palisades

Palisades are barriers formed from vertical posts embedded in the ground to create a fence or defensive wall. They have been used around settlements, fortifications, and property boundaries since ancient times and across many cultures. The term can also describe natural cliff lines that resemble a fence of stakes.

Traditional palisades employ sharpened wooden stakes driven closely together, sometimes connected with crosspieces and supported by a trench or ditch. In other regions, iron rails or stone walls are used. Palisades are usually designed for short- or long-term protection, seasonal frontier camps, or delineating ownership. Their effectiveness depends on depth of posts, spacing, and surrounding terrain.

Geographically, the word palisades is applied to notable cliff formations. The Hudson River Palisades along the western shore of the lower Hudson in the United States are a well-known example: a series of tall basalt cliffs running from the vicinity of Fort Lee, New Jersey, northward toward Yonkers, New York. They form part of the Palisades Sill, a Triassic–Jurassic basalt formation that creates prominent escarpments and a linear landscape. The area is protected by parks and preserves and is a major scenic and ecological feature.

Etymology and usage: the term derives from French palissade. In modern contexts, palisades can describe security fences around properties as well as natural cliff lines that resemble wooden stakes.