A crémaillère is a French, mechanical term for the rack, or a straight bar with teeth on one edge designed to work into the teeth of a wheel or a pinion (French pignon) that predates the Renaissance. The term was generally applied in English to engineering applications which had notched, toothed or drilled surface, even when only visually so, such as the edge of the staircase. The term is also applied to the

rack railway A rack railway (also rack-and-pinion railway, cog railway, or cogwheel railway) is a steep grade railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with ...

. During the 17th to 19th centuries, the term was widely applied to lines of entrenchment usually formed in a saw-tooth pattern, known as indented lines, particularly during

siege A siege () . is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or by well-prepared assault. Siege warfare (also called siegecrafts or poliorcetics) is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict charact ...

s. These lines are usually employed on banks of rivers, or ground which is more elevated than, or which commands, that of the enemy. The defense of these lines is sometimes strengthened by double

redan Redan (a French language, French word for "projection", "salient") is a feature of fortifications. It is a work in a V-shaped Salients, re-entrants and pockets, salient angle towards an expected attack. It can be made from earthworks or other ...

s, and flat

bastion A bastion is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fire from the ...

s constructed at intervals, along their front. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

used such defenses in Centerville,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

in 1862, while the Union Army used them from 1883 to 1865 at Fort C. F. Smith in Alexandria County (now

Arlington County Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

), Virginia. The term is also applied in

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

to refer to an indented battery, or à Crémaillère constructed with salient and re-entering angles for obtaining an

oblique Oblique may refer to: * an alternative name for the character usually called a slash (punctuation) ( / ) *Oblique angle, in geometry * Oblique triangle, in geometry * Oblique lattice, in geometry * Oblique leaf base, a characteristic shape of the ...

, as well as a

direct fire Direct fire or line-of-sight fire refers to firing of a ranged weapon whose projectile is launched directly at a target within the line-of-sight of the user. The firing weapon must have a sighting device and an unobstructed view to the target, ...

, and to afford shelter form an enfilade fire of the enemy. The term is also used in

surgical instrument A surgical instrument is a medical device for performing specific actions or carrying out desired effects during a surgery or operation, such as modifying biological tissue, or to provide access for viewing it. Over time, many different kinds of ...

s, where the "crémaillère" is the toothed hook between the legs of the needle holder, keeping the needle holder locked and thus the needle in place in the needle holder. In modern French, the crémaillère may also refer to a chimney hook or pot crane: the hook in the fireplace where a cooking pot was traditionally hung. The phrase “pendre la crémaillère” (literally “to hang the chimney hook”) is an expression meaning “to have a housewarming party”.

Citations and notes

References

* ''Glossary of Automotive Terminology: French-English English-French'', Engineering Standards and Data Dept, Society of Automotive Engineers, Chrysler Corporation, 1977 * Mahan, Dennis Hart, Prud'homme, John Francis Eugene, ''A Treatise on Field Fortification: Containing Instructions on the Methods of laying out, constructing, defending and attacking entrenchments with the general outlines also of the arrangement, the attack and defence of permanent fortifications'', (3rd ed.) Confederate States of America Collection (Library of Congress), Joseph Meredith Toner Collection (Library of Congress), John Wiley, New York, 1862 * Henry Lee, (Colonel ), ''Military dictionary: comprising technical definitions: information on raising and keeping troops; actual service, including makeshifts and improved materiel; and law, government, regulation, and administration relating to land forces'', D. Van Nostrand, Trubner and co, New York, 1861 * Spearman J. Morton, (Captain), ''The British gunner'', (3rd Ed.)Military Library Whitehall, 1844 {{DEFAULTSORT:Cremaillere Military terminology Fortification (architectural elements) Gears fr:Crémaillère