Names and terms of a medieval CASTLE's parts
Summary
TLDRIn this informative video, Shad explores the terminology and components of castles, providing a detailed overview of their parts and functions. From the main defensive building known as the keep to the outer walls and the bailey, Shad clarifies common misconceptions about what constitutes a castle. He delves into defensive features like moats, drawbridges, and gatehouses, and explains the purpose of battlements, hoardings, and murder holes. The video promises future content on castle design and the internal layout, showcasing Shad's passion for medieval architecture.
Takeaways
- 🏰 The script introduces a detailed exploration of castle components and terminology, presented by Shad, who has a passion for castles.
- 🎁 Shad presents a 3D model named 'Honor Guard' as a visual aid for the video, which is a work in progress but sufficiently complete for educational purposes.
- 🕰 The definition of a castle is discussed, emphasizing that it is a fortified medieval structure of a certain size with specific defensive features.
- 🛡️ The script clarifies the distinction between a 'keep' and a 'castle', explaining that a keep is essentially a castle without an enclosing wall.
- 🕋 The 'Bailey' or 'Ward' is identified as the open walking area within the castle walls, which can have multiple sections if there are internal walls.
- 🏹 The strategic advantages of building castles on hills are highlighted, with moats serving as the second-best defensive option for flat ground.
- 🚶♂️ The importance of the castle's entrance and its defenses, including the drawbridge and portcullis, is underscored to prevent unauthorized access.
- 🏰 The 'Gatehouse' and 'Barbican' are explained as fortified entry points, with the Barbican being the most fortified and outermost gatehouse.
- 💂♂️ The 'Battlements' are described as the iconic defensive features of a castle, including the walls, towers, ramparts, and crenellations.
- 🔍 The function of 'Arrow Loops' or 'Slits' is detailed as small openings in the merlons for archers to shoot arrows at attackers with full protection.
- 🕳️ 'Murder Holes' are revealed as openings in ceilings or walls to drop or shoot projectiles onto enemies from above, distinct from machicolations.
Q & A
What is the main focus of the video by Shad?
-The main focus of the video is to educate viewers on the names and terminology of the components and parts of castles.
What is the term used to describe the main habitable place within a castle's walls?
-The main habitable place within a castle's walls is referred to as the 'keep' when it is separate from the walls.
What is the common term used to describe the open area inside the castle walls?
-The common term used to describe the open area inside the castle walls is 'Bailey', although 'Ward' is also used.
Why are castles often built on hills?
-Castles are often built on hills to provide a defensive advantage and a greater field of view to spot potential attackers.
What is a moat and how does it contribute to a castle's defense?
-A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, which can be dry or filled with water. It contributes to the castle's defense by making it more difficult for attackers to approach and restricts the movement of siege equipment.
What is the purpose of a drawbridge in a castle?
-The purpose of a drawbridge is to serve as a bridge that can be raised and lowered in front of the castle's entrance, providing control over access to the castle.
What is the difference between a windlass drawbridge and a counterweight drawbridge?
-A windlass drawbridge is raised by turning a winch, while a counterweight drawbridge uses a counterbalance system with beams and weights to make raising and lowering the bridge easier and quicker.
What is the term used to describe the walkable areas of castle walls?
-The walkable areas of castle walls are referred to as the 'rampart' or 'ramparts'.
What are the two components that make up the crenellations on a castle wall?
-The two components that make up the crenellations are the 'Merlin', which provides full cover, and the 'Crenel', which is the lower part in between the Merlins.
What is the purpose of a 'murder hole' in a castle?
-A 'murder hole' is an opening in the ceiling above an area designed to trap an enemy, allowing defenders to rain down projectiles or other harmful substances onto the attackers.
What is the term 'donjon' and how does it relate to castle design?
-The term 'donjon' originally referred to the highest usable room in a castle tower, often associated with prestige. Over time, the term became associated with the place where captives were held, leading to the modern term 'dungeon'.
What is the purpose of a postern in a castle?
-A postern serves as a back door or a secondary entry and escape point in a castle, designed to be small and easily defensible.
