Brief description of the castle of the feudal lord of the Middle Ages. Summary: Feudal castle as a fortress and dwelling of a feudal lord. How and from what materials were medieval castles built?
"In the knight's castle" - Another feature of knightly honor was the preservation of loyalty to one's lord. Lesson plan. 1. Castle of the feudal lord. 2. Equipment of knights. 3.Knights at leisure. 4. Knightly honor. In case of danger, the bridge rose and, like a door, closed the entrance. 1. Castle of the feudal lord. During the campaigns, the knights were reliably protected by armor. ? Why could only a very rich person be a knight?
“Knight in the castle” - The prototype of knights to a certain extent is the class of equites (riders) in Ancient Rome. However, a fundamental change in the methods of waging war and organizing social relations in Europe is associated with the fall of the Roman Empire under the pressure of nomads from the east during the Great Migration. A fortified castle is exactly the same inalienable sign of chivalrous centuries as steel armor, covering from head to toe with a spear, like tournaments where the queen of love and beauty was chosen by the rider with the winner.
"Feudal lords and knights" - Knight - the hope of the weak and humiliated. War is the profession of a knight. Knight equipment. How did the knights spend their free time? The knight had to be generous. Knights - the military class of medieval Europe. Fixing the material. In the castle, the feudal lord hid from the attacks of enemies and rebellious peasants. Above all the buildings towered the main tower - donjon.
"Medieval knights" - Modern castle. ... Who were knighted. Evening castle. Knight armor. The figure of a knight. Medieval castle under attack. Life of knights. Castle tower. General plan of the castle. Medieval castle. Knight on horseback. Castle, side view. Medieval castle, general view. Knight in armor. Castle, general overview.
"Noble Knight" - A.S. Pushkin. Saint George became the ideal image of a warrior - the defender of the Motherland. George the Victorious Medieval knight Roland Alexander Nevsky. The ideal of noble chivalry. V.A. Zhukovsky. Homework. Lessons
At the end of the ninth century in Europe, the construction of feudal castles begins. They were erected not only by wealthy lords, but also by middle-class feudal lords. The mass construction of castles was predetermined by the constant incursions of enemies.
Usually the castle was built on a hill or on a high bank, from where the approaches to it were clearly visible. At first it was a very simple structure: a wooden two-story tower, which was called donjon . The feudal lord himself lived on the top floor with his family. A military squad and servants lived downstairs, as well as utility rooms, a kitchen, a barn with food and an armory. In the event of a siege, the wooden tower was sheathed from the outside with animal skins in order to protect it from fire.
A rampart was built around the castle, and it was reinforced with a palisade with wooden towers. In front of the rampart was a deep ditch filled with water. A bridge was thrown across the ditch on chains, which led to one of the palisade towers with heavy oak gates, bound with iron. In the event of a threat, the bridge was raised, and it was almost impossible to get into the castle. A few steps from the gate in the direction of the courtyard were the lifting bars. Even if someone managed to slip through the gate, the bars would fall, and people would be trapped.
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| Fortress Nove Hrady in the Czech Republic. 13th century Modern photo |
In the XI century. castles began to be built of stone and further strengthened. Two or even three rows of high and powerful walls with corner towers were erected around the castle. Loopholes were made in the walls - narrow holes for archery. The wooden donjon was replaced with a stone one. Its dark, cold and damp dungeons were used not only for household needs, but also as a prison for criminals, prisoners and convicts. In the courtyard of the castle there were also stables for war horses and stalls for cattle. Water was taken from a well dug in the same place. Under the walls of the castle, ordinary people settled in order, if necessary, to find refuge from the enemy in it.
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| Castle siege. Miniature. XIV Art. |
A well-fortified castle, with enough supplies and drinking water, could easily withstand a long siege. To storm castles, siege mechanisms were used - rams and mobile towers. Often, a secret passage was laid in the dungeon of the donjon, which led outside the castle. So the feudal lord could send a messenger asking for help, or save himself if the lock was taken by storm.
However, the castle was not only a military fortification. It was also the residence of the lord, the place of his permanent residence. Therefore, over the centuries, castles have become more and more comfortable and cozy. They turned into a complex of buildings: a reception hall, the matrimonial bedroom of the feudal lords, rooms for various purposes, kitchens, cellars and food storage, a chapel, etc. But the donjon has always been an object of special concern. He towered against the background of buildings and landscape, demonstrating the strength and power of the lord. He was depicted on the emblems, vaults of the castle or chapel, on the flags and seals of the feudal lord.
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| Siege mechanism - petraria. 1240 |
In the castle, in addition to the seigneur's family, there were many servants and subordinates: the heirs of the vassals, who studied the art of war, knights, housekeepers, guards. material from the site
When there was no war, and the feudal lord was at home, he could hunt, fish, fence, fight with spears, play chess, watch jugglers or bears fight in his possessions, receive guests, communicate with ladies, arrange solemn meetings vassals, etc. However, this did not always keep the feudal lords at home. At the first opportunity, they went to the court of the king or on distant wanderings. But they did not forget their land and proudly added the name of the castle to their name.
