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 The
Decline of the Medieval Castle In England, castles had largely fallen out of use by the end of the Middle Ages. There were several reasons for this decline. One was that the cost of maintaining such enormous structures had become prohibitive; another was the decline of feudalism and the pacification of the kingdom. Perhaps the most important, however, was the development of firearms in the 16th century; whereas the medieval castle had been highly effective in fending off attack from arrows and catapults, and in withstanding long periods of siege, it was vulnerable when it came under attack from cannon, which could rip through stout walls. Thus most castles were abandoned and became derelict, to be replaced by military strongholds and town defences that were planned specifically to give protection against artillery and to allow the most effective use of defensive gunfire. Typical of this new type is Deal Castle, part of a string of defences that Henry VIII ordered to be built to protect southern England from attack from the sea. |
This site was last updated 01/10/06