What is the significance of the 3D model 'Honor Guard' in the video?
-The 3D model 'Honor Guard' is a passion project of Shad and serves as a visual aid in the video to demonstrate the specifics of each castle component.
Outlines
🏰 Introduction to Castle Components
Shad introduces the video, expressing his passion for castles and presenting a 3D model of 'Honor Guard' as a visual aid. He clarifies the definition of a castle as a fortified medieval structure with specific defensive features. Shad distinguishes between a keep and a castle, explaining that a castle can be identified by its walls and main defensive building, while a keep is a standalone fortified structure. He also introduces the terms 'Bailey' and 'Ward' for the open area within castle walls, noting the potential for multiple Baileys in larger castles.
🏹 Castle Design and Defenses
The video discusses the ideal location for a castle, which is on a hill for a natural defensive advantage. If a hill is not available, a moat serves as the second best option. Shad explains the importance of the castle's entrance, including the use of drawbridges and portcullises to secure it. He also describes the gatehouse and its role as a weak point in the castle's defenses, which necessitates its fortification. The Barbican, a more fortified gatehouse, is introduced as a term for the outermost or most fortified entrance.
🛡️ Battlements and Castle Walls
Shad delves into the components of castle walls, known as battlements, which include the walls themselves, towers, and walkable areas called ramparts. He describes the crenellations that provide cover for archers, consisting of merlons for full cover and crenels for half cover. Additionally, he explains the evolution of hoardings into machicolations, which are openings in the battlements for dropping projectiles onto attackers. The role of corbels in supporting these features is also highlighted.
🕳️ Murder Holes and Castle Towers
The script explains the function of murder holes, which are openings in ceilings designed to trap and attack enemies below. Shad differentiates murder holes from machicolations, which are on walls. He also discusses castle towers, their battlements, and the various types of towers, such as flanking towers and watchtowers. The term 'donjon' is introduced, referring to the highest usable room in a castle, which could be a prestigious living space or a prison, depending on its use.
🗝️ Postern Gates and Tower Terminology
Shad introduces the postern, a secondary, smaller gate used as an emergency exit or entry point in a castle. He notes the practicality of the postern due to its size and ease of defense. The paragraph also touches on the various names for different types of towers in a castle, such as flanking towers and the watchtower, and how these names are applied based on their function and location within the castle.
📜 Conclusion and Future Content
In conclusion, Shad summarizes the key components and terminology related to castles covered in the video. He expresses his enthusiasm for creating more content on castles and outlines future videos on proper castle design, internal layout, and the creation of the 3D model used in the video. Shad also mentions plans to share high-resolution images on his deviantART page and invites viewers to request more topics on castles.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Castle
💡Keep
💡Bailey
💡Moat
💡Drawbridge
💡Portcullis
💡Gatehouse
💡Battlements
💡Crenellations
💡Murder Hole
💡Donjon
💡Postern
Highlights
Introduction to a video on the names and terminology of castle components.
The presenter's passion for castles and the reveal of their 'Honor Guard' project.
Defining a castle as a fortified medieval structure with specific defensive features.
The distinction between a keep and a castle, and the evolution of the term 'castle'.
The importance of the term 'Bailey' for the open area within castle walls.
Differentiation between a ward and a Bailey, and the possibility of multiple Baileys.
The significance of castle location, with hills providing a natural defensive advantage.
The role of moats as a secondary defensive feature when hills are not available.
The function of drawbridges and the types: windlass and counterweight drawbridges.
The purpose of portcullises as a security measure at castle entrances.
The gatehouse's importance in castle defense and its potential to be a Barbican.
Explaining the battlements, including walls, towers, and their defensive roles.
The function and design of crenellations in castle battlements.
The role of arrow loops or slits in providing defensive advantages.
The explanation of hoardings and their evolution into machicolations.
The purpose of murder holes in castle defense and their strategic placement.
The various types of castle towers and their specific functions.
The historical shift of the term 'donjon' from the highest to the lowest part of a castle.
The function of postern gates as secret or alternative entry/exit points in castles.
