Splayed opening in a battlement or rampart for shooting; also the splayed opening of a window. (Martindale, Andrew. Gothic Art, 268) Opening in battlemented parapet, recess for window or doorway. (Wood, Margaret. The English Medieval House, 411) The low segment of the altering high and low segments of a battlement. (MEDIEV-L. Medieval Terms) Related terms: Castle
An opening in a wall, such as a loophole or a crenel; especially an opening whose sides flare outward, providing defenders shooting through the opening with both the widest possiblefield of fire and the maximum protection against incoming missiles.
This is the hole in the wall through which an observer looks. It should enable the man to see his arc without moving his head much, in other words, the V shape taking up the thickness of the wall should be on the outer face, not inside. Where the wall is thinner, it should be reinforced with a steel backing plate. It may have Macrolon or steel shutters. It may have a shelf for binoculars. From the outside, the dark shadow in the hole is clearly visible and this should be camouflaged with disruptive pattern dark paint. If it is possible to see another embrasure through the OP or Sangar from outside, the observer will be strongly silhouetted and so a curtain must be placed stopping people from seeing straight through.
An opening in a wall or parapet allowing cannon to fire through it, the gunners remaining under cover. One or both sides of the embrasure would be slanted outward to increase a weapon’s angle of fire. The sides of the embrasure were called cheeks, the bottom the sole; the narrow part of the opening, the throat, and the wide part, the splay. Empty embrasures could be closed with a wooden shield or mantelet.
Opening in defensive wall to fire cannons through. [Go to source
an opening (in a wall or ship or armored vehicle) for firing through
An opening in a thick wall for a portal or window, especially one with angled sides, so that the opening is larger on the inside than the outside. From the Old French embraser for "to cut at a slant."
a small opening in a wall or parapet, usually with splayed reveals which allows guns to be fired from cover.
An opening made in a parapet or wall allowing cannon to fire through it while the gunners remain under cover.
An opening to either side of a merlon, along the top of a wall
opening in a parapet to permit gunfire through the wall.
An small opening in a "parapet"or wall through which weapons may be fired.
An opening in the parapet through which cannon were fired. The widening angles allowed a sweeping fire.
An opening in the parapet of a wall or the earthwork of a battery through which a cannon can be fired safely and effectively.
An opening in the parapet (fort wall) through which a gun is fired. Although it weakens the parapet to assault, the embrasure provides protection for the gun crew.
A splayed opening in a wall that enframes a doorway or a window.
A small opening in battlements used as lookout posts
The opening behind a window or arrow loop. Also used as an alternative name for a crenel.
an opening in a wall or parapet through which cannon were fired. The sides, generally splayed outward, were termed “cheeks;” the bottom was called the sole;” the narrow part of the opening, the “throat;” and the widening, the “splay.
Embrasure Splayed opening in a wall for a window. Also the low segment of the alternate high and low segments of a Battlement. Provided protection to people within the wall.
Opening for a door or window with the sides slanted so that it is wider on the inside than the outside.
(Fr.) - a wedge-shaped opening cut to allow artillery to fire through the parapet. A cannon firing en embrasure had a restricted (45-degree) field of fire but the parapet protected the gunners. The sides, or cheeks, of an embrasure often were reinforced by logs, planks, stones, sandbags, or gabions. Embrasures were common features of artillery fortifications and often survive as an indentation in the otherwise uniform parapet crest. Not all indentations are embrasures. Typically, there is other evidence of the presence of artillery-a gun platform and gun ramp, for example. A single gun might have had multiple embrasures. See Barbette.
The term embrasure, in architecture, refers to the opening in a crenellation or battlement between the two raised solid portions or merlons, sometimes called a crenelle; also to the splay of a window. The purpose of embrasures is to allow weapons to be fired out from the fortification while the firer remains under cover.