X 3rd century Chronicler Lambert d'Ardu on the construction and arrangement of a stone keep
Baudouin, Count of Guinness, built a round house of hewn stone at Guinness on a hill. He was so tall, as if resting on the sky. Baudouin envisaged that the upper part would be like a flat terrace with a roof on the rafters ... In this house he had rooms for ceremonial receptions, living rooms, rooms for solitude, corridors that made the house look like a labyrinth of Daedalus. Further outside the house, he built a chapel with stone walls and wooden rafters. He also built a stone wall along the outer defensive belt of the castle. At the entrance, he built towers with throwing devices to repel attacks.
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Feudal castle as a fortress and dwelling of a feudal lord
Life and customs of the feudal lords
The main occupation of the feudal lords, especially in this early period, was war and its accompanying robbery. Therefore, the entire life and customs of the feudal lords were mainly subordinated to the needs of the war.
In the IXXI centuries. Europe was covered with feudal castles. The castle, the usual dwelling of the feudal lord, was at the same time a fortress, his refuge from external enemies, and from neighbors-feudal lords, and from rebellious peasants. The castle allowed the feudal lord to dominate the entire surrounding area and keep its entire population in subjection. Especially many castles were built in connection with the raids of the Normans, Arabs and Hungarians. From a distance, the castle resembled a nest of a bird of prey: it was usually built on a wooded hill or a high bank of a river, from where one could have a good view of the surroundings and where it was easier to defend oneself from the enemy. Until the end of the tenth century. castles were built mainly of wood and were most often a two-story wooden tower, in the upper floor of which the feudal lord lived, and in the lower squad and servants. Here or in the annexes there were warehouses for weapons, provisions, premises for livestock, etc. The castle was surrounded by a rampart and a moat filled with water. A drawbridge was thrown across the moat. Approximately from the beginning of the XI century. feudal lords began to build stone castles, usually surrounded by two or even three high stone walls with loopholes and watchtowers at the corners. In the center, the main multi-storey donjon tower still towered. The dungeons of such towers often served as a prison, where the enemies of the feudal lord, his captives, recalcitrant vassals and guilty peasants languished in chains. With the then state of military equipment, such a stone castle was difficult to take by storm. Usually he surrendered only as a result of a months-long siege.
The castle was surrounded by a deep moat. Around it were erected several rows of thick stone walls topped with round or square towers with narrow loopholes. It was possible to get into the castle through a drawbridge, which was lowered on heavy cast-iron chains. The gate tower had massive oak gates, bound with iron. Behind the perverse tower there was a lifting door in the form of a cast-iron lattice. During the assault, they tried to lower it behind the back of the enemy who had broken through. Behind the first wall there was a utility yard with a mill, a forge, an armory and other workshops. Behind the second row of walls were the main tower of the castle, stables and armories. During the siege, the main castle tower served as the main stronghold of the castle. It contained both the living rooms of the owners, and rooms for guests and servants. Its lower floor was a hall, the entire length of which stretched an oak table. In the days of violent feasts, the carcasses of roasted bulls, rams and deer towered on it. A spiral staircase, hidden in the thickness of the walls, led to the upper living quarters. One floor was isolated from the other. If the enemies broke into the tower, boiling tar and molten lead were poured onto their heads through holes in the ceiling from one floor to another. Then the hatch was tightly covered with a heavy stone slab. Abundant supplies of food and drink were stored at the very top of the castle tower. Thus, the feudal castle was a real fortress that protected the feudal lord from the “external” enemies of other feudal lords and from his subjects, the serfs, if they rebelled. However, let's look at the castle in terms of amenities. Here is how the French historian and critic Lucien Febvre describes the castle of the Middle Ages on the basis of historical documents: See these luxurious residences simply through the eyes of a tenant viewing a home. All rooms are located in an enfilade, they are huge, monotonous, cut into squares; blank wall in front, blank wall behind, windows in the wall on the right, windows in the wall on the left. And if someone wants to go from one end of the floor to the other, there is no other way but to pass one after another all the halls that communicate with each other ... There is no doubt that in winter there had to shiver from the cold ... one room, where there was a stove, into another similar one ... Away from the fire, people were freezing. And if the fire was blazing, people under the canopy of the fireplace were exhausted from the heat.”
