Concentric castle - wikipedia Concentric castle Plan of Beaumaris Castle ( Wales ) Plan of Belvoir Castle ( Israel ) A concentric castle is a castle with two or more concentric curtain walls, such that the inner wall is higher than the outer and can be defended from it. The word concentric does not imply that these castles were circular ; in fact, if taken too literally, the term is quite misleading. The layout was square ( at Belvoir and Beaumaris ) where the terrain permitted, or an irregular polygon ( at Krak and Margat ) where curtain walls of a spur castle followed the contours of a hill. Concentric castles resemble one castle nested inside the other, thus creating an inner and outer ward. They are typically built without a central free - standing keep. Where the castle includes a particularly strong tower ( donjon ), such as at Krak or Margat, it projects from the inner enceinte. Contents 1 Development 2 Similar structures 3 Examples of concentric castles 4 See also 5 References Development Star - shaped plan of the citadel of Lille ( France ), designed by Vauban Surrounding fortresses or towns with a series of defensive walls where the outer walls are lower than the inner walls is something that has been found in fortifications going back thousands of years to cultures like the Assyrians, Persians, Ancient Egyptians and Babylonians. The ancient city of Lachish, a place in Israel, was excavated and found to consist of multiple walls that were famously illustrated in Assyrian art documenting their successful siege of the city. The Byzantines also famously constructed the Walls of Constantinople which featured double layers of walls through most of its perimeter and a moat. The city of ancient Babylon also featured multiple layers of fortifications, famously seen in the Ishtar Gate. However, the relationship of the concentric castle to other forms of fortification is complex. Perhaps the earliest example of a concentric castle is the crusader castle of Belvoir, whose very regular rectangular layout has been described by Nicolle as one castrum nested inside another. Historians ( in particular Hugh Kennedy ) have argued that the concentric defence arose as a response to advances in siege technology in the crusader states from the 12th to the 13th century. The outer wall protected the inner one from siege engines, while the inner wall and the projecting towers provided flanking fire from crossbows. In addition, the strong towers may have served as platforms for trebuchets for shooting back at the besiegers. The walls typically include towers, arrow slits, and wall - head defenses such as crenellation and, in more advanced cases, machicolations, all aimed at an active style of defence. The Krak des Chevaliers in Syria is the best preserved of the concentric crusader castles. By contrast, Château Pèlerin was not a concentric castle, as the side facing the sea did not require defensive walls. However, the two walls facing the land are built on the same defensive principles as other crusader castles in the same period, rivalling the defences at Krak. While a concentric castle has double walls and towers on all sides, the defences need not be uniform in all directions. There can still be a concentration of defences at a vulnerable point. At Krak des Chevaliers, this is the case at the southern side, where the terrain permits an attacker to deploy siege engines. In addition, the gate and posterns are typically strengthened using a bent entrance or flanking towers. Concentric castles were expensive to build, so that only the powerful military orders, the Hospitallers and Templars, or powerful kings, could afford to build and maintain them. It has also been pointed out that the concentric layout suited the requirements of military orders such as the Hospitallers in resembling a monastery and housing a large garrison. Such castles were beyond the means of feudal barons. Thus concentric castles coexisted with simpler enclosure castles and tower keeps even in the crusader states. Concentric castles appeared in Europe in the 13th century, with the castles built in Wales by Edward I providing some outstanding examples, in particular Beaumaris Castle, a `` perfect concentric castle '', albeit unfinished. As Beaumaris was built on flat terrain rather than a spur, it was both necessary and possible to build walls and towers facing in all directions, giving a very regular, almost square, floor plan to the castle. Some influence from crusader fortification has been conjectured, but the amount of technology transfer from the East and much earlier Byzantine examples remains controversial among historians. Similar structures In German - speaking countries in the Holy Roman Empire, many castles had double curtain walls with a narrow ward between them, referred to as a zwinger. These were added at vulnerable points like the gate, but were rarely as fully developed as in the concentric castles in Wales or the Crusader castles. The principle of an outer and inner wall was also used in fortified