Bas-tīle', n.

(bas-teel' or bās'teel) (Synop., § 130), n. [O. Fr. bastille, fortress, from O. Fr. bastir, now bâtir, to build.] Originally, a temporary wooden tower used in warfare; hence, any tower or fortification.

To fight . . . along the high bastiles . . . which overtopped the walls. Holland.

The name has been specifically applied to an old fortification in Paris, built in the 14th century, long used as a state prison, but demolished by the populace of the city in 1789.