Castle Wall (2024)

FAQs

What are the little holes in castle walls? ›

Putlog holes or putlock holes are small holes made in the walls of structures to receive the ends of poles (small round logs) or beams, called putlogs or putlocks, to support a scaffolding.

An arrowslit (often also referred to as an arrow loop, loophole or loop hole, and sometimes a balistraria) is a narrow vertical aperture in a fortification through which an archer can launch arrows or a crossbowman can launch bolts.

countable noun A2. A castle is a large building with thick, high walls. Castles were built by important people, such as kings, in former times, especially for protection during wars and battles. [...]

Some later medieval castles had walls that were only about 15 to 20 feet (4.6 m to 6 m) high, but the walls of the stronger castles typically measured about 30 feet (9 m) in height and sometimes more. The wall of Eng- land's Framlingham Castle reached 40 feet (12 m) above the ground.

Imagine a protective wall surrounding a castle, and the notches cut in that wall that can be used to watch for approaching troops and, if necessary, fire at them. The notches themselves are called crenels or embrasures, and the process of installing them is crenellating.

Arrow Loop - A narrow vertical slit cut into a wall through which arrows could be fired.

-These holes can occur due to a variety of reasons, such as drilling for shelves or artworks, accidentally hitting the wall, or even pests like rodents.

A loophole, arrow loop or arrowslit passes through a solid wall, and thus forms an embrasure of shooting, allowing archer or gunner weapons to be fired out from the fortification while the firer remains under cover.

Crenellations are one of the most recognizable elements of a medieval castle. These upright projections resemble teeth, bared at invaders to prevent their attempted entries and at allies to show the owner's strength. Each upright section is called a merlon or crenel, and they protected defenders from attacks.

Low outer walls served as barriers against siege towers and battering rams. If attackers managed to break through this outer ring of defense, castle defenders could retreat behind high inner walls. Corner towers stood out from the walls, giving defenders a better perspective on enemy movements.

Which country has the most castles? ›

The country with the most castles is Germany. It's estimated the country has around 25,000 castles within its borders. Wales is the country with the most castles per square mile. Despite its small size, Wales had over 600 castles.

Commonly found in the early to middle ages, specifically the 13th through the 19th century, ramparts were often composed of mounds of earth or stone, dirt or a combination of timber posts and stone panels.

The Old French root is porte coleice, "sliding gate," which combines coleice, "sliding or flowing," and porte, "gate or door."

The height of walls varied widely by castle, but were often 2.5–6 m (8.2–19.7 ft) thick. They were usually topped with crenellation or parapets that offered protection to defenders.

Round towers [also called drum towers] are more resistant to siege technology. The round front is more resistant than the straight side of a square tower, just as a load-bearing arch. It gave the archers a 360 view around the land around the castle and it would be easier to fire arrows as there is no corners.

Crenelation: a notched battlement made up of alternate crenels (openings) and merlons (square sawteeth) Cross-wall: an internal dividing wall in a great tower.

You See Tiny Pinholes

Termites create tiny pinholes as a way to exit walls and move out of their colonies. They could also make crevices to enter the walls or maneuver around your home. Tiny pin found holes in drywall are usually a good indicator of a termite infestation.

They are called putlog holes and were used for medieval scaffolding. As masons were building they would embed a log at 90° to the wall, creating a structure to support wooden platforms. When a building was finished they were usually sawn off flush to the wall if they couldn't be easily removed.

They could serve any number of purposes; they could be drains, or they could be siege defenses; murder holes, etc. This is a murder hole: They're very narrow size, but wide angles inside would allow an archer to defend a significant area without exposing himself to return fire.