Future content plans including videos on castle design, internal layout, and 3D model creation.
Transcripts
greetings I'm shad and welcome to my
video on the names and terminology of
the components and parts of castles now
I love castles so I've a lot to share
with you and I hope you're going to
enjoy and ready goes I have a present
for you
tada this is honor guard and this has
been a passion project of mine for quite
a while now and it's not done yet but
the outside is finished enough for the
purposes of this video it has been a
very big project and I've been doing it
all for you guys not really been doing
it for me because I have castle so even
if I wasn't doing this video it would
have made this model anyway because it's
awesome castles are awesome but the
YouTube videos that I have been
intending to make on castles have
certainly been a motivator in me getting
this model done and of course I'll be
showing you some real-world examples of
each individual castle part that I will
be defining for you it's just that
having this 3d model helps me out
immensely because I can really show you
the specifics of each of the other
castles components okay to kick us off
what is a castle now addressing that
question could be a whole video in and
of itself so let's summarize and
understand it that it is a fortified
medieval structure alright but more than
just fortified it needs to be of a
particular size for it to be classed at
a castle and it also needs to have very
specific defensive features but once you
have those defensive features you could
rightly say that you have a castle and
that's all the term you really need to
define or identify this structure let's
go to the castle or get in the castle
because there's only one main structure
it's fully fortified okay it's all made
of stone really sold and everything like
that when you say get to the castle
people know what you're talking about
and that's the term you need to identify
this one structure and this is kind of
the beginning part of a castle now
there's been some confusion as to what
defines
like this Civic definition of a castle
is it a fortified stone structure
or does it have to have a wall around it
for it then to be a castle because
generally this fortified stone structure
people would say no this is a keep it's
not a castle it's only a castle when you
put a wall around it I actually kind of
disagree with that the term castle has
evolved if it ever was that specific
it's evolved and we identify any
fortified medieval stone structure to be
a castle specifically if it has those
identifying defensive features that
castles have and so yes I would very
much call a defensive structure that has
all these features even without a wall a
castle but when you add a wall to that
structure well when you refer to the
castle you're referring to that single
structure and the wall around it as well
you're referring to the whole thing and
so when you say get to the castle you're
just really saying get behind the walls
now you're not saying get inside the
main defensive building or of the whole
castle and so you need a new term to
define the main defensive building the
main habitable place where people
sleeping everything separate to the
walls and so when that happens you would
now call this main building part they
keep separate to the walls and so out of
necessity you need a different term so
now you could say get inside they keep
pointing to a castle that has a wall and
someone would know specifically what
you're saying when you're referring to
the castle if you say get inside the
cars we just mean get behind the walls
so a castle is essentially a keep but
you only need to define it as a keep
separate to a castle when it has a wall
around it and so this is the first term
that you need to understand in regards
to the names and terminology of the
components and parts of a castle but
there's a couple of other parts of the
castle that need terms to identify what
they are for instance the area within
the walls that is not they keep okay
this is the walking area the open area
inside the walls this is called the
Bailey it has also been called the ward
but Bailey is the more common term but
if you hear Ward or Bailey Bailey's
award an award is a Bailey there are
people who try and be a bit more
specific that no no no there's something
it defines a difference between a ward
and a Bailey they really
the same you see because you can
actually have more than one Bailey if a
castle has internal walls separating
parts of the castle from another then
you would have say are the East Bailey
or the West Bailey if there is a full
secondary wall out so their Castle has
two walls and the one there is a full
secondary ring and generally this the
furthest out wall will be lower than the
internal one the walking area that is
between the two walls the external and
the internal wall that would generally
be called the Lower Bailey and the open
area inside the internal walls will be
called the upper Bailey or inner Bailey
and really it's just a simple
descriptive term and several ones have
been used a quick thing to also point
out is that castles also had other
structures within themselves separate to
what you would consider the castle for
instance they would sometimes have a
separate blacksmith within the Bailey
and this blacksmith could actually be a
stone structure that's built as a
