Editing Palisade

{{Short description|Defensive structure; typically a fence or wall made from wooden stakes}}
{{other uses|Palisade (disambiguation)}}
[[File:St Fagans Celtic village palisade.jpg|thumb|right|Reconstruction of a palisade in a Celtic village at [[St Fagans National History Museum]], [[Wales]]]]
[[File:Museumdorf_Düppel2.JPG|thumb|right|Reconstruction of a medieval palisade in Germany]]

A '''palisade''', sometimes called a '''stakewall''' or a '''paling''', is typically a row of closely placed, high vertical standing tree trunks or wooden or iron  stakes used as a [[fence]] for enclosure or as a [[defensive wall]]. Palisades can form a [[stockade]].

==Etymology==
''Palisade'' derives from ''pale'', from the Latin word ''{{Wikt-lang|la|palus|pālus}}'', meaning stake, specifically when used side by side to create a wood defensive wall.<ref>"palus". ''Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary''. MICRA, Inc. 22 December 2009</ref> In turn, ''pālus'' derives from the Old Italic word ''palūts'', which may possibly derive from the Proto-Indo-European word ''pelh'', meaning pale or gray. It may be related to the Proto-Uralic word ''pil'me'' (uncertain meaning) or the word ''pilwe'', meaning cloud.

(see [[wikt:pale#Etymology_2|'pale']], English: Etymology 2 on Wiktionary).

== Typical construction ==
Typical construction consisted of small or mid-sized tree trunks aligned vertically, with as little free space in between as possible. The trunks were sharpened or pointed at the top, and were driven into the ground and sometimes reinforced with additional construction. The height of a palisade ranged from around a metre to as high as 3–4 m. As a defensive structure, palisades were often used in conjunction with [[Earthworks (engineering)|earthworks]].

Palisades were an excellent option for small forts or other hastily constructed fortifications. Since they were made of wood, they could often be quickly and easily built from readily available materials. They proved to be effective protection for short-term conflicts and were an effective deterrent against small forces. However, because they were wooden constructions they were also vulnerable to fire and siege weapons.

Often, a palisade would be constructed around a [[castle]] as a temporary wall until a permanent stone wall could be erected.

==Ancient Greece and Rome==
Both the [[Ancient Greece|ancient Greeks]] and [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] created palisades to protect their military camps. The Roman historian [[Livy]] describes the Greek method as being inferior to that of the Romans during the [[Second Macedonian War]]. The Greek stakes were too large to be easily carried and were spaced too far apart. This made it easy for enemies to uproot them and create a large enough gap in which to enter. In contrast, the Romans used smaller and easier to carry [[Sudis (stake)|stakes]] which were placed closer together, making them more difficult to uproot.<ref>[[Livy]] 33.5</ref>

== Precolumbian North America ==
[[File:Chromesun kincaid site 01.jpg|thumb|The [[Kincaid Mounds State Historic Site|Kincaid site]], a [[Mississippian culture]] palisaded settlement in southern [[Illinois]]]]

The Iroquoian peoples, who coalesced as tribes around the Great Lakes, often defended their settlements with palisades. Within the palisades the peoples lived in communal groups in numerous longhouses, sometimes in communities as large as 2,000 people.{{Citation needed|date=July 2022}} Archeological evidence of such palisades has been found at numerous 15th and 16th-century sites in both Ontario, Canada, and in New York, United States.

