Medieval Castles
In 1494 the armies of the French king, Charles VIII, invaded Italy to capture the kingdom of Naples. They swept through the country and bombarded and destroyed many castles. This invasion signaled the end of the castle as a stronghold of defense. For centuries it had been the dominant fortification in Western Europe for the defense of kings, nobility, and townspeople. Ancient cities were often walled to keep out invaders, and within the walls there was usually a citadel, a strongly built fortification occupying the highest or militarily most advantageous position. A castle is much like such a walled city and its citadel contracted into a smaller space.
Castles were basically fortified ...
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started building such forts.
Western Europe, in the depths of the Dark Ages from the 5th through the 9th century, had no such works. But late in the 9th century, as local lords and kings began to consolidate power, castle building began probably in France. Once begun, castle building spread rapidly to other areas. But it was not until the 12th and 13th centuries, after the Crusaders returned from their wars against Islam in Palestine, that castles as imposing as those of the Byzantine or Islamic empires were constructed in Europe. Many of the stone castles of the late Middle Ages still stand. Some are tourist attractions, in various states of repair, along the Rhine River from Mainz to Cologne in Germany, dotted about the French countryside, or perched on hilltops in Spain. The original French castles had been built on open plains. Later ones, however, were situated on rocky crags, at river forks, or in some position where advancing enemies would find approach extremely ...
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These gates were so large that they were rarely opened except on ceremonial occasions. A smaller door was built into one of them to provide easy entrance and exit for those who lived in the castle.. A person known as the chief porter was charged with the responsibility of making sure that only friends passed through.
The outer walls of most castles were massively thick, sometimes as much as 15 feet. At intervals were high towers, each a small fort in itself with provisions to withstand a long siege. When an attack was expected, wooden balconies were hung over the outer edges of the wall. During an attack, large stones were thrown or boiling oil poured from the balconies onto anyone trying ...
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Medieval Castles. (2008, July 7). Retrieved December 23, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Medieval-Castles/86418
"Medieval Castles." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 7 Jul. 2008. Web. 23 Dec. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Medieval-Castles/86418>
"Medieval Castles." Essayworld.com. July 7, 2008. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Medieval-Castles/86418.
"Medieval Castles." Essayworld.com. July 7, 2008. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Medieval-Castles/86418.
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