Definitions for "Bastille"
A tower or an elevated work, used for the defense, or in the siege, of a fortified place.
"The Bastille", formerly a castle or fortress in Paris, used as a prison, especially for political offenders; hence, a rhetorical name for a prison.
Redoubt or outwork. (military architecture) (Davis, H.W. C. (ed.) Medieval England, 615) Wooden tower on wheels for assault, used in siege warfare. (Seward, Desmond. Henry V: The Scourge of God, 221) Related terms: Castle
Keywords:  jail, literally, french
a jail (literally, a French jail)