Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Typical Castle Architecture
Castles were fortified residences for medieval nobles. Castles come in all
shapes and sizes, but knowing a few general terms will help you under-
stand them.
Barbican:
A fortified gatehouse, sometimes a stand-alone building loc-
ated outside the main walls.
Crenellation:
A gap-toothed pattern of stones atop the parapet.
Drawbridge:
A bridge that could be raised or lowered, using counter-
weights or a chain and winch.
Great Hall:
The largest room in the castle—serving as throne room, con-
ference center, and dining hall.
Hoardings (or Gallery or Brattice):
Wooden huts built onto the upper
parts of the stone walls. They served as watch towers, living quarters,
and fighting platforms.
The Keep (or Donjon):
A high, strong stone tower in the center of the
castle complex that was the lord's home and refuge of last resort.
Loopholes:
Narrow slits in the walls (also called embrasures, arrow slits,
or arrow loops) through which soldiers could shoot arrows at the en-
emy.
Machicolation:
A stone ledge jutting out from the wall, fitted with holes
in the bottom. If the enemy was scaling the walls, soldiers could drop
rocks or boiling oil down through the holes and onto the enemy below.
Moat:
A ditch encircling the wall, often filled with water.
Parapet:
Outer railing of the wall walk.
Portcullis:
A heavy iron grille that could be lowered across the entrance.
