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Introduction

Castles were primarily structures of and were built in strife ridden lands. Thus, it was almost inevitable that they would come under attack. Because castles were made with such massive defense fortifications, it was extremely hard to destroy them. Thus, the goal of a siege army was not to destroy a castle, but to penetrate it. However, this task was also extremely hard. often lasted for months and could even last for years! Castles were protected by at least two walls, and often a moat. The defender's only hope was that either a friendly army would come to help them, or that they could somehow defeat the attackers by themselves.

Demoralization

The most effective offensive weapon was hunger and demoralization. Besieging forces would attempt to completely surround a castle and cut it off from the outside world. No supplies were allowed in or messages sent out. The situation often got very grim inside the castle. Even though large quantities of supplies were stored inside, they sometimes ran out. Then the defenders were forced to eat anything they could get their hands on. This included rats, grass, dogs, and anything else semi-edible. Essentially, the offending army would attempt to starve and discourage the defenders to the point of . There were many tactics used to accomplish this. They did anything they could to decrease the enemy's morale. Because the defenders depended on reinforcements or a direct attack by allies from another castle, the attacking army almost always embarked on a campaign of misinformation. They would shout that the besieged army's allies were defeated. This was just another way of demoralizing the castle garrison that was cut off from the outside world. Offending armies would hurl insults and jeer at the enemy. They would throw dead animal and human body parts into the castle to spread disease and demoralize the defenders. In fact, the bubonic plague was originally spread by a besieging army. The offending army in this case used catapult machinery to launch dead bodies into a besieged town. This spread the bubonic plague which eventually killed one third of Europe. This was one of the earliest cases of biological warfare. Besiegers also often destroyed almost all crops and buildings for miles around the castle. They pillaged freely stealing animals and valuables.

Harassment and the Trick

Harassment was another way by which the attackers could break down the castle's defenses. Its effect was both psychological and physical. Many defenders were killed which lowered the number of men available to fight. Additionally, the other men inside the castle soon grew tired of seeing their fellow men in arms dying at their sides. The besieging army kept a constant stream of fire upon the castle and men manning its walls. They set up movable shields, essentially fences on wheels, that archers and crossbowmen could hide behind. The only problem with harassment is that it applied both ways: Attackers could easily become as harried as those defending.

Attackers also often tried to trick the castle defenders to gain admittance to the castle. For example, the besieging army could take their weapons and march out of sight. Then, they could wait a couple days and send several soldiers disguised as peasants to the castle. These soldiers could then knife the castle guards in secret and open the main gate. The enemy army could then enter the gate and take the castle.

Tactics for the Defense of the

Castle Walls

The defenders maintained their stronghold through various means. The only thing they could really do was react to the actions of the attackers. They sat tight and waited for the besieging army to leave or for help to arrive. They constantly maintained a steady fire of rocks, torches, arrows, oil, and boiling water on the attackers at the wall. Archers were positioned all over the battlement and the towers to help with this. By maintaining this constant barrage of missiles, they could make the attackers grow weary of fighting. They could also take a more active part in the defense. Occasionally, a detachment of troops was issued from the castle. This troops wood often force small skirmishes with the enemy.

The garrison in the castle also did many things to prepare for the siege. Once word was sent of an impending siege, food was scavenged from the surrounding area. By increasing the food supply, they could sometimes hold out for as long at a year.

Tactics for the Penetration of the Wall

Psychological warfare was not the only warfare employed in a siege, however. Fighting was going on constantly among the two forces. The besieging army used a number of methods to gain access to the areas beyond the walls of the castle.

Tunneling

One of the methods that they might have used involved tunneling. In the middle of the night, workers would erect wooden palisades, a type of fence, next to the wall. They would also sometimes build a shed. They would then cover these with leather hides that helped to keep them from catching on fire. These fortifications helped to protect the men inside from the constant barrage of fire from above. Additionally, archers hurried in and around the tunnel entrance to help guard it and fire at defenders above. The archers were somewhat safe behind moveable screen erected to guard them. After sufficient defenses were set up, special diggers called sappers would dig a tunnel underneath the castle's walls. As they were digging they would support the tunnel with wooden beams. These men had to be on their guard, however. Defenders often tried to dump hot oil and boiling water down into the tunnel and onto the other soldiers' heads. Once the tunnel was long enough, the attackers had two choices: Continue digging until they broke into the castle courtyard or set the tunnel on fire. Setting the tunnel on fire would cause the surrounding earth to collapse into the tunnel, possibly knocking the castle wall down. To set the wall on fire, attackers would pile dry brush, leaves, wood, and occasionally pigs in the tunnel. They would then light it on fire and hope that it would weaken the wall to the point of buckling. If they chose to continue tunneling until they reached the inside of the castle, there were many risks as well. Defenders would place bottles of water around the castle. If they saw tremors in the water in certain places regularly, then they knew someone was digging there. The defenders could then dig a counter-tunnel to intercept the tunnel the attackers were creating. Then the defenders would engage the enemy below the castle walls and foundation.

