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22-465: The Danube was not always or everywhere used by the Romans as the military frontier which was moved north or south in some locations according to military conquests, but it was maintained in many places as a fairly permanent defensive structure for long periods. The border was reinforced with numerous watchtowers , legion camps ( castra ) and forts ( castella ). Due to the boggy and dendritic nature of

44-861: A military presence in conflict areas in case such as by the French Army in French Indochina , by the British Army and the RUC in Northern Ireland and the IDF in Gaza and West Bank . An example of the non-military watchtower in history is the one of Jerusalem. Though the Hebrews used it to keep a watch for approaching armies, the religious authorities forbade the taking of weapons up into

66-430: A regular tower in that its primary use is military and from a turret in that it is usually a freestanding structure. Its main purpose is to provide a high, safe place from which a sentinel or guard may observe the surrounding area. In some cases, non-military towers, such as religious towers , may also be used as watchtowers. The Romans built numerous towers as part of a system of communications, one example being

88-531: A seven-kilometre-wide 'death strip' was laid along the Danube. The increasing number of fortifications that were falling into decay were renovated again under Emperor Valentinian I (364–375) and upgraded to the conform to the latest military tactics. Walls were thickened, and defensive ditches renewed. In addition, towers were built along the walls, such as a watchtower discovered near Oberranna in 1960. These fortifications lasted only another hundred years before

110-818: The Danube Delta . In 2021, the western segment of the Danube Limes were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the set of "Frontiers of the Roman Empire" World Heritage Sites. Because of the sheer length of this border, the Danubian Limes is often divided into the following subdivisions: The oldest Roman camp in Austria was Carnuntum . Fourteen kilometres away to the west an auxiliary fort ( Hilfskastell )

132-946: The Kasbah , one of the corners of the surviving complete rampart of the medina . In the Channel Islands, the Jersey Round Towers and the Guernsey loophole towers date from the late 18th century. They were erected to give warning of attacks by the French. The Martello towers that the British built in the UK and elsewhere in the British Empire were defensive fortifications that were armed with cannon and that were often within line of sight of each other. One of

154-520: The Wignacourt , de Redin , and Lascaris towers , named for the Grand Master , such as Martin de Redin , that commissioned each series. The name of Tunisia 's second biggest city, Sfax , is the berber - punic translation from the greek "Taphroúria" ( Ταφρούρια) meaning watchtower, which may mean that the 9th century Muslim town was built as an extension of what is currently known as

176-606: The Danube's river banks no border ramparts were built, unlike the Neckar-Odenwald Limes in Germany . The camps were built in the mid-1st century. Later, under Trajan , the camps, which had originally only been surrounded by earthen embankments, were enclosed by stone walls. A Roman road , the Danube Way ( Latin : Via Istrum ) was laid along the limes , which linked the stations, camps and forts as far as

198-574: The Danube. It was formed in the year 103 AD by Emperor Trajan who divided the former province of Pannonia into two parts: Pannonia Superior and Pannonia Inferior. The province included parts of present-day states of Hungary , Serbia , Croatia , and Bosnia and Herzegovina . The province was bordered to the east (across the Danube) by a Sarmatian tribe—the Iazyges . Later, the Vandals appeared to

220-603: The Elbe river estuary to erect the Great Tower Neuwerk by 1310 to protect its trading routes. They also claimed customs at the watchtower protecting the passage. Some notable examples of military Mediterranean watchtowers include the towers that the Knights of Malta had constructed on the coasts of Malta . These towers ranged in size from small watchtowers to large structures armed with numerous cannons. They include

242-520: The early Middle Ages, connected to the menace of Saracen attacks from the various Muslim states existing at the time (such as the Balearic Islands , Ifriqiya or Sicily ). Later (starting from the 16th century) many were restored or built against the Barbary pirates. Similarly, the city state of Hamburg gained political power in the 13th century over a remote island 150 kilometers down