Feudal castles of the XII-XV centuries
The system of relationships in the feudal elite was based on vassal dependence. To celebrate his outstanding combatant for his faithful service, the king gives him a castle or even an entire dominion (feudal estate) along with the population that lived there and makes him his vassal. This not only tied the feudal lord to the king, but also left a certain imprint on his way of life. In most cases, having received a castle or dominion from the king, the feudal lord lived in close proximity to his subordinates. Often he cultivated the land and led his subsistence economy along with the servants. Therefore, the feudal lord built his dwelling-estate in the center of his possessions among the fields. In addition, the right to ownership often had to be proved with weapons in hand from other feudal lords. After all, the era of early feudalism is filled with endless civil strife. From a castle built in close proximity to subordinate peasants, the feudal lord could control all approaches to his property, here he defended himself from enemies, and he himself prepared for attacks on the possessions of neighbors or merchant caravans. So the feudal castle becomes a symbol of the power of the feudal lord over the surrounding lands. Feudal estates built residential and household buildings, as well as dugouts and wooden servants' houses. Until the 12th century, a temple remained a single stone structure on such estates. Most often, such estates had the most elementary fortifications. The strengthening of feudal relations brought a certain revolution in the class consciousness of the feudal elite, which develops its own ideology, peculiar only to it. In the countries of Western Europe in the last quarter of the 12th century, the upper class acquired hereditary rights to own land, reinforced from the outside by the appearance of coats of arms and titles. The consciousness of its dominant position appears in the feudal elite. So the highest nobility, and first of all its honorary representatives, become participants in all the outstanding events of the era - both military and political. A significant turn in the development of feudal culture, including construction, was the Crusades, acquaintance with the Arab world of refined culture, with Byzantium. Frequent relations with foreigners required local feudal nobles to equalize with them not only in the wealth of clothing and weapons, but also in such an important area as the culture of the home. A specific ritual of communication, mutual visits of feudal lords, their participation in tournaments or hunting is developed. In those conditions, the wooden building in which the feudal lord lived with his families and where he received guests no longer corresponded to its purpose. Therefore, it is quite natural that the feudal lords begin to rebuild their dwellings. Stone is replacing wood as a building material. If in the 10th-11th centuries only the king had the right to build castles in the Central European kingdoms and they were built as administrative centers, then with the development of feudal relations, the former members of the king’s retinue are gradually separating, securing for them and their heirs the lands donated for service, and together with this, it becomes necessary to build a feudal castle in the immediate vicinity of subordinate peasants. The feudal lord builds his stone castle most often in a hard-to-reach, strategically important place - on a steep rock, a lonely hill that rises above the flat terrain. So the feudal castle becomes a symbol of the power of the feudal lord over the surrounding lands. Kings continue to build castles, both administrative centers and to protect free (independent of local feudal lords) royal cities, which arise in the 12-13th century on all significant trade routes and places of extraction of various ores and salt. As a rule, the castle was built on a mountain, and the city on the plain at some distance from it. It should be noted that these distances, which have been preserved over the centuries, were caused not only and not so much by the topographic features of the area, rather than by strategic considerations: the need to create space for shelling attackers on the castle and at the same time protect the castle from fires, which were quite frequent. in the cities of that time with their wooden buildings. On the other hand, the inhabitants of the city also wanted to keep their distance from the formidable neighbor, because the relationship between them was far from peaceful. At the end of the 12th century, new structures began to appear on the estates - stone towers - the forerunners of a new type of castles. The model for the first stone castles was provided by the more progressive feudalism of Western Europe. It was also there that the Romanesque architectural style was developed and established, the name of which comes from the Latin name of the city of Rome. In this there is already a hint that the Romanesque architectural style is based on the Roman architectural tradition. But at the same time, he absorbed the elements and traditions of the architecture of Byzantium, and that, in turn, the architecture of the Middle East. So, the experience of the builders of almost the entire Mediterranean was reflected in the Romanesque style. It was brought to Central Europe, including our region, in the 12th century by building artels from Western Europe. In the Romanesque style, peculiar castles are also built. First of all, thick fortress walls are being built that surround the courtyard of the castle. In the middle of the courtyard, on an elevated level, a stone donjon tower is being built, which resembles the watchtowers of ancient Roman fortifications. The tower performed housing and defense functions at the same time. Sometimes there was also a chapel in the donjon. From the beginning of the 13th century, the construction of feudal castles, dominated by a stone tower, gained significant momentum. The impetus for this was the desire of the nobles to further strengthen their power, to oppose themselves to the king, to be compared with him.
feudal fortress
Alternative descriptionsPalace and fortress of the feudal lord
A device for locking something with a key
Fortified dwelling of a feudal lord
Refuge of the feudal knight
Kafka's novel (1922)
. "Does not bark, does not bite, but does not let into the house" (riddle)
. "bent in a ball, you can't bite and you can't get through" (riddle)
The upper closing part of the vault or arch
Top stone of the arch
aerial structure
aerial structure
Mortise or hinged
Provincial prison, usually made of stone, with casemates
Feudal Palace
Palace, feudal fortress
Detail of an artillery piece
Cannon detail
haunted house
House with the ghosts
iron watchman
Bluebeard's Residence
Count Dracula's home
The dwelling of kings, the nobility where ghosts sometimes settled
The home of the feudal lord
locking device
Both barn and code
Both air and sand
Both the palace and the fortress of the feudal lord
It also needs a key.
