Fortified towers by type

thumb|upright=1.4|The Norman architecture|Norman () keep of [[Rochester Castle, England (rear). The shorter rectangular tower attached to the keep is its forebuilding, and the curtain wall is in the foreground.]] A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word keep, but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the castle fall to an adversary. The first keeps were made of timber and formed a key part o

thumb|A watchtower on the Great Wall of China thumbnail|Saint Thomas Tower in [[Marsaskala, Malta]] A watchtower or guardtower (also spelled watch tower, guard tower) is a type of military/paramilitary or policiary tower used for guarding an area. Sometimes fortified, and armed with heavy weaponry, especially historically, the structures are built in areas of established control. These include military bases, cities occupied by military forces, prisons and more. A common equipment is searchlights.

thumb|Drawing of a bartizan

type of stone structure, built for defensive and habitation purposes

thumb|300px|Topoľčany Castle, [[Slovakia. Three lines of defence are perfectly depicted here: Renaissance bastions, central Gothic fortification and a bergfried as the last refuge.]] Bergfried (plural: bergfriede; English: belfry; French: tour-beffroi; Italian: torrione; Castilian: torre del homenaje) is a tall tower that is typically found in castles of the Middle Ages in German-speaking countries and in countries under German influence. Stephen Friar in the Sutton Companion to Castles describes a bergfried as a "free-standing, fighting-tower". Its defensive function is to some extent similar

tower built over or next to a major gateway

Settlement method used by Zionist settlers in Mandatory Palestine

building style

defensive tower

fortified tower sited on the outside of a defensive wall or other fortified structure

two-part defensive tower

tower that was part of a medieval town wall or castle

Type of medieval fortification

tower designed to store gunpowder in former times; often part of city walls

building used by farmers in ancient Western Asia