Many settlements of the [[Native Americans in the United States|native]] [[Mississippian culture]] of the [[Midwestern United States]] used palisades. A prominent example is the [[Cahokia Mounds]] site in [[Collinsville, Illinois]]. A wooden stockade with a series of watchtowers or [[bastion]]s at regular intervals formed a {{convert|2|mi|km|adj=mid|-long|0|spell=in|order=flip}} enclosure around [[Monk's Mound]] and the Grand Plaza. [[Archaeologists]] found evidence of the stockade during excavation of the area and indications that it was rebuilt several times, in slightly different locations. The stockade seems to have separated Cahokia's main ceremonial precinct from other parts of the city, as well as being a defensive structure.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/archaeology/sites/northamerica/cahokia.html |title = Archaeological Sites - Cahokia |access-date = 2008-09-16 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080916192627/http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/archaeology/sites/northamerica/cahokia.html |archive-date = 2008-09-16 }}</ref>

[[File:Angel palisade wall and bastions HRoe 2008.jpg|thumb|right|A section of reconstructed palisade at the [[Angel Mounds]] Site, a [[Mississippian culture|Mississippian site]] in [[Evansville, Indiana]]]]
Other examples include the [[Angel Mounds|Angel Mounds site]] in southern [[Indiana]], [[Aztalan State Park]] in [[Wisconsin]], the [[Kincaid Mounds State Historic Site|Kincaid site]] in [[Illinois]], the [[Parkin Archeological State Park|Parkin site]] and the [[Nodena site]]s in northeastern [[Arkansas]], and the [[Etowah Indian Mounds|Etowah site]] in [[Georgia, United States|Georgia]].

==Colonial America==
Palisaded settlements were common in Colonial North America, for protection against indigenous peoples and wild animals.  The English settlements in [[Jamestown, Virginia]] (1607), [[Cupids, Newfoundland]] (1610) and [[Plymouth, Massachusetts]] (1620) were all originally fortifications that were surrounded by palisades.

Such defensive palisades were also frequently used in [[New France]]. In addition, colonial architecture used vertical palings as the walls of houses, in what was called ''[[poteaux en terre]]'' construction.  Some 18th-century houses in this style survive in [[Ste. Genevieve, Missouri]], initially settled by French colonists from the [[Illinois Country]] to the east of the [[Mississippi River]].{{citation needed|date=October 2018}}

== Ottoman Empire ==
{{Main|Palanka (fortification)}}
[[File:Palanka Fort 2.png|thumb|A simple palanka with its curtain walls made of timber and wattle fences]]
A "palanka" was a type of wooden fort constructed of palisades, built by the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans during the 16th and 17th centuries. They could be erected for a variety of reasons such as protecting a strategically valuable area or a town<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Burcu|first=Özgüven|title=The Palanka: A Characteristic Building Type of The Ottoman Fortification Network in Hungary|url=https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/35636735/Palanka_A_Characteristic_Building_Type-_EJOS.pdf?1416377889=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DThe_Palanka_A_Characteristic_Building_T.pdf&Expires=1603260520&Signature=W5tty-rpcCX~LHnXmTt3ijT8jFIEwIr2bt9J9Z205Emdfg0d6JYFvXBlMRY6V4cBU1U9J8HM2-cu-L4tSgafR4~hYI5k8mS4ED6NLyAIqBKLnJquBpOJjeG4yc~rw5417t7wfFb~TzFXFvwn9jG7S~US670UdPPXso8A7wLl~gEaITN6psNhPnLUhBJc8l8xmAFlT68rPVuBGR3zLa5dzB5Lp8tshIGtrVMlY9KW5Wa-y8m1sb-hcqEP7v12RYbouLQs2Mc9Y7128Y~y7DwP2EreBJ-Q~vYF4EbQOUpM-mfNnIkIIAXNDwI3FqKvcvi4Zw~kccgelQTbKeLhj28ztQ__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023030024/https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/35636735/Palanka_A_Characteristic_Building_Type-_EJOS.pdf?1416377889=&response-content-disposition=inline%3B+filename%3DThe_Palanka_A_Characteristic_Building_T.pdf&Expires=1603425583&Signature=G-Dcl5CaaVmBZe42IYsQzNzL7r1M3ydCojW~SJmVhnVJ291zw5w8jZ0n2OBOt2FNm5JZFHjx5RkHIH0SluYmVHIT~szEgO7WtJefpSahopZKWqknLnElykr24apguuRmX6fHomVYOaTfTV27uckCGbbNTdL6MYhtvMRU9S51K~neKWxb633NZg1aAlM7JxRBs7T4546iZZ6tRTCi0i53rnBzvqCMiPHtbGJ7V876cM1zZV5v5IN9qv4k0PFuoRPDybXx~DkyrEzetmZiq7LmPjYxjK--m1rWIEOmQ9O-lV4V-lBL5kYjSjUjKAfXaIz2YJWT9HYifosXyERFkAtbRQ__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA|archive-date=23 October 2020|access-date=21 October 2020}}</ref> Some palankas evolved into larger settlements.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Az Bilinen Bir Yerleşme Tipi Palangalar ve Erzincan Ovasında Palanga Yerleşmesi Örnekleri - PDF Free Download|trans-title=A Little-Known Settlement Type Palanga and Examples of Palanga Settlements in Erzincan Plain|url=https://docplayer.biz.tr/18808840-Az-bilinen-bir-yerlesme-tipi-palangalar-ve-erzincan-ovasinda-palanga-yerlesmesi-ornekleri.html|access-date=2020-11-16|website=docplayer.biz.tr|language=tr}}</ref>