To him is the key
To an empty hut ... no need
The stone that closes the vault
Cantata "Fiery..." by French composer Darius Milhaud
Painting by French artist Paul Cezanne "... maritime department"
Painting by French artist Paul Cezanne "Black ... stars with trees"
Wedge-shaped stone at the top of the arch
Code...
fortress dwelling
fortress structure
Swallow's Nest in Yalta
Tower of London
M. projectile or device for fastening or locking something. Parts of a padlock: box, shackle: spring, wheels (circles on which the key beard walks in slices), tongue, lantern; parts of an interior, mortise lock: a board, then the same, except for the bow, and sometimes there is a larva; there is a key to both. Screw padlock, which has a key with a screw; onion, round box, ball; swedish, bucket, wider from top to bottom, etc. A lock with a secret, with a secret. A good castle is a reliable friend. Constipation and lock is a sacred thing. The lock and constipation of the girl will not hold. For a smart seal, for a stupid castle. Keep your tongue shut (behind your teeth) you don't need an empty castle hut. Let's bring the house together so that the castle is unnecessary. Though the collar, but with a clasp. Thin people to thresh, and good castles to pound. The key is stronger than the lock. Eavesdrop at the barn lock. Lock of firearms, for firing: flintlock, obsolete; shock, piston, for shock powder, for shooting with caps. Parts of it: board, trigger, mainspring, wheel or platoon, descent, dog. Wrists, necklaces, etc. are fastened with a lock of a different device, without a key. The lock is also a skalka of a two-cranial shell; the type and strength of an articulation or joint. The castle in the vault, the upper, middle stone, which closes and ends the vault, derived from the heels; this stone is usually pressed with a blunt wedge. molds, casings, for casting large things, a lock, a place and the whole device, for a tight connection of two halves. Log cutting naming. in a corner, when the ends are laid crosswise, with a rounded bed cutting; in the paw (and if the end of the log is launched in the middle in the same way, not at the very end of the other with a frying pan), when the end is cut down in the form of a frying pan, with a sprawling spike; in the tooth, when one log is pointed to another and the cutting is done with a simple hook, two prongs; into the castle, when it is made with a spike, or in addition to a simple tooth (hook), the same hook (ledge) is cut down in another log (along the ends obliquely). cuts a tooth, but drives it to the castle! Fold your hands into the castle, run all the fingers of one hand between the fingers of the other. Keep everything under lock and key. Tie the box in a lock, lock, spiked or spiked. Castle, in animal bones. and man. the anterior junction, the fusion of the pelvic bones and the very expanse of the pelvic passage. the sword (bear) is a very tight castle, and she gives birth to cubs very small. Castle, castle, related to the castle. Castle note. Castle knitting or felling. Locksmith or locksmith. Lock box, Vyat. bent, bound boxes, a kind of old chest. work, with internal lock. Close, close, make ends with a lock, conclude in a circle; lock the lock with a key or lock something with a lock. The enemy was surrounded and closed. The passage is closed by a wall, a rampart. Closing the vault, laying a castle, middle stone. The lock is broken and won't close. Lock up the house. Close the platoon, military. be, go to the castle, behind. A closed person, concentrated or secretive. Oh, they're suffering. and return according to the meaning of speech. Sources closed, dried up, do not flow. The sky is closed, there is no rain, there is a drought, everything burns out. Closure cf. duration closing once. clasp about. action by value vb. A clasp, a projectile, than they lock, a key or what to rule its position, the lock itself, if it is locked without a key; cape, basting, overlay for breakdown, for the castle; lock in sediments, lid, gullet, valve; Moscow custom, habit? (faint?). Locking, pertaining to a lock. brooding, prone to closure, easily closed; about a castle or a barrier. This trap is smarter than the other. Closure the state of a closed, figuratively, meaning. The Castle of the Fortress, a building fortified with a moat, walls, towers; a palace or a vast house built for sight and pleasure, in the manner of a fortified building. rear of the platoon. The captain in the head of the company goes, the lieutenant in the castle closes. Castles in the air, unfulfilled dreams or assumptions. castle, pertaining to a castle
A small dog, curled up, lies - does not bark, does not bite, but does not let it into the house
Small, but protects the whole house
dreamy aerial structure
Doesn't bark, but won't let you into the house
He does not bark, does not bite, but does not let him into the house
The man-eater's property that Puss in Boots took possession of
impregnable fortress
Home of fairy princes
Opera "Enchanted..." by the Polish composer S. Moniuszko
Operetta by the Austrian composer Carl Millecker "Bewitched..."
Unlocked with a key
Password - review, ... - key
sand building
Sand structure spotlight
sand beach building
The story of the Polish writer S. Lem "High ..."