cities, such as the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople and the city wall of Carcassonne. The concept of mutually reinforcing lines of defence with flanking fire was continued in later periods, such as the early modern fortifications of Vauban, where outer defence works were protected and overlooked by others and their capture did not destroy the integrity of the inner citadel. Citadels from prior to and during the Reconquista in Spain and Portugal also have fortifications similar to concentric castles found elsewhere in Europe. Almodovar Del Rio is a good example of such a fortress along with Saint George Castle in Lisbon Portugal. Examples of concentric castles Castle of Margat ( Syria ), 1062 -- Krak des Chevaliers ( Syria ), 1142 -- 1170 Belvoir Castle ( Israel ), 1150 Münzenberg Castle ( Hesse ), 1162 Kidwelly Castle, south - west Wales, 13th century Caerphilly Castle, south of Wales, 13th century Rhuddlan Castle, north of Wales, 1277 Harlech Castle, west of Wales, 1282 -- Beaumaris Castle, on the island of Anglesey at the north - west of Wales, 1295 See also Buhen ( ancient Egyptian stronghold ) References ^ Jump up to : Kennedy, Hugh ( 2000 ). Crusader Castles. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0 - 521 - 79913 - 9. ^ Jump up to : Nicolle, David ( 2008 ). Crusader Castles in the Holy Land : An Illustrated History of the Crusader Fortifications of the Middle East and Mediterranean. ISBN 978 - 1846033490. Jump up ^ Reginald Allen Brown ( 1989 ). Castles from the air. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 32932 - 3. Fortifications Ancient history Abatis Agger Broch Burgus Castellum Castra Castros Circular rampart City gate Crannog Ditch Defensive wall Dun Faussebraye Gatehouse Gord Hillfort Limes Oppidum Palisade Pincer gate Promontory fort Rampart Ringfort ( Rath ) Refuge castle Schwedenschanze Stockade Sudis Trou de loup Vallum Wagon fort ( Laager ) Vitrified fort Medieval history Advanced work Albarrana tower Alcazaba Alcázar Arrowslit Barbican Bartizan Bastion Battery tower Battlement Bent entrance Bergfried Bretèche Bridge castle Bridge tower Butter - churn tower Caltrop Castle Chamber gate Chartaque Chashi Chemin de ronde Chemise Cheval de frise Citadel Coercion castle Concentric castle Corner tower Counter-castle Curtain Drawbridge Enceinte Embrasure Flanking tower Fortified buildings ( church, house ) Ganerbenburg Gate tower Gabion Glacis Guard tower Gulyay - gorod Gusuku Half tower Hoarding Inner bailey Keep Kremlin ( Detinets ) Landesburg L - plan castle Machicolation Merlon Moat Motte - and - bailey Murder - hole Neck ditch Outer bailey Outwork Peel tower Portcullis Postern Reduit Ringwork Quadrangular castle Shell keep Shield wall Toll castle Tower castle Tower house Turret Wall tower Bailey ( or ward ) Watchtower Witch tower Yett Modern history 18th century and earlier Abwurfdach Bastion Blockhouse Breastwork Canal Caponier Casemate Cavalier Counterguard Counterscarp Couvreface Coupure Covertway Crownwork Device fort Entrenchment Flèche Gorge Hornwork Lunette Orillon Ostrog Place - of - arms Polygonal fort Presidio ( Spanish America ) Punji sticks Ravelin Redan Redoubt Retrenchment Sandbag Scarp Sconce Schanze Sea fort Station Star fort Tenaille 19th century Barbed wire Barbette Border outpost Bunker Coastal artillery Gun turret Land mine Martello tower Outpost Trench warfare Sangar Wire obstacles 20th century Admiralty scaffolding Air raid shelter Anti-tank trench Barbed tape Blast shelter Blast wall Border barrier Buoy Bremer wall Concertina wire Defensive fighting position British `` hedgehog '' road block Czech hedgehog Dragon 's teeth Electric fence Fallout shelter Fire support base Flak tower Hardened aircraft shelter Hesco bastion Main Line of Resistance Revetment Sentry gun Spider hole Submarine pen Tunnel warfare Underground hangar By topography Cave castle Hill castle Hill fort Hillside castle Hilltop castle Island castle Lowland castle Marsh castle Moated castle Promontory fort Ridge castle Rocca Rock castle Spur castle Water castle By role Coercion castle Counter-castle Ganerbenburg Hunting lodge Imperial castle Kaiserpfalz Landesburg Lustschloss Ordensburg Refuge castle Toll castle Urban castle By design Bridge castle Circular rampart Concentric castle L - plan castle Motte - and - bailey castle Quadrangular castle Ringfort Ringwork Tower castle See also : Category Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Concentric_castle&oldid=826328799 '' Categories : Castles by type Hidden categories : All articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases Articles with specifically marked weasel - worded phrases from May 2012 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español فارسی Français Italiano עברית 日本 語 Português Русский Slovenščina Svenska ไทย Українська Edit links This page was last edited on 18 February 2018, at 14 : 29. 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Question: who would have lived in a concentric castle
Answer: the powerful military orders