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==Half-timber palisade construction==
[[Image:Big Moose Lake NY USA Architecture.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Vertical, half-timber palisade architecture at Covewood Lodge in [[Big Moose Lake]] in New York's [[Adirondack Mountains]]]]

In the late nineteenth century, when milled lumber was not available or practical, many [[Adirondack Mountains|Adirondack]] buildings were built using a palisade architecture. The walls were made of vertical half timbers; the outside, rounded half with its bark still on faced Adirondack weather, while the inside half was sanded and varnished for a finished wood look. Typically, the cracks between the vertical logs were filled with moss and sometimes covered with small sticks.  Inside, the cracks were covered with narrow wooden battens. This palisade style was much more efficient to build than the traditional horizontal log cabin, since two half logs provided more surface area than one whole log and the vertical alignment meant a stronger structure for supporting loads like upper stories and roofs. It also presented a more finished look inside. Examples of this architectural style can still be found in the Adirondacks, such as around [[Big Moose Lake]].<ref>{{Cite book|title = Big Moose Lake in the Adirondacks|editor-last = Barlow|editor-first = Jane |publisher = Big Moose Lake History Project|year = 2004|isbn = 0-8156-0774-1|location = Syracuse, NY|pages = 22, 23}}</ref>

== Modern uses ==
In areas with extremely high rates of violent crime and property theft, a common means to prevent crime is for residential houses to be protected by perimeter defenses such as ornamental iron bars, brick walls, steel palisade fences, wooden palisade fences and electrified palisade fences ([[guard rail|railings]]).  The [[City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality|City of Johannesburg]] promotes the use of palisade fencing over opaque, usually brick, walls, as criminals cannot hide as easily behind the fence.  Its manual on safety includes guidance, such as avoiding having vegetation alongside the fence, as this allows criminals to make an unseen breach.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.joburg-archive.co.za/2008/pdfs/cptedbooklet.pdf |title = Manual on safety |access-date = 2010-04-19 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110720105607/http://www.joburg-archive.co.za/2008/pdfs/cptedbooklet.pdf |archive-date = 2011-07-20 }}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Camp crown|Palisado crown]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==

* {{Cite book|last=Nicolle|first=David|title=Ottoman Fortifications 1300-1710|publisher=Osprey Publishing|year=2010}}
* {{Cite book|last=Murphey|first=Rhoads|title=Ottoman Warfare 1500-1700|year=1999}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Palisades|Palisade}}
*{{Wiktionary-inline}}

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{{Fortifications}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Ancient Roman architectural elements]]
[[Category:Archaeology of the United States]]
[[Category:Engineering barrages]]
[[Category:Fences]]
[[Category:History of Indigenous peoples of North America]]
[[Category:Medieval defences]]
[[Category:Pre-Columbian architecture]]
[[Category:Timber framing]]
[[Category:Traditional Native American dwellings]]