The story of the Russian writer A. R. Belyaev "... witches"
Ownership of each apartment
A device for locking something
A device for firing a shot in ancient guns, consisting of a shelf on which gunpowder is poured, and a trigger ending in a wick or flint
Knight's Ancestral Den
Roman F. Kafka
Novel-parable of the Austrian writer F. Kafka
American poet Robert Lowell's collection of "...Lord Weary"
A symbol of love and fidelity hanging on a bridge
A layer of waterproof clay that prevents water from seeping through the body of the dam or the bottom of the pond
Special connection of wooden structures
Method of joining wooden parts
Wrestler's steel embrace
ancient fortress
Guard on the hinges of the barn
Thriller Balabanov
Fortified dwelling of a feudal lord
Device for connecting moving parts of machines, mechanisms
Film by Vadim Roger "... in Sweden"
form of protection
Form of defense in sports
What does the key open
An element of a firearm that serves to ignite a powder charge or primer
Starting point in hockey
Painting by French artist Paul Cezanne "Black ... star trees"
American poet Robert Lowell's collection "...Lord Weary"
Film by Vadim Roger "... in Sweden"
The story of the Russian writer A. R. Belyaev "... witches"
Operetta "Bewitched" by Austrian composer Karl Millecker
Cantata of the French composer Darius Milhaud "Fiery ..."
Painting by French artist Paul Cezanne "... maritime department"
The story of the Polish writer S. Lem "High ..."
Opera by the Polish composer S. Moniuszko "Enchanted..."
. “bent in a ball, you can’t bite and you can’t pass” (riddle)
What does the key open?
Password - review, ... - key
. “does not bark, does not bite, but does not let into the house” (riddle)
Life and customs of the feudal lords
The main occupation of the feudal lords, especially in this early period, was war and its accompanying robbery. Therefore, the entire life and customs of the feudal lords were mainly subordinated to the needs of the war.
In the IX-XI centuries. Europe was covered with feudal castles. The castle - the usual dwelling of the feudal lord - was at the same time a fortress, his refuge from external enemies, and from neighbors-feudal lords, and from rebellious peasants. The castle allowed the feudal lord to dominate the entire surrounding area and keep its entire population in subjection. Especially many castles were built in connection with the raids of the Normans, Arabs and Hungarians. From a distance, the castle resembled a nest of a bird of prey: it was usually built on a wooded hill or a high bank of a river, from where one could have a good view of the surroundings and where it was easier to defend oneself from the enemy. Until the end of the tenth century. castles were built mainly of wood and were most often a two-story wooden tower, on the upper floor of which the feudal lord lived, and on the lower floor - the retinue and servants. Here or in the annexes there were warehouses for weapons, provisions, premises for livestock, etc. The castle was surrounded by a rampart and a moat filled with water. A drawbridge was thrown across the moat. Approximately from the beginning of the XI century. feudal lords began to build stone castles, usually surrounded by two or even three high stone walls with loopholes and watchtowers at the corners. In the center, the main multi-storey tower, the “donjon”, still towered. The dungeons of such towers often served as a prison, where the enemies of the feudal lord languished in chains - his captives, recalcitrant vassals and guilty peasants. With the then state of military equipment, such a stone castle was difficult to take by storm. Usually he surrendered only as a result of a months-long siege.
The castle was surrounded by a deep moat. Around it were erected several rows of thick stone walls topped with round or square towers with narrow loopholes. It was possible to get into the castle through a drawbridge, which was lowered on heavy cast-iron chains. The gate tower had massive oak gates, bound with iron. Behind the perverse tower there was a lifting door in the form of a cast-iron lattice. During the assault, they tried to lower it behind the back of the enemy who had broken through. Behind the first wall there was a utility yard with a mill, a forge, an armory and other workshops. Behind the second row of walls were the main tower of the castle, stables and armories. During the siege, the main castle tower served as the main stronghold of the castle. It contained both the living rooms of the owners, and rooms for guests and servants. Its lower floor was a hall, the entire length of which stretched an oak table. In the days of violent feasts, the carcasses of roasted bulls, rams and deer towered on it. A spiral staircase, hidden in the thickness of the walls, led to the upper living quarters. One floor was isolated from the other. If the enemies broke into the tower, boiling tar and molten lead were poured onto their heads through holes in the ceiling from one floor to another. Then the hatch was tightly covered with a heavy stone slab. Abundant supplies of food and drink were stored at the very top of the castle tower. Thus, the feudal castle was a real fortress that protected the feudal lord from "external" enemies - other feudal lords and from his subjects - serfs, if they rebelled. However, let's look at the castle in terms of amenities. Here is how the French historian and critic Lucien Febvre describes the castle of the Middle Ages on the basis of historical documents: See these luxurious residences simply through the eyes of a tenant viewing a property. All rooms are located in an enfilade, they are huge, monotonous, cut into squares; blank wall in front, blank wall behind, windows in the wall on the right, windows in the wall on the left. And if someone wants to go from one end of the floor to the other, there is no other way but to pass one after another all the halls that communicate with each other ... There is no doubt that in winter there had to shiver from the cold ... one room, where there was a stove, into another similar one ... Away from the fire, people were freezing. And if the fire was blazing, people under the canopy of the fireplace were exhausted from the heat.”
