peelhouse means A small tower, fort, or castle; a keep. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.
Why “peelhouse” is a great word
A small, fortified dwelling or tower, typically built for local defense in the turbulent borderlands between England and Scotland, deriving from peel (from Middle English 'pel', a variant of 'pile', meaning a stake or palisade, and by extension a small fortified house) and house. Unlike a castle—a sprawling complex of power and residence—or a keep—the central stronghold within such a complex—a peelhouse is a solitary, austere statement of vigilance. It is a stark silhouette against a bruised sky, a hearth-ring of sharpened logs enclosing rough-hewn stone, a single point of desperate light in a landscape of gathering dark. It embodies the grim arithmetic of survival, where home is not a refuge from the world, but a bastion against it.
Etymology
From peel + house.
noun
- A small tower, fort, or castle; a keep.“Here are two sovereigns in the land, a regnant and a claimant - that is enough of one good thing - but if any one wants more, he may find a king in every peelhouse in the country; so if we lack government, it is not for lack of governors.”