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Military and Defence Systems: Made by EthanL 8X - Coggle Diagram
Military and Defence Systems: Made by EthanL 8X
Siege Tactics
Is a part of medieval warfare
Used when castles were more widespread
Castle and City Defences
Surrounded by a ditch or moat (Can contain water)
Archers and crossbowmen who could fire missiles through narrow window slits
Whenever defenders ran out, resorted to burning oil, flaming logs, spikes and rocks
France and Britain adopted ‘Motte and bailey castle’
Walled courtyard (bailey)
Wooden tower on a mound(motte)
Castle Keeps
Strongpoints in early castles
Also known as great towers
Concentric Castles
1250 Dover Castle had both inner and outer circuits of towered walls ‘Concentric’ fortress
Emphasis on multi-towered enclosing walls
Opening attack
Sieges were expensive; the best result was defenders to surrender immediately
If defenders remained resolute; warning messages were sent by the attackers, allowing non-combat residents to flee the scene
Different ways in case this happened such as Tunnels, having their own food supply
Simple way: Encircle a target, cutting off supply until thirst and starvation to surrender
Siege Towers
Enemy may be softened up by the use of artillery but hand-to-hand combat was inevitable.
Towers were made to go higher than the defenders wall to infiltrate
Assault on a section of wall
Main Methods of attacking
Ladders
Disadvantage: leaving the man climbing the ladder subject to attack
Because of the disadvantage Siege/Belfry Tower was developed
Used to climb over the walls and fight the castle inhabitants
Belfry was a large structure on wheels that could be pushed up to castle walls
Catapults
Works by twisting rope as tightly as possible so that it acts like elastic when the arm is released
Used to fire stones, fireballs, dead sheep, cattle, or plague victims
Battering Rams
Was used against Stone Keep castles
Several men behind it
Seriously weakens and possibly destroys doors or walls
Mining
Once made the tunnel; set a charge and make an explosion which would make the walls crumble and collapse
Advantage: Could not be seen from the castle
Attackers would dig a tunnel underground up to the castle walls (under the gatehouse if possible)
Fire
Best way to attack the early Motte and Baily castle since made out of wood
Might be started by a bonfire on the fence or archers shooting fire-arrows into the castle
Siege
For attacking stone castles
Attackers would surround a castle with men and catapults so that no one could enter or leave the castle
Could last for months: until inhabitants of the castle ran out of food and were starving
All women, children, old, weak, and sick were sent out of the castle
Weapons
Battering Rams
Made of a large log wood with a sharpened metal cover at one end
Destroying a part of the defensive wall
Undermining
Alternative of bashing fortification walls if they were thick and imposing was to attack them from below
Breaks the underground support for fortifications
Not changed much
Artillery
Strategies
1 Strategy: Pound wall with huge boulders fired by catapults
Creative strategies: Kite used to float incendiaries over the which were shot down
Protect structures from fire by covering the in non-combustible material
Had been used since anquity (4500 BCE – 450 CE)
Gunpowder used first in 1326CE
Blending designs from Rome and Greece
Crossbows and Longbows
Mounted knight's support was generally provided by spearmen and crossbowmen
Crossbows powerful, but shot slowly
Longbows was the most decisive weapon which was made out of a single bough of yew which could shoot over 200 metres
Longbows were first recorded towards the end of the 12th Century
Bows had been used since prehistoric times
Cannon and Castles
Cannons were unwidely and difficult to transport
Useful in static positions within castles
Cannons had begun to play an important part in sieges
Gunports became standard additions to 15th century castles and even manor houses
Subterfuge
Used to deceit the enemy by sending letters or having spies to make the enemy surrender
Aftermath
After a castle or city fell: Sack, pillage, burn, rape, and murder
Often if castle was in strategiecally important position, the new owners would maintain and defend; reusing and repairing
Wars
Norman Knights
Armour: Expensive
Two Wars
England and France war known as the ‘Hundred Years War’
Used substantial wooden saddles, well-designed stirrups
Bitter Fighting
Bitter hand-to-hand fighting was done by ‘men-at-arms’
These were nobles and gentry