Feudal castles of the XII-XV centuries
The system of relationships in the feudal elite was based on vassal dependence. To celebrate his outstanding combatant for his faithful service, the king gives him a castle or even an entire dominion (feudal estate) along with the population that lived there and makes him his vassal. This not only tied the feudal lord to the king, but also left a certain imprint on his way of life. In most cases, having received a castle or dominion from the king, the feudal lord lived in close proximity to his subordinates. Often he cultivated the land and led his subsistence economy along with the servants. Therefore, the feudal lord built his dwelling-estate in the center of his possessions among the fields. In addition, the right to ownership often had to be proved with weapons in hand from other feudal lords. After all, the era of early feudalism is filled with endless civil strife. From a castle built in close proximity to subordinate peasants, the feudal lord could control all approaches to his property, here he defended himself from enemies, and he himself prepared for attacks on the possessions of neighbors or merchant caravans. So the feudal castle becomes a symbol of the power of the feudal lord over the surrounding lands. Feudal estates built residential and household buildings, as well as dugouts and wooden servants' houses. Until the 12th century, a temple remained a single stone structure on such estates. Most often, such estates had the most elementary fortifications. The strengthening of feudal relations brought a certain revolution in the class consciousness of the feudal elite, which develops its own ideology, peculiar only to it. In the countries of Western Europe in the last quarter of the 12th century, the upper class acquired hereditary rights to own land, reinforced from the outside by the appearance of coats of arms and titles. The consciousness of its dominant position appears in the feudal elite. So the highest nobility, and first of all its honorary representatives, become participants in all the outstanding events of the era - both military and political. A significant turn in the development of feudal culture, including construction, was the Crusades, acquaintance with the Arab world of refined culture, with Byzantium. Frequent relations with foreigners required local feudal nobles to equalize with them not only in the wealth of clothing and weapons, but also in such an important area as the culture of the home. A specific ritual of communication, mutual visits of feudal lords, their participation in tournaments or hunting is developed. In those conditions, the wooden building in which the feudal lord lived with his families and where he received guests no longer corresponded to its purpose. Therefore, it is quite natural that the feudal lords begin to rebuild their dwellings. Stone is replacing wood as a building material. If in the 10th-11th centuries only the king had the right to build castles in the Central European kingdoms and they were built as administrative centers, then with the development of feudal relations, the former members of the king’s retinue are gradually separating, securing for them and their heirs the lands donated for service, and together with this, it becomes necessary to build a feudal castle in the immediate vicinity of subordinate peasants. The feudal lord builds his stone castle most often in a hard-to-reach, strategically important place - on a steep rock, a lonely hill that rises above the flat terrain. So the feudal castle becomes a symbol of the power of the feudal lord over the surrounding lands. Kings continue to build castles, both administrative centers and to protect free (independent of local feudal lords) royal cities, which arise in the 12-13th century on all significant trade routes and places of extraction of various ores and salt. As a rule, the castle was built on a mountain, and the city on the plain at some distance from it. It should be noted that these distances, which have been preserved over the centuries, were caused not only and not so much by the topographic features of the area, rather than by strategic considerations: the need to create space for shelling attackers on the castle and at the same time protect the castle from fires, which were quite frequent. in the cities of that time with their wooden buildings. On the other hand, the inhabitants of the city also wanted to keep their distance from the formidable neighbor, because the relationship between them was far from peaceful. At the end of the 12th century, new structures began to appear on the estates - stone towers - the forerunners of a new type of castles. The model for the first stone castles was provided by the more progressive feudalism of Western Europe. It was also there that the Romanesque architectural style was developed and established, the name of which comes from the Latin name of the city of Rome. In this there is already a hint that the Romanesque architectural style is based on the Roman architectural tradition. But at the same time, he absorbed the elements and traditions of the architecture of Byzantium, and that, in turn, the architecture of the Middle East. So, the experience of the builders of almost the entire Mediterranean was reflected in the Romanesque style. It was brought to Central Europe, including our region, in the 12th century by building artels from Western Europe. In the Romanesque style, peculiar castles are also built. First of all, thick fortress walls are being built that surround the courtyard of the castle. In the middle of the courtyard, on an elevated level, a stone donjon tower is being built, which resembles the watchtowers of ancient Roman fortifications. The tower performed housing and defense functions at the same time. Sometimes there was also a chapel in the donjon. From the beginning of the 13th century, the construction of feudal castles, dominated by a stone tower, gained significant momentum. The impetus for this was the desire of the nobles to further strengthen their power, to oppose themselves to the king, to be compared with him not only in wealth, but also in their way of life. The feudal lord builds his stone castle, most often in a hard-to-reach, strategically important place - on a steep rock, a lonely hill that rises above the flat terrain. These castles performed not only defensive and housing functions, but also representative ones. Castle-towers, as a rule, had several floors, the thickness of their walls reached 3-4 meters, only at the level of the second and third floors the walls were cut through with narrow windows, rarely placed along the entire wall. The feudal lord's dwelling was located on the second floor, which