La Tour Cârrée, or The Square Tower, on

Jersey Jersey ( ; ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey, is an autonomous and self-governing island territory of the British Islands. Although as a British Crown Dependency it is not a sovereign state, it has its own distinguishing civil and gov ...

, is not a tower but rather is a fortified guardhouse and magazine in the style of a blockhouse with loopholes for

musket A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first as a heavier variant of the arquebus, capable of penetrating plate armour. By the mid-16th century, this type of musket gradually dis ...

ry. It may have been erected in 1778 on the site of a

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a Fortification, fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on Earthworks (engineering), earthworks, although some are constructed of ston ...

. The tower supported a battery of three 24-pounder

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

s that stood on a paved surface in front of it. Shingle now covers this surface. The tower and battery played a role in the repelling in 1779 of the Prince of Nassau's attempt to land a force at the

Franco-Dutch Invasion of Jersey The Invasion of Jersey was a failed French attack on British-held Jersey in 1779, during the American Revolutionary War. Battle A letter from Major Moses Corbet, Lieutenant Governor of Jersey, reported that on 1 May 1779, a French force attem ...

. Historically, the structure and redoubts near it have been known as Square Fort, North Battery, and New North Battery. It is located on St Ouen's Bay, by St Ouen's Pond. Today the structure is painted white and black on the seaward side to serve as a

daymark A daymark is a navigational aid for sailors and maritime pilot, pilots, distinctively marked to maximize its visibility in daylight. The word is also used in a more specific, technical sense to refer to a signboard or daytime identifier that ...

for sailors. Since 2007 the tower has been available as self-catering accommodation under a program the Jersey Heritage Trust administers for the

States of Jersey The States Assembly (; Jèrriais: ) is the parliament of Jersey, formed of the island's 37 deputies and the Connétable (Jersey and Guernsey), Connétable of each of the Parishes of Jersey, twelve parishes. The origins of the legislature of ...

Towers and Forts project. Accommodation is extremely basic as the site has no utilities whatsoever.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:La Tour Carree Buildings and structures in Saint Ouen, Jersey Fortifications in Jersey History of Jersey

Daymarks