The role of medieval castles in Europe

The medieval castles in Europe are buildings with both military and civil functions. It is not only a fortress to defend against enemy attacks, but also the residence of nobles and knights.

Medieval Europe was a wasteland full of conflicts, robberies, confrontations and killings. In this kind of chaos, people need a harbor to escape the storm of war, tools to resist the attack of powerful enemies, and sharp tools to maintain peace on one side. Thus, the castle was born.

At that time, building castles was the most reliable way of defense in the war, and at least the weak side could retreat to castles. The castle, which is mainly made of earth and stone materials, is enough to resist the rapid attack of cavalry and turn the sudden quick victory into a war of attrition. Therefore, the purpose of the castle is to defuse the enemy's attacks, especially in medieval Europe, where lords at all levels took the maintenance of personal and property safety as their core task, which made the castle enter a golden age.

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The types of early castles were called "mounds and slates". A mound is a dam made of earth, with a certain width and height, usually 50 feet high. Mounds and slates are like an island, surrounded by dug ditches filled with water, connected by a bridge and narrow and steep paths. When in danger, if you can't hold the banlou, the defending troops will retreat into the arrow tower.

In the 1 1 century, castles were built of stones instead of mud and wood. The wooden arrow tower built on the earth embankment is made of big stones. This kind of fortification was called empty-shell fortress, and later developed into an arrow tower or fortress.

After the Crusade, new defense techniques and siege engineers were brought back to improve the design of the castle. The concentric castle extends from the central point and is surrounded by two or more circular walls. At first, the square arrow tower was used to strengthen the defense of the city wall, and later it was changed to the round arrow tower, which was more resistant. You can add more combat readiness at the top of the city wall and the arrow tower, making it more capable of attacking downwards.

Although artillery appeared in Europe at the beginning of14th century, there was no siege artillery with fighting capacity until the middle of15th century. With the increasing power of artillery, people began to change the design of the castle in response. In the past, the high-risk and steep walls were replaced by low-inclined walls.

By the middle of the15th century, due to the expansion of kingship, the castle began to decline. 1 1 century, William the conqueror claimed to own all the castles in England and took them back from the nobles. In the13rd century, the construction or reinforcement of castles had to be approved by the king. Its purpose is to abolish the castle so that it cannot be used as a basis for rebellion. The castle was abandoned, a quarter of it was still preserved by the nobles, and the others were reduced to ruins.

The construction of the castle can be completed in less than a year, or it may take twenty years. Building castles has been an important industry for centuries. Famous masons are in great demand, and batches of castle builders will move from one place to another to work. Towns want to hire skilled workers to build cathedrals, and lords also want to hire them to build castles.

Construction began at Beaumaris Castle in North Wales, 1295. Its design is symmetrical and has no weaknesses. At the peak of construction, 30 blacksmiths, 400 masons and 2000 workers are needed. Workers are mostly engaged in excavation, handling, lifting, excavation, stone splitting and other work. This well-designed castle was never completed. Conwill's Castle was built in Wales by England's Edward I of England, which took 40 months.

The walls of the castle are made of stone, and the inside of the stone wall is filled with gravel and flint, which is mixed with mortar grinder. The width of the city wall is generally between 6 and 16 feet.

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