could be reached through one narrow passage through a wooden ladder or steps, which, in case of danger, could be taken away or burned. On the ground floor there were chambers with food supplies in case of a siege, and an arsenal. On the third floor there were rooms for servants and warriors, and watchmen were put up on the upper platform. The donjon tower, of course, also had a dungeon where the prison was located. The defense system of the Romanesque castle was very complex for its time. Its first line consisted of earth ramparts and a deep moat that surrounded the entire territory of the castle. The second is the fortress walls, which in the 12th century were already reinforced with small defensive towers. The entrance to the castle, as a rule, led through an underground bridge. Although the castle tower-dungeon is an integral part of the castle, it is a completely autonomous structure that can be successfully defended on its own. In the 12th century, a house appeared next to the donjon, in which the owner of the castle and his seed lived in peacetime. A family chapel, a kitchen, a stable and other utility rooms are also being built here. The most striking representative of the Romanesque type of castles in our region is Serednyansky, as well as the oldest part of the Mukachevo castle, the so-called "Upper Castle", the main buildings of which were built during the time of Prince Fyodor Koryatovich at the end of the 14th century - at the beginning of the 15th century. The belated construction of the donjon in Mukachevo Castle is explained by its significant remoteness from the political and cultural centers of Europe, which led to delays in the perception of new ideas. Of course, the Romanesque castle with a donjon tower already had a significant defense capability. However, only passive defense could be carried out in these castles. Therefore, when a new construction technique appeared at the end of the 13th century, which made it possible to build a much more complex and more flexible system of castle defense, castle-towers gradually lose their significance. They are replaced by a Gothic castle with a more advanced fortification system. There is no clear chronological boundary between the Romanesque and Gothic styles. Already in the middle of the 12th century, during the heyday of the Romanesque style, elements of the new Gothic style appeared in northern France. Its characteristic features are the verticality of the composition, the lancet arch, a rather complex frame system of supports and the ribbed vault. From France, Gothic already at the end of the 12th century spread to neighboring countries, to England, Germany, the countries of the Danube basin. Over time, Gothic architecture becomes a universal pan-European style, within which a completely original system of forms was created, a new understanding of spatial and volumetric composition was achieved. The name "Gothic" does not reflect the correct essence of this style. During the Renaissance, it was a derisive name coined by Italian architects for all construction north of the Alps, allegedly associated with the barbarian German tribes of the Goths. In its homeland, in France, this style is called "lancet". The architecture of the feudal castle undergoes significant changes in the Gothic era. The development of productive forces allows the feudal lord to appropriate a much larger part of the products of the labor of serfs and at their expense to retain a significant number of artisans, including builders. In Central Europe, including our region, a significant impetus to the construction of strong feudal strongholds in strategically important places was the Tatar-Mongol invasion in the middle of the 13th century, and the constant danger of their re-arrival on the Tisso-Danube lowland. Therefore, the Hungarian kings, unlike the times of the pre-Mongol invasion, directly bind the feudal lords to build castles, using the latest achievements of pan-European fortification. In the last quarter of the 12th century, a new element appears in French castle architecture, which significantly enhances the defenses of castles - a rounded tower with a rib. On the projection from above, the tower has the shape of a triangle, the angle, the top of which is 75-90 degrees. The legs of this triangle - two straight sides - create a sharp edge, which is designed to minimize the effectiveness of a direct hit of enemy shells on the walls of the tower. This not only increased the defense capability of the castle, but also achieved a strong artistic and psychological impression: a dynamic element was created from the neutral, without any direction of the body of the rounded tower, and a monolithic fortification was conceived, which met the enemy with a strong stone blade directed to the opposite side from the entrance castle gate. However, despite all the positive qualities of a new element of the fortification system of French castle architecture, in the first half of the 13th century, a round tower with a rib was not widely used in Europe. In the middle of the 13th century, a rounded tower with a rib appears in France for the second time, moreover, in two versions. In the first version, the rib is reduced and protrudes in the form of a small offshoot, artistically emphasizing the neutrality of the cylindrical shape of the tower, which has remained unchanged. The former function of the rib is thereby annulled and only the artistic meaning remains, dynamizing the roundness of the tower's shape. The second option was created by towers, which were trihedral in plan. Their edge is created due to the convexity of the curved side. Castles grow into a great intricacies of walls, towers, bridges and galleries, the variety of their plans is limitless. Most often, architects and builders of the Gothic era, having certain details and guided by the principles of fortification, built the castle in accordance with the relief of the rock or hill on which the castle was built. At the same time, the plan of the castle acquired irregular shapes. Such colorful contours of the plan gave the castle a creative naturalness. The castle walls and towers seemed to be a continuation of the rock, as if nature itself had given rise to the architectural forms of the castle. And since nature does not like repetition, the architecture of castles, closely associated with it, becomes individual. At the turn of the 13th-14th centuries, there was a certain alignment of the capabilities of siege equipment and fortification systems of castles. This alignment made it possible to pay more attention to the decoration of castles, especially their residential part - the palace. As a result, the masters of the Gothic era created a new type of palace, the core of