The reason is simple stone lasts - wood does not. First, many medieval castles were never fortified in stone, and none of these so-called earth and timber castles that dominated Britain for a century and half have survived. Other Welsh castles are not so fortunate, and there are several reasons why these castles have disappeared from the landscape. That means that towers, halls and other rooms can be seen and explored, and therefore appreciated by the modern visitor. In other words, their main fabric has survived to the present. These castles and others in Wales have at least one thing in common - although they are technically "ruined", they are all basically intact. Indeed, Conwy, Harlech, Beaumaris, and Caernarfon castles have all been declared UNESCO World Heritage Sites, while the likes of Caerphilly and Chepstow have long been recognized as important and influential examples of the art of medieval castle building.
There is no doubt that some of the world’s finest medieval castles are found in Wales. ThomasĪbove: the motte and bailey castle at St Clears, Carmarthenshire, Wales.īelow: the ruined curtain wall at Aberedw II, Powys, Wales. Macduff castle - my photos from 2003 in Scotland (needless to say).Photographs copyright © by Jeffrey L. Some survive, some have collapsed - try not to be on a collapsing one.Ī less well built castle - lifetime - not so long. Spiral stairways are stone slabs set into walls. You may wish to posit stone floors of some sort to allow survival. I have many photos of Castle Raglan (taken in 2003).įloors would have been destroyed at the time. If that has fallen in over the years it makes it almost instantly defensible. You may need to add a new drawbridge - it is accessed on the 2nd or 3rd level from the main castle over a moat via a drawbridge. The tower, and the main castle are still standing today - VERY solid - if it had not been 'slighted' at the time it would be an INSTANTLY viable castle now. Based on the Colosseum ('pure' concrete) a lifetime of 2000+ years would not be unexpected. Without this process I'd expect those walls to be good for far beyond the 400 years that they have stood so far. The tower's top storey was removed but, when this proved excessively labour intensive, the tower was undermined with a propped tunnel, and once the foundations were gone on one side fires were lit to destroy the props - see photo below. The tower wall breach was a product of labour intensive "slighting".
#Medieval abandoned castle free#
The free standing 'castle in it's own right' Great Tower was "slighted" subsequently but proved to hard to destroy and was left as was. The main walls were 14 feet thick in stone. The last castle to fall in the English civil war was Castle Raglan in Wales in 1646. The Colosseum is concrete - it has/had brick veneer. The Romans learned to build in real concrete maybe around 100 BC. Older "castles" may last longer than more recent ones. There are always exceptions to this, but it would appear that a few hundred years is the maximum a castle will survive without maintenance.Ī very well built castle will last "indefinitely". Wind carrying sand slowly eats away at the mortar as well. The heat fluctuations also cause the mortar to crack. It would also appear being in an arid desert doesnt help that much either. In the pictures below, you can see plants how the mortar gets destroyed and plants take over.īeing near a forest or river definitely would expedite the process, as the moisture and plants are close by to start breaking down the castle. The roots of the plants further break up the mortar. These cracks allow plants to start growing in them.
During the winter, water will freeze causing more cracks, which in turn allows more water to seep in. The mortar begins to crack, which allows water to seep in.
Castles made from stone and mortar do not last long without regular maintenance. The earliest traditional castles were built from 1060 AD and later. It really comes down to how it was constructed. However, it is hard to pin down an answer. I found this question interesting and started doing some research.
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