Mediæval Military Architecture in England, Volume 1 (of 2)Clark, George Thomas
History
Mediæval Military Architecture in England, Volume 1 (of 2)
Clark, George Thomas
Architecture -- England; Architecture, Medieval; Military architecture
The oldest and most remarkable of the Derbyshire castles is that of
Castleton or Peveril in the Peak, with its small but strong rectangular
keep, built on the edge of the precipice, at the base of which is the
celebrated cavern, one of the marvels of the Peak. Bolsover, now nearly
all rebuilt, was also a Peveril castle. Of Sheffield, the castle of
the Furnivals and Talbots, placed upon the junction of the Sheaf and
the Don, nothing now remains. There seem to have been early castles,
or perhaps fortified houses, at Codnor, a Zouch seat, Melbourne, and
Gresley. Also Bogis and Hareston were Derbyshire castles in the reign
of Henry II.
The wide expanse of Yorkshire contained much worthy of defence, and was
inhabited by a race of men not indisposed to provide it. The mounds of
York, both of the first class in bulk and elevation, were posted on
either bank of the Ouse, here a deep and broad stream. Of these mounds,
one stands on the junction of the Foss with the Ouse, above a tract
of marshy ground, between it and the wall of the Roman Eboracum. Here
the Conqueror placed his first castle, and in the keep and within the
spacious area below he posted William Malet and his 500 knights and
their followers. Amidst much of modern work the old walls may still
be traced, and a very fine shell, though of Early English date, still
stands on the summit of the mound. The other mound, the Bayle Hill,
south of the river, and connected with the earthworks of the later
city, was also fortified by William, but in haste and with timber only,
which does not appear ever to have been replaced with masonry. The
city is strongly fortified with walls and a ditch, and the celebrated
gateways or bars contain each a nucleus or core of Norman masonry. Next
to York in importance is Scarborough, the stronghold of William le
Gros, Earl of Aumarle, and the citadel of Holderness. The castle may
be said to contain the whole table top of a rocky promontory, defended
on three sides by a precipitous cliff, at the foot of which is the
German Ocean, while towards the land is a deep natural depression. The
approach was over a narrow causeway, raised upon arches, broken in
the centre by a drawbridge and bridge tower, covered at the outer end
by a strong barbican, and terminating below a lofty rectangular keep,
much of which still remains, and by the side of which was the final
entrance, and probably another drawbridge. In the words of Robert de
Brunne—
“Was there none entree
That to the castle gan ligge
But a straight causee
At the end a drawbrigge.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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