connection officer to the walls or the
keep and stuff like that they would have
a stables and barracks as just a whole
number of other kind of buildings that
can be included in the castle and really
the more of these buildings that you
have the more fully functional a castle
you would be out and maintained I'm not
really going to define what those are
because those are optional they weren't
always included like for instance a
chapel there's another one what this
video is mainly going to do is defining
the terms of the more common castle
components because remember a castle
doesn't have to have a wall it can just
be a defensive structure by itself and
in that sense it won't have a stables or
a chapel or a blacksmith or any of those
things now the best place for a castle
is always on a hill okay the higher
upper castle the better defensive
advantage it has and it also grants a
much greater field of view to be able to
look for possible attackers or invaders
that are marching in on your lands now
if a nice big hill wasn't available and
you need to make the castle on flat
ground the next best thing that you can
add to a castle to improve its defensive
capability is a moat a moat is not
better than
Hill okay it's the second best option
you would always pick a hill over a moat
but if you can't get a hill that's when
you need a moat and you don't
necessarily need it but a moat really
helps and the moat is of course a deep
broad ditch that is dug around the
castle and it doesn't have to be filled
with water but it can be so it can
either be dry or filled but it is
specifically defined as a deep broad
ditch dug around the castle this of
course made it extremely more difficult
for attackers to approach the castle and
of course restricted the ability to move
siege equipment all the way up to the
walls of a castle now regardless if a
castle was built on a hill or it had a
moat
dug around it you always want to make it
extremely difficult for attackers to get
through the weak point in the castle and
one of the weakest points of the castle
is the door because you need people to
get going be able to go in and out of a
castle so of course it's going to have
an entrance point and that is always
going to be the weak point of the castle
so you want to make it that part most
difficult to get to and this is where
the drawbridge comes in the drawbridge
was a bridge that could be raised and
lowered in front of the entry of a
castle now there are two more common
types of draw bridges that were made as
a part of castles the first is a
windless drawbridge and this is a
drawbridge that has a rope or a chain
connected to a windlass which is
basically a fixed winch and you bait and
you raise the drawbridge by turning the
windlass the other common type of
drawbridge is a counterweight drawbridge
now a counterweight drawbridge was a
drawbridge which had its ends connected
to beams that extended out of the castle
and the other end of the beam acted as a
counterbalance and indeed weights could
be added to the other end of the beam to
increase the counter balancing effect
and this made raising and lowering the
drawbridge much easier and that's
actually the feature and advantage of a
counterweight drawbridge over a windless
drawbridge is that they can be raised
and lowered at a much quicker rate the
problem with them is that you need rooms
for those beams to be out of tilt in and
out if you don't have enough room for
them while a windlass
takes up less room you just need a place
to be able to put the winch basically
after the drawbridge what you will often
find in front of the main castle entry
point is either a wood or steel kind of
grater more often wood but heavy wood
sometimes brace with steel and there is
the occasion that they'll made out of
metal and it would be more like iron in
that case but there would be March every
if I made out of steel but anyway this
grate is called the portcullis able to
be raised and lowered in front of the
main castle entrance or really any part
any entry point of the castle okay one
of the other big kind of structures that
you will generally see on castles it's a
very one of them what main common ones
and really any castle that has a wall it
needs this structure and that is the
gatehouse the gatehouse is a very
important part of a castle because it is
essentially one of the weak points of a
castle okay because it's much easier to
get through the entrance of a castle
than to knock down a wall and people
need to get in and out of castles so
there has to be an opening somewhere so
fortifying the gatehouse becomes very
very important first of all a castle can
have more than one gatehouse and if it
has more than one gatehouse generally
the more fortified gatehouse will be
called the Barbican now Barbican is an
interesting term in regards to castles
because it can also refer to something
that isn't a gatehouse okay if there is
an extended defensive kind of part on
the key or if the castle doesn't have a
wall okay and it has an extension kind
of fortified area where the entrances
that would also be called the Barbican
so it is an elaborate more fortified
section to a a castles entrance whether
that is the entrance to the keep or the
entrance to the whole castle itself if
it has a wall around it and that would
be at where the gatehouse is so a
gatehouse can be a Barbican and it
cannot be but the terms are kind of
