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As we've learned this week there were two ways to attack a
castle like this one. The first was by direct assault.
Soldiers stormed the walls with ladders and broke down the doors with
battering rams. Unfortunately, Richard adjusted the walls of this
castle in such a way that the paths all led up from the right.
This meant an assailant had to come along the walls with his shield arm
to the left, thus exposing him to the arrows, stones, and boiling sands poured down from above. The quick switches in the
path made it difficult to bring ladders and above all battering rams up
to the doors. Success in this endeavor was well rewarded,
however. The doors are cleverly set inside an outer hallway that turns
twice 90 degrees and in short space from the entry. Men carrying
rams were clogged up in the open hall trying to turn their rams and get
momentum. They thus were simple living
targets for the boiling sand that poured down from above and penetrated their armor and coats of
mail.
Assault never worked here, and battery certainly NOT! Not to be discouraged, WVU-V takes the highest tower today using no other weapon than the charm of the smile on their faces... |
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This page last updated on 6/7/2001 7:19:54 PM.