Siege Towers

In addition to tunneling, besiegers often created a siege tower. It was a large structure built to the height of the castle wall. Ladders led up to a room at the top of it. The front and top of the siege tower was covered with leather hides to prevent defenders from catching it on fire. It was built well away from the wall and then rolled next to it during the night. It was positioned next to a wooden hoarding built by the defenders. Then the attack would begin. Defensive and offensive archers would both keep up a constant stream of fire on each other as soldiers attempted to cross over onto the castle wall. Sometimes, enough attackers would be able to enter the wall and take the nearest towers. Other times, they would be routed and the tower would be set ablaze.

The Battering Ram

The battering ram was another way of getting through a castle wall. During the night a shed was erected quickly next to the gate, or a weak point in the wall. The shed was also covered with fireproof leather. If a moat was there, it was filled most of the way with dirt, rocks, and logs. Then, a large tree trunk was hung from the shed's ceiling by chains. It was sometimes capped with iron. Teams of soldiers then rocked the trunk back and forth, knocking against the wall. This could eventually cause a weakness in the wall, possibly tumbling it. However, defenders once again kept a steady stream of fire on the shed and the men around it. Burning objects were thrown down on top of the shed in an attempt to catch it on fire.

Siege Engines

Siege engines were also often constructed to help attack the walls and the buildings inside. Catapults, ballista’s, and trebuchets are examples of these. Siege engines were machines, and as machines, they could be powered in many different ways. Catapults and ballista’s used the tension power in rope and wood. They were bent and twisted like giant rubber bands. The resulting tension, if suddenly released, could allow the operators to hurl large objects. Catapults were generally used to launch rocks or incendiaries high into the air, over the castle walls. Rocks were aimed at the walls, while the incendiaries were aimed at the wooden buildings within. Catapults could also be used to launch dead bodies or body parts inside the castle walls. Ballista’s were like giant crossbows and shot large arrows. They were antipersonnel weapons. They could be aimed at a group of enemies. Sometimes defenders also had ballista’s because they didn't take much room and could be placed on a castle tower. Trebuchets were powered by men pulling on one side of a swiveling beam. They pulled on a rope connected to the short end of the beam. The longer side of the beam swung upwards, releasing the object. Missiles from a trebuchet could be aimed very accurately. They were aimed at the same spot in the wall for hours. The objective was to weaken the wall enough to topple it.

There are many myths and legends surrounding castle sieges. Knights in shining armor riding up to the castle, doing hand to hand combat. Or maybe hundreds of guards streaming out of the castles to meet their enemy. None of this is true, except in fairy tales and movies. Most of the time, the attacking force would send a messenger to the lord of the castle and give notice of their intentions to attack. This notice allowed the castle to surrender. Sometimes the lord surrendered, but most often the castle was restocked and made ready for the siege. They would restock themselves with food, supplies and drink, and add men to the garrison. There were three ways to take a castle. • The first is not to attack the castle at all - just avoid the castle altogether and seize the lands around it. • The second is direct assault, or laying siege to the castle. • The last is besieging.

Here is an account of a siege. Stone throwing mangonels attack the towers and walls every day. The walls of the castles would hopefully be breached, and towers damaged. The enemy erects wooden towers called belfries, taller than the castle towers, to conceal and enable bowmen to shoot arrows down into the castle. While this is going on, miners would be tunneling under the walls and towers of the castle in preparation to collapse them. To counter the mining, anti-mining tunnels could be dug by the castle soldiers, which insured a ferocious hand-to-hand battle underground. Inside the castle, the guards would place a pot of water near the castle towers and walls. When the water rippled, they would know enemy miners were at work underneath them. Since some castles were defended with as few as 14 soldiers, you can imagine how busy they would be at this point! The barbican is next assaulted and taken, with a loss of men on both sides. Then the bailey is attacked, and more men killed. Animals and some supplies would be captured. The auxiliary buildings containing hay and grain for the castle are burned. By now, miners have succeeded in collapsing a wall of the castle. The attackers have broken through and seized the inner bailey. More men on both sides would be lost in this phase of the attack. By this time, the castle defenders would have retreated to the keep. Miners would now be setting fire to the mine tunnel under the keep. Smoke and fire are rising into the keep, and cracks appearing in the thick walls. The defenders of the castle are forced to surrender as the castle falls to the enemy.

The third method, called besieging, would require the enemy to wait and starve the castle garrison into surrender. This method was preferred by an attacking side. Some sieges of this type would last from six months to a year. Sometimes, the enemy would hurl dead animals into the castle grounds in hopes of spreading diseases. And, sometimes the lord of the castle would toss dead animals outside his castle, to convince the enemy they had enough supplies to carry on a siege for months.

