Fortified Wales

In its simplest terms, the definition of a castle accepted amongst academics is "a private fortified residence". This contrasts with earlier fortifications, such as Anglo Saxon burhs and walled cities such as Constantinople and Antioch in the Middle East; castles were not communal defences but were built and owned by the local feudal lords, either for themselves or for their monarch. Feudalism was the link between a lord and his vassal where, in return for military service and the expectation of loyalty, the lord would grant the vassal land. In the late 20th century, there was a trend to refine the definition of a castle by including the criterion of feudal ownership, thus tying castles to the medieval period; however, this does not necessarily reflect the terminology used in the medieval period. During the First Crusade (1096–1099), the Frankish armies encountered walled settlements and forts that they indiscriminately referred to as castles, but which would not be considered as such under the modern definition.

 

Castles served a range of purposes, the most important of which were military, administrative, and domestic. As well as defensive structures, castles were also offensive tools which could be used as a base of operations in enemy territory. Castles were established by Norman invaders of England for both defensive purposes and to pacify the country's inhabitants. As William the Conqueror advanced through England, he fortified key positions to secure the land he had taken. Between 1066 and 1087, he established 36 castles such asWarwick Castle, which he used to guard against rebellion in the English Midlands. The earliest stone built castle in Wales is Chepstow Castle, the main building started in 1067 on the orders of William himself. For speed, most Norman castles started as simple wooden structures on a Motte, possibly with an adjacent Bailey. The initial invasion of England saw pre-fabricated structures brought over by ship and hastily erected. Sometime they served short lives before a stone castle was built on a different site or the army moved on, leaving large mound which often survive today. (See here for more on Mottes).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If the site proved a good, strategic long term option the wooden structure would in time be replaced with stone into many of the surviving castles we have today, such as Cardiff Castle, and the Bailey developing into more important court or expanding to create towns. This often led to large fortified towns, or sometimes built from scratch as such to implant a safe haven in a difficult enviroment. Conwy in North Wales being an example, where English immigrants were brought in to live in the town and defended by the town wall and castle from the Welsh.

Although introduced by the Normans, some castles were built by Welsh princes, but the vast majority are seen in the Marches where Norman influence was greatest, and the largest in North Wales, built by Edward I to contain Welsh ambition after the defeat of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd,sometimes called Llewelyn the Great, or Llewelyn the last (prince of Wales).

 

Towards the end of the Middle Ages, castles tended to lose their military significance due to the advent of powerful cannons and permanent artillery fortifications; as a result, castles became more important as residences and statements of power. A castle could act as a stronghold and prison but was also a place where a knight or lord could entertain his peers. Over time the aesthetics of the design became more important, as the castle's appearance and size began to reflect the prestige and power of its occupant. Comfortable homes were often fashioned within their fortified walls. Although castles still provided protection from low levels of violence in later periods, eventually they were succeeded by country houses as high status residences. Many castles that survived in use through the middle ages were to finally see their destruction at the hands of Cromwell. Not so much in war, but after the civil war when parliament saw castles as a danger to their power, and a statement of power from the regime it displaced.