interchangeable and so you don't need to
get too specific between the differences
but if you did want even a little bit of
clarity well there's more precedent to
call a gatehouse a Barbican if there's
more than one gatehouse and you would
call the outer most or more fortified
gatehouse the Barbican now
GateHouse's were often complemented by
inbuilt towers and so you wouldn't call
the tower parts of a gate house
separately because when you're through
to the gate house you're also referring
to everything that's built in onto the
gate house but if the tower seems more
separate and you needed to call
something different you call that a
tower separate to the gate house but
you'll define it more on a case-by-case
basis all right now let's look at the
walls first of all every single thing
that is part of or connected to the
walls which includes the towers
everything that the walls themselves and
the towers these are all called the
battlements okay so when you say get to
the battlements you could be referring
to just get on top of the wall or get to
a tower these are all the battlements
and the battlements really are the most
iconic features of a castle you could
really say it is the battlements that
make a castle a castle because you can
also have battlements on a keep you
don't have to have walls to have
battlements and if you just had a castle
without a wall and you say get to the
battlements you'll be saying get to the
top of the castles or any area that is
on the castle in which you can fire
arrows and defend it from but it is
those features that really define a
castle to be a castle so the battlements
are very very important so let's define
what they are now yes you have the walls
the walls are part of the battlements so
we're going to look at the walls
specifically and one of the main parts
of the walls is the areas which you can
walk to and fro on okay these what the
walkable areas of walls it is the
rampart or the ramparts and that's
fairly straightforward but let's look at
the one of the coolest and most sexy
parts of the battlements and this is the
crenellations that run along the wall
that face the outside and yes that's
what they call they're called the
crenellations crenellations are awesome
defensive features okay it provides
cover for people who are shooting arrows
from the castle and also a place where
you can lean out and then shoot down and
so that's the big feature of
crenellations if it offers full
protection or half protection and so it
even offers half protection when you're
attacking back thanks to their design
now the crenellations are made up of two
two objects that are placed one next to
the other in a repeating pattern
okay the larger part the larger stone
that provides full cover when you stand
behind it is called the Merlin Merlin
Merlin again sorry for my accent and the
lower part in between the Merlin's is
called the Crennel so I'll just repeat
that okay so the tooth of the
crenellations the part that Iike gives
you full cover that is the Merlin and
the app section that dips down that is
the Crennel and this makes up the
crenellations that are a part of the a
castles battlements now sometimes there
can be a vertical kind of opening in a
Merlin and this is called an arrow loop
or arrow slit and as you might be able
to guess its to shoot arrows through but
our own loops or arrow slits I just put
on Merlin's okay they can be put on any
area on a castle and in fact the more
generally the better but you put them
where they're needed and these create
the ability to shoot arrows upon the
enemy while giving basically complete
protection on the soldier that is trying
to defend the castle or some stuff now
the next thing that is a part of that a
castles battlements is something called
the hoarding or the hoardings okay now
the hoardings were a wooden structure
most often temporary that protruded out
from walls and towers to allow
projectiles to be dropped or shot down
on attackers while offering full cover
in front of the soldiers that are
defending the castle so full cover in
front of them and above them now if this
wooden structure was built atop a tower
it would be called a horde or the Horde
and if this wooden structure was built
to run atop the length of a castle wall
it would be called the hoardings now
hoardings could be left on castles
permanently though it seems that they
were more often only added during or
before sieges and oftentimes castles
will be built with provision for
hoardings to be added now this is a
really interesting thing because the
offensive features of hoarding was okay
so the things that hoardings provided
remember be extending further out from
the
also he could shoot down on enemies
attacking the castle okay
these features were eventually
architectural II combined with the
design of castle walls and towers and
when this was done these offensive
features weren't called hoardings
anymore they were called Michiko lations
and yeah it's a really weird word but
that's it a Michiko Latian or Michiko
lessons and so a Michiko Latian was an
opening due to an extension of the upper
part of the wall which allowed the
soldiers that defenders of the castle to
shoot through and down upon enemies
attacking it now to get a magician first
you need what are called core balls now
a core ball was is basically a stone
support that extends out from the wall
of a castle or the flat of a castle wall
