Castle Architecture
It would be difficult to discuss castle architecture without first analyzing its function in medieval society. ... Because of this, feudal lords often fought over land, and the best way to defend and control land was from a castle. ... The effective ruling range of a castle was the distance that a horse could travel, about a ten-mile radius if it returned the same day. The castle’s formidable appearance had a large psychological effect on the peasants. ... However, the primary purpose of the castle was for defense, and the castle’s security was determined by its architectural design. ... It was ideal to build a castle on the edge of a cliff or on a steep hill. A castle could either be built on top of a natural hillock, or the mound could be partially or fully man-made. If the hill was natural, and stone was readily available or affordable, the castle would often be made of stone. ... If the hillock was man-made, the ground was usually too soft to support the weight of a stone castle, so it would be made of wood. ... Curtain walls were enclosing walls vital to a castle’s defense. ... Richmond Castle has one of the oldest stone curtain walls, built in 1075. ... The walkway on top of the castle walls, called the allure, was guarded by parapets, which were small walls on the outside of the allure. Battlements, which were basically jagged parapets, also protected castle soldiers in a siege. ... Also, towers intersect most castle walls at numerous intervals. ... Castle towers provided excellent observation posts and positions to attack soldiers trying to breach the wall. ... Finally, moats sometimes partially or completely encircled the castle walls. Usually castles had simple dry ditches, but water moats made a castle much more difficult to attack. ... The most primitive drawbridges were removable, but later drawbridges were attached to ropes or chains on the far side so that they could be used to pull the bridge up on end by a pulley system that could be maneuvered within the safety of the castle.