La Tour de Vinde

La Tour de Vinde, (aka Noirmont Tower), is a Martello tower that the British erected between 1808 and 1810 to command the approaches to St Aubin's Bay, Jersey. The tower stands at the foot of the cliffs of Noirmont Point, in the Vingtaine de Noirmont in the Parish of Saint Brélade. During the occupation of the Channel Islands in World War II, the Germans erected Battery Lothringen on the top of Noirmont Point. The site of the tower is accessible at low tide by foot, though the tower itself is closed to the public.

La Tour de Vinde
Noirmont Point Light
La Tour de Vinde
La Tour de Vinde
Noirmont Point Light
Channel islands
LocationSt Aubin's Bay
Saint Brélade
Jersey
Coordinates49.165270°N 2.168036°W / 49.165270; -2.168036
Year first constructed1915
Constructionstone tower
Tower shapecylindrical tower with the light on a mast
Markings / patternblack tower with a horizontal white band
Tower height10 metres (33 ft)
Focal height18 metres (59 ft)
Range13 nautical miles (24 km; 15 mi)[1]
CharacteristicFl (4) W 12s.
Admiralty numberA1616
NGA number8108
ARLHS numberJER-007
Managing agentJersey Harbours[2]

La Tour de Vinde is painted black and white to serve as a daymark for sailors. Since 1915 it has housed a light that at night flashes every 12 seconds. The tower is currently under the purview of the Harbour & Airport Committee.

Name

The name comes from the Norse, where "vinde" means to tack or go about.[3] Once a sailing vessel heading for St Aubin's Bay had passed the point it could tack to approach the harbour.

Description

The tower was armed with a single 18-pounder gun on its top; there was a second 18-pounder in a battery at its base.[4] The tower supports the second floor via arches instead of a central pillar.[5] The tower's diameter is 26 ft (7.9 m) and it stands 23 ft (7.0 m) high.[6]

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See also

Citations and references
Citations
  1. Feu de Noirmont Point Phares du Monde
  2. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Jersey". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  3. Hals Michelet (1914), p.270.
  4. Clements (1999), pp.87–88.
  5. Grimsley (1988), p.43.
  6. Clements (1999), p. 169.
References
  • Clements, William H. (1998) Towers of Strength: Story of Martello Towers. (London: Pen & Sword). ISBN 978-0-85052-679-0.
  • Grimsley, E.J. (1988) The Historical Development of the Martello Tower in the Channel Islands. (Sarnian Publications). ISBN 978-0-9513868-0-4
  • Hals Michelet, Maren Bastin (1914) First year Norse. (The Free Church Book Concern).
  • Sutcliffe, Sheila (1973) Martello Towers. (Cranbury, NJ: Associated Universities Press).
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