Medieval Architecture - Medieval Castles

Medieval castles seem to fascinate people regardless of their age, from children to adults. If you visit a medieval castle this is plain to see when you look at other visitors around you. So what is it that makes medieval castles so appealing?

There is more than one answer of course because it depends upon the castle in question. For example:

• it might be a castle reputed to be haunted;
  
• it might be a castle where some famous siege or battle took place;
  
• it might be a castle where someone particularly famous lived or died;
• it might be a castle renowned for its architecture;

One thing we enjoy when we visit a medieval castle - whether it is still intact or just ruins - is that it is tangible history. You can walk up to the castle walls, touch them and think of the many centuries that have passed since the day the mortar was set between the stones.

View a short video clip we made of medieval castle stonework close up and just feel the history!

Read more about medieval castle architecture

Medieval Priory Wall - Musket Ball Holes?

The brown/red stonework on the left of the entrance door to historic Lanercost Priory is a little unusual. It is peppered with holes ... but these are no ordinary holes. Look at them close up and they are a uniform round shape - as would have been made if musket balls had been fired at the wall.

According to a local historian that we spoke to, no-one seems to know for sure when and how they got there but one theory is that the holes could have been made by soldiers camped nearby during the Jacobite Risings who needed somewhere for target practice. We have found no evidence to substantiate this (as yet) but if true, it just goes to show what medieval architecture has to be able to withstand!

You can see the holes close up in our video clip on the medieval castles video channel

* Read more about the Jacobite Rebellion in the immediate area on this Knol article about Hadrian's Wall

Medieval Sunset Nr Hadrian's Wall

We recently launched a medieval castle videos channel which we hope our medieval castle readers will enjoy and continue to return to view more video clips with a medieval angle.

Apart from covering medieval castles, we have also been busy filming places relating to medieval worship and medieval gardens. A video we recently uploaded is called 'Medieval Sunset' and it was shot at the historic site of Lanercost in Northern England, not far from Hadrian's Wall, just as the sun was setting. The entrance of the medieval priory is west facing so the golden glow of the setting sun reflected off the red stonework of the historic building's facade, making a wonderful sight. The only evidence of other people around was the odd car that passed on the nearby road and a lady out walking her dog - listen out for her comment to us about the beautiful light on the priory windows! Other than that we were alone and the calm atmosphere that prevailed in the golden glow made us think that the view was perhaps little different to what the likes of King Edward I and his queen might have witnessed over 700 years ago when they stayed in this very place.

Lanercost Priory is a little known yet very special building in a truly historic location. Not only is it of significant medieval relevance but it is just a few miles from the World Heritage site of Hadrian's Wall, in the heart of Border Reiver country.

Hadrians Wall cottages for holiday stays can be found right next to the priory in fact so if you ever visit this part of the world, you could be sleeping clost to where medieval royalty slept!

We have a number of previous blog posts about Lanercost

12th Century Medieval Abbey

Medieval religion is an intrinsic part of our history and heritage and the architecture that resulted - from churches to abbeys, priories and cathedrals - still inspires us today, even if in ruins.

The ruins of what was once a wonderful, medieval Cistercian Abbey .... this photograph was taken on the Ile de Ré, a beautiful island off the coast of La Rochelle, France.

The "Abbaye de Notre-Dame-de-Ré Les Chateliers" was founded in 1156. It was built on what at the time was a very strategic location, close to the largest docking point on the island. Described as a 'large gothic church', the Abbey flourished into the 13th and 14th centuries until devastation from the Hundred Years War took its toll. This led to structural changes and improvements in the 15th century. The ruins we see today are therefore a mixture of 12th, 13th and 15th century French medieval architecture.

It makes for fascinating study when compared to medieval abbeys in England such as Hexham Abbey (refounded as an Augustinian priory in the early 12th century).