Here are some notable sieges: • Rochester Castle (1215)-the fall of this mighty fortification produced temporary loss of confidence in castles. • Dover Castle (1216)-mining of the castle was only thwarted by a relieving army. It produced the building of spur to stop the mining of castles. A spur is a wall or earthwork projecting sharply from main defenses. • Berkhamsted Castle (1217)-Henry III ordered his constable of the castle to surrender on humanitarian grounds. • Bedford Castle (1224)-One of the best documented sieges. The garrison of the castle was hanged after defeat. • Kenilworth Castle (1266)-the castle held out for six months against Henry III, and only surrendered because of the lack of food and disease. Seige Weapons and Warfare

Parts of a Castle

Arrow Loop: An opening in any type of fortification wall, usually shaped like a key hole, vertical slit, or cross that allows an archer to fire his weapon with a great amount of protection.

Bailey: An inner courtyard of a castle, sometimes called a Basilica.

Barbican: Fortification, usually consisting of walls and small towers build in front of a gatehouse to provide additional protection to the gateway. Some barbicans were just towers or walls built at a right angle to the Gatehouse.

Batters: A section at the base of a castle wall that is angled in such a manner to make dropped stones bounced away from the curtain wall and into the enemy. The batters also add strength to the base of the wall walk.

Battlement: Fighting position 'on the top of the castle wall or tower. This includes the crenellated wall and the wall walk.

Corbel: Stone protrusion from a building wall used to support main floor cross beams or other structures such as machicolations.

Crenellations: Top of a wall or tower that has lower sections(crenels) for the purpose of giving a castle defender a position to fight or fire through. This protective stonework is the classic outline of the top of a castle wall.

Crenels:(Also called embrasures) Low sections of the crenellations.

Curtain Wall : The encircling wall of a castle connecting the towers and other fortifications

Donjon: Central tower of a castle, later developed into the keep of the castle

Drawbridge: A wooden bridge across a moat or pit that can be raised or withdrawn making crossing impossible

Embrasure:(Also called crenels) Low sections of the crenellations

Gatehouse: Strong fortification, usually two towers joined above a main gate leading into a castle. Gatehouse towers were very large and were able to house a large standing guard, this area of a castle was considered very vulnerable, and as castles became more involved actually became one of the strongest defensive positions of a castle.

Glacis: An angling of the curtain wall along the vertical plane that allows the wall to deflect some or all of the force of rocks or other missiles thrown from a siege engine or cannon balls fired from siege cannons.

Guardrobe: Toilet facility of a castle, very much like an outhouse, emptied either on the outside of the castles curtain wall or into a cesspit.

Hoardings,: Wooden fortifications added to the crenellations and towers of a castle to provide additional protection to the defenders of a castle. Hoarding were removable and often provided overhead cover. They also usually provided a walkway on the outside of the crenellations that facilitated the dropping of stones and hot liquids on attackers.

Hoarding Holes: Holes in the Castle walls to support the hoarding.

Inner Curtain Wall: Defensive wall within a castle dividing the inner area into two or more defensive areas.

Inner Ward: Large inner courtyard contained inside a castle, usually the ward located around the keep.

Keep: The central fortification in a castle, usually a tower or building strongly fortified in the inner ward that provides the defenders with a final defensive position, as well as providing living quarters. The keep often is also the tallest fortification in a castle with a commanding view of all the fighting positions.

Machicolations: Permanent stone additions to a castle's battlements, providing better cover for defenders. Machicolations are similar to hoardings, but are made of stone and are permanent additions to a castle.

Merlon: The upward portion of a crenellation, the part of the top wall located between the embrasures or crenels.

Moat: Trench dug around a castle often filled with water

Motte: The natural or artificial hill upon which the keep of an early castle was built.(i.e. motte and bailey castles)

Murder Holes: Holes left in the floor of the upper level of a gatehouse, used to thrust pole weapons down at attackers trapped in the inside passage of the gatehouse. The inside passage was the area joining the outside and inside gates. Murder holes were also used for dropping stones and other unpleasant things onto enemies.

Oubliette: A dungeon or cell with the only opening being a trap door in the ceiling

Outer Ward: (Also sometimes called the bailey)Large courtyard outside of the inner ward but still held within the outer curtain wall

Palisade: Fortification wall made of wood

Parapet: Walkway located behind the crenellations of a castle, or the fighting platform area of a castle tower

Portcullis: Sliding secondary gate used to guard a castle entrance, usually made of vertical and horizontal metal bars or reinforced wood beams. This was designed to make the use of rams against the main gate less effective.

Postern or postern gate: Small secondary gate, often too small for horses to pass through, located in the side walls of the castle curtain wall

Putlog Holes: Holes in the castle wall used to support scaffolding.

Tower: Circular or Square fortification used to provide stability and additions defensive capabilities to the curtain wall

Turning Bridge: Drawbridge pivoted in the middle