towers

Origin of martello-tower

  • After Cape Martello , Corsica, where such a tower was taken by British forces in 1794

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Alteration of the name of Cape Mortella in Corsica, after Italian martello (“hammer").

    From Wiktionary

Martello-tower Sentence Examples

  • The Martello tower was introduced in consequence of an incident of the French revolutionary wars.

  • While the Martello tower owes its reputation and its widespread adoption in Great Britain to a single incident of modern warfare, the round masonry structure entered by a door raised high above the base is to be found in many lands, and is one of the earliest types of masonry fortification.

  • The small Martello tower contains a museum about Guernsey shipwrecks, with many salvaged artifacts and related illustrations.

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