How Warfare Techniques Have Changed The Construction Of A Castle

In response to the use of castles and fortresses, siege weapons were created. Siege weapons ranged from short range weapons such as the battering ram to longer range ones like the trebuchet or the ballista. The battering ram was usually a big shed with an armored roof and wheels to protect the men inside operating a thick beam with an iron head hung from the roof that was swung into enemy walls to bring them down. The siege tower, a wheeled tower filled with men that would be used to get over the walls, also saw its use during this time. The trebuchet was used for longer range, the missiles launched by the trebuchet ranged from using dead bodies of animals or people to spread disease, a primitive example of biological warfare, to using large boulders to take down fortress walls. In response

Spain has the most formidable castles in the world. Spain has more than 1000 Spanish castles recorded through history. The castles were built for various reasons. However, the primary reason was to stop the Arabs when they invaded Spain in 711. The Spanish built so many of them in fact. These castles were mostly concentrated in the northern part which was where the Arabs advanced when they attacked. And when the Spanish military moved to reconquer the peninsula towards the south, they built additional strongholds to prevent the Arabs from reclaiming Spain. These castles were known as Castilla.

In Europe, the lords would build castles out of stone to protect themselves whilst the Japanese lords, known as Daimyo, built castles out of wood rather than stone.

The Moors also built atalayas, or watchtowers and rock castles that served as part of the defense system for the castle. The watchtowers were used as communication devices for castles that were great distances apart. The watchtowers would signal the castle in case of an enemy attack by using smoke and mirrors. They built rock castles, or small defense castles high on rocks, using the natural terrain to the maximum effect. Since the rock castles were small they did not house many soldiers.

As knights increased their social standing, with some becoming nobles, the idea of owning a castle became a common idea. War was often a way for one side to gain large amounts of wealth, which allowed more castles to be built. This allowed for the development of many different types of castles.

The once subjugated Saxons were required to raise a knoll that was twenty-one meters high and surrounded by a dry trench. There were Wooden pikes or posts that protected the buildings on top of the knoll, while to in the south and east of the knoll there were yards that were protected by banks and ditches this all this was to set in motion the ground work for the castle of Norwich. Edward Boardman a Norwich born architect completed the Norwich Castle, a medieval and fantastic defense structure in the city of Norwich which was one of the greatest castles of its time because of its architecturally advanced structure, a symbol of military power, and a symbol of political control that was founded by the Normans.

-Beat people up and the owner of the castle would send knights on peaseants and take property

Castle designs have changed over history. This is because of changes in technology over time. The first castles were simply 'mounds' of earth, and medieval castle designs improved on these basics - adding ditches in the Bailey design, which is the name given to the lay out of the castle.

Kelly DeVries and Robert Douglas Smith. Medieval Military Technology, Second Edition. Toronto. University of Toronto Press Incorporated, 2012. XVIII + 356 pp. Illustrations, bibliographical references, Index. ISBN 978-1-4426-0497-1.

Castles were extremely important during 1066 – 1500 and they changed overtime to get more protection. A castle is a fortification that was used in the middle ages to protect territory against an invasion. They were important during these times because many kings and lords wanted to show off how wealthy they are and they used them as bases, controlling their land and people from a higher point.

Since governments were powerless to deal with invasions, a political and military system called feudalism was formed to death with murderous raids. Under feudalism, monarchs gave much of their land to provide warriors on horseback (knights in shining armor) to combat the invaders. The key military weapon from the tenth to the thirteenth centuries were the armored knight on horseback, this struggle was to protect nobles, lands, and horses. The castle was developed to perform that function for the kingdom and the monarchy too. To protect themselves from sudden raids these strongholds were the first castles. Feudalism and castles were established all over Europe. As the outside threats faded, nobles fought power struggles with each other and with monarchs anxious to restore central authority into the Kingdom. A castle was a fortified home. It was designed to be defended by a small group of soldiers. The medieval castle provided a base the local countryside,

The Major Changes In Defence at Carisbrooke Castle The three periods of development I will cover in this piece of coursework are the Norman Period, the Medieval Period and the Elizabethan Period. Each period had many different updates installed due to new threats and advances in technology. Norman Period 1070 - 1130:

The castle would usually be built on higher ground to see enemies coming from below. This would also help to build a moat, the drawbridge would be the only pathway from the land to the castle. The castle would have multiple stories from basements to dungeons. The toilet would be built at the bottom story to let the waste go down into the water below.

     Medieval tactics were essential for an attack or siege of a castle. Many tactics and strategies helped develop much-improved version of an attacking artifact, like weapons and sieging machinery. The knights of Medieval England which were the cavalry, improved as the years went by, but never actually had any tactics or strategies. The usual knight would just go out there and fight. The knights were the counter offensive against a small siege, but they were ineffective against a large siege of a castle. A siege was very essential for medieval warfare. Siege was like the most important part of an attack; that is if you’re attacking a castle.

The Tower of London is one of the most famous and visited historic monuments in the world. For some people it conjures up images of Norman architecture and towering battlements, but most associate it with arms and armour, ravens, the Crown Jewels, Yeoman Warders, imprisonment, death and ghostly apparitions. But this does not do it justice: the history of the Tower and its buildings is a vast, fascinating and complex subject, intertwined with the history of the country of England, its government, its kings and queens, and its people and institutions. The castle's first four centuries, during the Middle Ages, saw the development of the layout of buildings that we know today and its