Victoria Tower

The National Trust for Jersey is a charitable organisation which aims at preserving and safeguarding sites of historic, aesthetic and natural interest in Jersey.

The Trust held its first formal meeting, headed by the Dean of Jersey Samuel Falle, on 3 August 1936, and was incorporated in the following year by the States of Jersey. The Trust is now the island's largest private land owner, caring for over 130 sites.

Saint Martin (Jèrriais: St Martîn) is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. Historically it was called "Saint Martin le Vieux" to distinguish it from the present day parish of Grouville (historically "Saint Martin de Grouville").

St. Martin is the only parish in Jersey not to conduct its municipal business from a Parish Hall. St. Martin has a Public Hall instead, having accepted money from the States of Jersey to provide an assembly room.

Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards.

They stand up to 40 feet (12m) high (with two floors) and typically had a garrison of one officer and 15–25 men. Their round structure and thick walls of solid masonry made them resistant to cannon fire, while their height made them an ideal platform for a single heavy artillery piece, mounted on the flat roof and able to traverse a 360° arc. A few towers had moats or other batteries and works attached for extra defence.

The Martello towers were used during the first half of the 19th century, but became obsolete with the introduction of powerful rifled artillery. Many have survived to the present day, often preserved as historic monuments.

In the later half of the 19th century, there was another spate of tower and fort building, during the premiership of Lord Palmerston. These fortifications are therefore correctly called the Palmerston Forts, although, because they are circular in design, some confuse them with Martello towers.

Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defense in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs. The term is derived from the Latin fortis ("strong") and facere ("to make").

The art of setting out a military camp or constructing a fortification traditionally has been called "castramentation" since the time of the Roman legions. Fortification is usually divided into two branches: permanent fortification and field fortification. There is also an intermediate branch known as semi-permanent fortification. Castles are fortifications which are regarded as being distinct from the generic fort or fortress in that it describes a residence of a monarch or noble and commands a specific defensive territory.

From very early history to modern times, walls have been a necessity for many cities. Some settlements in the Indus Valley Civilization were also fortified. In ancient Greece, large stone walls had been built in Mycenaean Greece, such as the ancient site of Mycenae (famous for the huge stone blocks of its 'cyclopean' walls).

A national trust is an organization dedicated to preserving the cultural or environmental treasures of a particular geographic region. They generally operate as private non-profit organizations, although some receive considerable support from their national government. The first such organization was the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, which is the national trust of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, formed in 1895 and operating as a charitable organisation. Other national trusts have largely been modeled on this original example.

Other notable national trusts include: