A vedette is a mounted sentry or picket, who has the function of bringing information, giving signals or warnings of danger, etc., to a main body of troops. [1] [lower-alpha 1] In modern terms, the soldiers who man listening-posts are the equivalent of vedettes.
Navies use the term vedette to refer to a small scouting or patrol boat.
The term has also been used for specific naval vessels (see USS Vedette), and a class of flying boat (see Canadian Vickers Vedette).
All around Salisbury Plain in southern England, the roads connecting the plain with the surrounding countryside feature brick-built guard-posts, staffed by security officers whenever there is military activity beyond such points. They are known as vedettes, and each one is named for a local geographic feature. [2]
The Gardjola is a prominent guard tower on Maltese forts in Malta and an example of a vedette. [3] [4] [5] It may be referred to in French as an échauguette . [6]
Under the Ancien Régime, the Kingdom of France was subdivided in multiple different ways into several administrative units, until the National Constituent Assembly adopted a more uniform division into departments (départements) and districts in late 1789. The provinces continued to exist administratively until 21 September 1791.
The term "Cavalier" was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration. It was later adopted by the Royalists themselves. Although it referred originally to political and social attitudes and behaviour, of which clothing was a very small part, it has subsequently become strongly identified with the fashionable clothing of the court at the time. Prince Rupert, commander of much of Charles I's cavalry, is often considered to be an archetypal Cavalier.
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral (sideways) forces arising out of inadequately braced roof structures.
In classical architecture, an architrave is the lintel or beam that rests on the capitals of columns.
Senglea, also known by its title Città Invicta, is a fortified city in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It is one of the Three Cities in the Grand Harbour area, the other two being Cospicua and Vittoriosa, and has a population of approximately 2,720 people. The city's title Città Invicta was given because it managed to resist the Ottoman invasion at the Great Siege of Malta in 1565. The name Senglea comes from the Grand Master who built it Claude de la Sengle and gave the city a part of his name. While Senglea is the 52nd most populated locality on the island, due to its incredibly small land area, it is the 2nd most densely populated locality after Sliema.
The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four "V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically.
Moulding, or molding, also coving, is a strip of material with various profiles used to cover transitions between surfaces or for decoration. It is traditionally made from solid milled wood or plaster, but may be of plastic or reformed wood. In classical architecture and sculpture, the moulding is often carved in marble or other stones. In historic architecture, and some expensive modern buildings, it may be formed in place with plaster.
A caponier is a type of defensive structure in a fortification. Fire from this point could cover the ditch beyond the curtain wall to deter any attempt to storm the wall. The word originates from the French caponnière, meaning "chicken coop".
A bartizan, also called a guerite, garita, or échauguette, or spelled bartisan, is an overhanging, wall-mounted turret projecting from the walls of late medieval and early-modern fortifications from the early 14th century up to the 18th century. Most frequently found at corners, they protected a warder and enabled him to see his surroundings. Bartizans generally are furnished with oillets or arrow slits. The turret was usually supported by stepped masonry corbels and could be round, polygonal or square.
The term aigrette refers to the tufted crest or head-plumes of the egret, used for adorning a headdress. The word may also identify any similar ornament, in gems.
Fort Saint Michael was a small fort in the land front of the city of Senglea, Malta. It was originally built in the 1552 and it played a significant role in the Great Siege of Malta of 1565. Following the siege, it was rebuilt as Saint Michael Cavalier, and it was completed in 1581. The cavalier was partially demolished in the 20th century, and only a part of its base still exists today.
The Three Cities is a collective description of the three fortified cities of Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua in Malta. The oldest of the Three Cities is Vittoriosa, which has existed since prior to the Middle Ages. The other two cities, Senglea and Cospicua, were both founded by the Order of Saint John in the 16th and 17th centuries. The Three Cities are enclosed by the Cottonera Lines, along with several other fortifications. The term Cottonera is synonymous with the Three Cities, although it is sometimes taken to also include the nearby town of Kalkara.
Victory Day is a public holiday celebrated in Malta on 8 September and recalls the end of three historical sieges made on the Maltese archipelago, namely: the Great Siege of Malta by the Ottoman Empire ending in 1565; the Siege of Valletta by the French Blockade ending in 1800; and, the Siege of Malta during the Second World War by the Axis forces ending in 1943.
Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture; undressed especially as a filling-in. Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as 'brash'. Where present, it becomes more noticeable when the land is ploughed or worked.
A picket is a soldier, or small unit of soldiers, placed on a defensive line forward of a friendly position to provide timely warning and screening against an enemy advance. It can also refer to any unit performing a similar function. A picket guarding a fixed position may be known as a sentry or guard.
Juan Bautista Azopardo was a Maltese privateer and military man who fought under the flags of the Netherlands, Spain, and Argentina.
The Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta is the naval component of the Maltese military. The Maritime Squadron has responsibility for the security of Maltese territorial waters, maritime surveillance and law enforcement, as well as search and rescue. It is based at Hay Wharf in Floriana.
The fortifications of Malta consist of a number of walled cities, citadels, forts, towers, batteries, redoubts, entrenchments and pillboxes. The fortifications were built over hundreds of years, from around 1450 BC to the mid-20th century, and they are a result of the Maltese islands' strategic position and natural harbours, which have made them very desirable for various powers.
The Corradino Lines are a line of fortification on the Corradino Heights in Paola, Malta. They were built between 1871 and 1880 by the British. Today, the lines are partly intact and they lie in an industrial area.
The ferilla or firilla is a traditional fishing boat from Malta. It bears similarities to the dgħajsa, but it is of stronger construction. The ferilla developed in the 17th century and it was common until about 1900. Some examples of this boat type still exist but they are rare.
The dictionary definition of vedette at Wiktionary  | This military base or fortification article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