to support the crenellations above it
and so what happened to castle walls the
crenellations were then extended further
out from the top of the wall to allow an
opening between the crenellations and
the ramparts and those were the Michiko
lations now it's funny because this is a
very very specific offensive feature but
it ends up creating such a beautiful
architectural style that has become one
of the main design features and styles
of castles in general but they weren't
ever added just to look cool they were
added for a very functional offensive
purpose and it just ended up looking
awesome as well and so when castles
included the offensive features at
hoardings provided there was no need for
the hoardings themselves anymore except
for having cover from above and the way
to fix that is just to add a roof on top
of the castle walls and so when that
happened hoardings became obsolete they
were no longer needed but there is still
precedence to call the upper parts of
castle towers and walls that have the
crenellations extended out to provide
Michiko lations and having Roose atop of
them there is a precedent to call that
type of design element of castles even
when they're permanently built out of
stone there's a precedence to still call
them the hoardings or the Horde if it's
a top
and so all these things that I've been
talking about can be applied to castle
walls and castle towers as well so you
have the ramparts the creme elations
which are comprised of Merlin's and
Crenn ELLs and then you have hoardings
which defensive features were eventually
combined into castle walls and towers as
matriculation z' which was supported by
corbels sorry if I'm butchering the
pronunciation but this is why I'm
demonstrating the words as I say them so
you can read them and try and figure it
out for yourself how they're pronounced
matriculation should not be confused
with murder holes murder holes are
actually something completely different
so then what is a murder hole it is an
opening above an area which would trap
an enemy within so if an enemy is trying
to get into a castle wherever a3 and you
know generally it'll be through whatever
entry point is in the castle so this
would be on the gatehouse
but murder halls can also be found
within the main castle body itself like
the keep or a really any structure any
point which causes the enemy to stop at
an area that's where you want to murder
a hole and a murder hole is an opening
in the ceiling above whatever area this
happens to be that will stop or make an
enemy pause and then their name really
describes themself because you can just
rain down death upon the enemy if they
get funneled into one of these areas and
so that can be with boiling hot oil with
massive big rocks or just arrows you
just rain down death upon those enemies
hence murder whole sorry in most castle
entry points like even into the keep
itself or to any important area the
first room you enter into would usually
be a stop-gap of some kind meaning you
just finally burst through the front
door to the key and then you enter into
a room that really has nothing in it
apart from another door and this could
be called the entry hall or many other
things and one of the common things in
these rooms are murder holes right above
now this of course wasn't the case with
every Castle but it is most certainly a
very effective defensive feature to have
so the example that I have here on honor
guard is at
main gate house which is the Barbican
because once they are able to force
lower the drawbridge and then get open
that portcullis they run in and then
guess what there's another portcullis
that they have to deal with and they're
track they're stuck okay so while
they're trying to deal with that second
portcullis guess what's above them
murder holes so that's what a murder
hole is not a mature collation they kind
of fill the same purpose but it's in
location that defines the difference a
matriculation is an opening thanks to an
extension of the castles crenellations
which allows things to be dropped down
from the castle wall directly upon
enemies assaulting the walls where a
murder hole is not on walls it is in
ceilings now another big feature of
castles is of course the castle towers
and we've really covered all the
features of castle towers in regards to
the battlements that are put on them
because they're the same as the type of
battlements that are put on walls
now towers should not be confused with
turrets a turret is a much smaller
structure and a turret is again another
way to protrude a platform further out
from the castle wall or tower or keep
where a soldier can stand and defend
firing things down upon attackers
another name for turrets is AB artisan
now in regards to towers there are a lot
of different kind of names to define the
different types of towers on a castle
and you would use the names depending on
the type of Castle so again these terms
would be applied on a more case-by-case
basis there isn't blanket terms that
this is always this type of Castle it's
more and where this caliph sits in
regards to how close it is to the
gatehouse or they keep on this specific
type of castle for instance they're two
nearest towers to the gatehouse can
sometimes be called the flanking towers
the watchtower would generally be the
tallest tower and indeed another term
for a very tall tower is the donjon that
