British Castles

Considering the richness and variety of both technical and popular literature upon Castles generally, it may appear superfluous to send forth another book upon the same subject, and, if investigation had been at a standstill or barren in results during the past decade, criticism would be justified. But much has come to light upon this interesting subject which undoubtedly revolutionises pre-existing ideas, both as to primitive forms of castellation and of those in historic periods. The allocation of the former to approximately definite epochs, and also of two great and important phases of the latter to well-defined periods, are the salient features of late investigations. Unfortunately the ordinary reader is debarred from becoming intimate with these changes of thought, inasmuch as newly acquired discoveries are generally to be found only in the transactions of learned Societies or in disconnected brochures not readily available. To bring these ideas to a focus and present them in such a form that the Man in the Street--undoubtedly a member of the preponderating majority--may readily comprehend them is one of the aims of the writer, while another is to suggest to the ordinary observer that the earthworks in our islands entitle primitive man to be considered with much more respect and consideration than has hitherto been afforded him.

The monumental work of Mr. T. G. Clark, Mediæval Military Architecture, has had no formidable rival since its appearance, but unfortunately it must now be read with care since much of the matter is obsolete. The distinction between the Saxon burh and the primitive type of castle thrown up by the early Norman invaders was not apparent at the time the work appeared, and consequently many scores of castellated works are assigned to incorrect periods. This had the effect of making the chronology of the Rectangular Keep incorrect. Unhappily The History of the Art of War by Oman followed Clark's lead and with, of course, the same result. Mr. J. H. Round in his Geoffrey de Mandeville appears to have been one of the first, if not the first, to differentiate between the turris and the castellum (i.e. the Keep and the Ward) of medieval writers, who were proverbially loose with respect to their employment of technical terms. Excellent work also in this respect has been carried out by Mrs. E. Armitage, who, by the process of practically investigating in detail some of the defences mentioned in Domesday Book, has been able to definitely assign the Motte and Bailey type to the early Norman Period. In the recently issued Victoria History of the Counties of England the effect of these discoveries is discernible in those parts relating to castellation, which very carefully correct the errors prevailing in former standard and in local topographical works. With regard to Earthworks, the invaluable investigations carried out by "The Committee upon Ancient Earthworks and Fortified Enclosures," acting in co-operation with the Society of Antiquaries, has resulted in a flood of light being thrown upon these interesting remains, so that the old allocation to British, Roman, and Danish influence, so arbitrarily insisted upon in former times according to the contour of the earthwork in question, no longer subsists, or only as far as circumstances justify the nomenclature. No generally available work is to hand dealing with these subjects in a non-technical manner, and it may be hoped that this endeavour will help to fill the interregnum between the work of Clark and a future equally monumental tome.

The thanks of the Author are herewith gratefully tendered to the Congress of Archæological Societies of 1903 for permission to make use of the plans of Earthworks issued in their "Scheme for Recording Ancient Defensive Earthworks and Fortified Enclosures," and also to Mr. Cecil C. Brewer for the plans of various floors in Hedingham Keep.

CHARLES H. ASHDOWN.

ST. ALBANS.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I PAGE NATURAL FORTRESSES STRENGTHENED 1

CHAPTER II

FORTIFIED HILL-TOPS 13

CHAPTER III

SIMPLE ARTIFICIAL ENCLOSURES 33

CHAPTER IV

THE MOTTE AND BAILEY CASTLE 48

CHAPTER V

THE SHELL KEEP 64

CHAPTER VI

THE RECTANGULAR KEEP 76

CHAPTER VII

THE CYLINDRICAL KEEP 101

CHAPTER VIII

THE CONCENTRIC CASTLE 110

CHAPTER IX

THE CASTELLATED MANSION 147

CHAPTER X

THE CASTLES OF SCOTLAND 173

CHAPTER XI

THE SIEGE AND DEFENCE OF A MEDIEVAL CASTLE 188

INDEX 201

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FULL PAGE IN COLOUR

1. Bodiam Castle, Sussex Frontispiece

One of the most picturesque ruins in Sussex and the most interesting of its class in the Kingdom. It was erected by a veteran of Agincourt and is based upon the plan of those existing in Gascony at that time. Only the encircling walls and towers now remain, the interior having been despoiled. The view shows the Gateway and a portion of the defences of the Causeway across the Moat.