which was a courtyard surrounded by a one or two-story arcade (Uzhgorod, Mukachevo castles). But the internal arrangement of the halls and rooms of the palace is still ascetic, defense considerations still come to the fore, the main attention is still concentrated on the main defense tower. Royal castles played a leading role in establishing the Gothic style in castle architecture. The king's castle, along with strategic functions, served as a state residence, which housed the royal court and numerous guards of the king. In this residence, the king also received foreign ambassadors. In an effort to present himself to foreigners from the best side and rise above his subordinates and his surroundings, the king jealously followed all the changes that took place in the castle architecture. Thus, the existing types of castles were constantly enriched with new elements, that is, the artistic rethinking of castle architecture is constantly taking place. In the 14th century, based on the ancient types of castles, two new variants appear, which indicate two different ways of searching for new artistic forms in castle architecture. The first option - emphasized the longitudinal axis of the castle - is an artistic rethinking of the old type of castles. The emphasized longitudinal axis not only visually increased the distance between the tower and the castle palace. The tower itself is constantly moving forward towards a potential enemy, and with it the curve of the castle wall is stretched. With the excessive elongation of the longitudinal axis of the structure, one tower for the defense of the entire castle area is already not enough. Thus, a new element appears in the castle fortification system - a prismatic castle tower. The appearance of new variants of castle types indicates that a simple repetition of old architectural forms no longer meets the requirements of the time. First of all, there is an artistic rethinking of the structure. Variations of the old types of castles, which are celebrated in the 14th century, did not bring strengthening of the fortification system. Two variants of castles that appeared in the 14th century on the basis of castle types from the 12th-13th century show two directions in which the search for new artistic forms in castle architecture took place. The first variant - the emphasized longitudinal axis - is only a certain improvement of the old type of locks, while the second variant shows the search for its own solution, albeit on the old basis. The attention that was previously paid to the castle tower is now completely transferred to the fortress wall. In this case, we are talking not only about the mechanical transfer of emphasis from one element of the castle complex to another. The meaning of this transformation is much deeper. He shows that the inner space and the wall that encloses it already act as autonomous elements. Variations of the old types of castles, noted in the 14th century, proved to be a significant stimulus for the further development of castle architecture. They proved that a large tower, the basis of the fortification system of a Gothic castle and a symbol of medieval nobility, is not so unshakable. A change in the view of the functional basis of the tower caused a change in its cubic shape, which logically emerges from the exclusively defensive function of the tower. The new era puts forward new tasks for the tower, expanding the scope of its effectiveness. Leaving the towers for their defensive functions, at the same time it was necessary to deprive them of their asceticism, it was necessary to create living quarters in their inner part. Experience suggested that for a structure that would simultaneously perform both defense and housing functions, a tetrahedral shape is much more advantageous than a rounded one. By this, the old tradition in the construction of stone castles was violated. The tetrahedral tower, together with other structures, created a single ensemble. The introduction of a residential tower into the castle complex made it possible to modify the existing castle type. Therefore, the Gothic style, especially in its modified form, was preserved in castle architecture until the end of the Middle Ages. However, already during this period, several towers appeared in the ensemble of the royal castle and the castle of the highest nobility, some of which simultaneously performed both defensive and housing functions. Such towers meant not only the enrichment of the existing type of castles with new elements, but also turned out to be a transitional stage on the way to further artistic change in castle architecture. The most clearly expressed features of the Gothic architecture among the Transcarpathian castles in the Nevitsky castle: the Gothic towers of the Mukachevo castle were destroyed in the 16th - early 17th centuries. The housing Gothic palaces in Uzhgorod and Mukachevo castles are well preserved, although they were rebuilt later.
Castles of England
rochester castle
Rochester Castle in Kent. The construction of the castle in Rochester began in the XI century. This is one of the first stone castles in England. It was owned by the church and was the seat of the archbishops. The donjon of the castle has a square shape in plan with a side size of 21 m. The height is 34 m. The towers at its corners rise another 4 meters. The thickness of the walls of the donjon at the base is 4 meters, at the top - 3.3 m. The entrance to the donjon is located in a special extension on the second floor. Access to the first floor is via a spiral staircase from the second floor. The main hall occupied two floors - the third and fourth. On the fifth floor were the private quarters of the archbishop and a chapel. In the 18th century, the castle was nearly demolished.
Leeds Castle
The castle is considered as being the most beautiful and most former castle in England. In the 9th century, it was the site of a small Saxon castle. It was offered to Edward I in 1278. Henry VIII also lived there for many years, as did six kings of England.
Bodiam Castle
In 1385, King Richard II gave permission to Lord Edward Dalingrige to build a castle near the river Rother in order to defend the region against a possible French invasion. Mr. Dalingrigge, who campaigned in France for Edward III during the War of the 100 Years, was no doubt inspired by French castles in order to build Bodiam Castle.
Castles of Spain
Avila Castle
Founded in the 11th century to defend the Spanish territories from the Maures, Avila is the best preserved medieval town. It has a rectangular shape, the perimeter of which is approximately two and a half kilometers and twelve meters high. The walls are reinforced with large massive towers. the mounds have nine doors.