can be confusing because the donjon is
not actually that the whole tower itself
it is actually more referring to the
highest room in the tower but if the
donjon happens to be within
a tower that tower sometimes been
referred to as the donjon holy as well
the thing about the donjon it doesn't
have to be in a tower the donjon is a
name that refers to the highest useable
a livable room of the castle so the
donjon could be in in the keep if the
highest most livable room of the castle
happens to be in the keeper not the
towers then the donjon would be in the
keep but if the tower is higher or then
the donjon would be in the tower because
the donjon is specifically the highest
room of the castle and because the
highest room of the castle has the best
view it is generally been considered to
have a bit more prestige it is one of
the nicer rooms of a castle but at the
same token it is also one of the most
protected rooms of a castle because it
is the hardest room to get to you need
to go through all the other levels of
the castle to get to the donjon and at
the same token it is therefore the
hardest room to escape from so what
happened often is that either the Lords
of the castle would take the donjon for
themselves whatever they could that
asleep in it or it could be one of their
fancy sitting rooms or the Salar or
whatever because of the nice view you
was a really nice room but then if they
didn't want to have the hassle of
climbing all the stairs to get to the
donjon or not they would pick a more
convenient room for them to live in and
they'll use the donjon for something
else and what that would generally be is
as a prison they would throw captives in
the dungeon because it was the hardest
room to escape from and this is where
the word dungeon comes from because the
term donjon started to be associated
with the place where you throw captives
and then as castle design started to
evolve a bit and they started to get
deeper under Crofts then it became even
more practical to throw the prisoners in
the deep dark parts of the castle
because they became just as difficult to
escape from as the dungeon edit changed
from being the highest point in the
castle to the deepest lowest point in
the castle and that's where dungeon
comes from and finally we have the
postin now the postern is basically the
back door you always wanted kind
back up you know entry and escape point
to a castle because if one area was
completely blocked off and you know
besieged there was always good to have a
backup now these posters were usually
very very small and because I was smart
so small they are much easier to defend
you could put in a really thick metal
grate or whatever to lock it in place
and stuff like that and so the postern
could be as difficult to breach as the
gatehouse itself and even if it was
breached it would be incredibly easy to
defend because it was just a single door
passageway more generally and so you
could just have one guy defend it quite
effectively
because you'll only have to defend er it
against one attacker because only one
person could fit through at a time and
there you go this is the terminology the
names for the components and part of
castles now I actually haven't covered
everything because you could go into
extreme specific detail to every kind of
minut thing in regards to the external
features in a castle but these are the
main ones or at least I hope I've
covered the main features if you feel
I've missed something please please let
me know in the comments I really hope
you've enjoyed and if you have enjoyed
this video well guess what I'll be
making more because I love castles what
you can look forward to in the future is
a video on proper castle design okay
what design features make a castle a
better castle and that's going to be a
lot of fun I'll also be doing a video on
the names and terminology of the
internal layout of a castle so the
internal rooms and other things like
that and this will also kind of combine
a bit into proper castle design because
the layer internal layout of a castle is
also important to consider in regards to
just designing it properly I'll also be
making a video on on the making of the
3d model that I have had the joy of
using throughout this video because it's
been a really long process making this
thing and I think you would find it
really interesting the thought processes
that I needed to go through in putting
this design together because this is
100% my design every single thing
ok I'll also be putting up some high
resolution images of this castle on my
deviantART page so please keep an eye on
my deviantART page to see those images
when they come up I already have some
castle images up from a previous castle
that I have modded
and this castle is called Keystone so
there's some good fun castle stuff there
if you're interested to check it out and
of course if there's any other things
about castles that you would like me to
talk about please request them in the
comments because I love castles and I
have no objection making more videos on
castles because I love castles as much
as swords and you can really see how
much I love swords based on the videos
about swords that I've already made so
so yeah castles just love them thank you
very much for watching I truly
appreciate your attention I wish you all
the best and until next time farewell
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