Cinque Ports: Meaning and Definition of

Cinque' Ports'

Pronunciation: (singk), [key]
  1. a former association of maritime towns in SE England: originally (1278) numbering five (Hastings, Romney, Hythe, Dover, and Sandwich) and receiving special privileges in return for aiding in the naval defense of England.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.