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264-413: The fall of the Roman Empire. In 488 the land of present-day Austria was cleared. The Roman fortifications along the lower courses of the Danube were overhauled once again, especially under Anastasios I and Justinian I . They finally served during Maurice's Balkan campaigns his successor, Phocas , as a basis for larger military operations and some were maintained in the province of Moesia Secunda until

286-877: The invasion of the Bulgars in 679. A few defensive towers survive: in Bacharnsdorf in Lower Austria, in Mautern (Favianis) and in Traismauer (Augustiana). In Tulln and Zeiselmauer , too, there are surviving remnants. In the Kürnberg Forest near Linz there are remains of a watchtower from the Roman period. Legion camps were established in: Camps ( castra ) and forts ( castella ) in Austria from west to east: In 103 AD, Emperor Trajan divided

308-715: The last Martello towers to be built was Fort Denison in Sydney harbour. The most recent descendants of the Martello Towers are the flak towers that the various combatants erected in World War II as mounts for anti-aircraft artillery. In modern warfare the relevance of watchtowers has decreased due to the availability of alternative forms of military intelligence , such as reconnaissance by spy satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles . However watch towers have been used in counter-insurgency wars to maintain

330-520: The manor houses of western France, the watchtower equipped with arrow or gun loopholes was one of the principal means of defense. A feudal lord could keep watch over his domain from the top of his tower. In southern Saudi Arabia and Yemen , small stone and mud towers called " qasaba " were constructed as either watchtowers or keeps in the Asir mountains. Furthermore, in Najd , a watchtower, called "Margab",

352-589: The north-east. Major settlements in Pannonia Inferior included: The province was yet again split during the reign of the tetrarchs into two more provinces, Pannonia Valeria in the north, with the new provincial capital at Sopianae, and Pannonia Secunda in the south with Sirmium as the provincial capital. During the Frankish period, in the 9th century, the term Lower Pannonia was used to designate eastern and southern regions of Pannonia, including

374-441: The province of Pannonia into two parts: Pannonia Superior and Pannonia Inferior , or Lower Pannonia. The Lower Pannonia province ran along the eastern side of the Danube, today a part of Hungary , Serbia , Croatia , and Bosnia and Herzegovina . Colonies and towns were built throughout the area on both sides of the Danube, in addition to Roman forts, garrisons, and bases. Some of the most notable were: The Lower Danubian Road

396-470: The tower as this would require bringing weapons through the temple. Rebuilt by King Herod, that Watchtower was renamed after Mark Antony , his friend who battled against Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (later Augustus ) and lost. Pannonia Inferior Pannonia Inferior , lit. Lower Pannonia , was a province of the Roman Empire . Its capital was Sirmium . It was one of the border provinces on

418-536: The towers along Hadrian's Wall in Britain . Romans built many lighthouses , such as the Tower of Hercules in northern Spain , which survives to this day as a working building, and the equally famous lighthouse at Dover Castle , which survives to about half its original height as a ruin. In medieval Europe, many castles and manor houses , or similar fortified buildings, were equipped with watchtowers. In some of

440-737: Was built near Schlögen (today in the municipality of Haibach ob der Donau ) in Upper Austria . At that time, the limes ran from Vienna to Linz roughly following the present-day Wiener Straße ( B 1 ). Because the Danube did not always provide adequate protection, bridgeheads were built on its northern banks against the Marcomanni , such as the one in Stillfried or at the Oberleiser Berg . However, these were cleared again under Marcus Aurelius ' son, Commodus , and

462-411: Was built under Emperor Tiberius in the 1st century AD on the right (southern) bank of the river and forts and watchtowers were also built as part of the limes linked by the road. The following Roman forts were the first to be established here during the 1st century: Watchtower A watchtower or watch tower is a type of fortification used in many parts of the world. It differs from

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484-399: Was used to watch for approaching enemies far in distance and shout calling warnings from atop. Scotland saw the construction of Peel towers that combined the function of watchtower with that of a keep or tower house that served as the residence for a local notable family. Mediterranean countries, and Italy in particular, saw the construction of numerous coastal watchtowers since

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