(8) Inverlochy Castle - battered and bruised!
The way the tower's diameter flares out a bit at the bottom, which is called a batter, was an innovation that came in at around the time this castle was built and helps date it. A sign at the castle tells you that battered walls "lessened the impact of battering rams and deterred mining, and also provided greater wall thickness, the angle of the wall also serving to keep assailant’s ladders away from it and so more exposed to missiles fired from above".
While all that is undoubtedly true to a greater or lesser extent, my understanding was always that a rock or similar missile dropped down a vertical wall either lands on someone's head or more likely embeds itself in the ground, whereas a rock dropped down a wall with a batter shoots off horizontally at the bottom, with much greater opportunity for doing damage in the process! The 'battered' tower seen here is the Comyn Tower at the north-west angle.
Also visible in this photo is a low and rather sorry looking wall on the left, behind which the gravel path disappears, which is all that remains of the north (external) gatehouse, the principal purpose of which would have been to provide access to the river - a water gate. The equally sorry looking wall to the right, along the line of trees, I suspect has something to do with the jetty. The meadow to the right may well have been water 700 years ago.
(8) Inverlochy Castle - battered and bruised!
The way the tower's diameter flares out a bit at the bottom, which is called a batter, was an innovation that came in at around the time this castle was built and helps date it. A sign at the castle tells you that battered walls "lessened the impact of battering rams and deterred mining, and also provided greater wall thickness, the angle of the wall also serving to keep assailant’s ladders away from it and so more exposed to missiles fired from above".
While all that is undoubtedly true to a greater or lesser extent, my understanding was always that a rock or similar missile dropped down a vertical wall either lands on someone's head or more likely embeds itself in the ground, whereas a rock dropped down a wall with a batter shoots off horizontally at the bottom, with much greater opportunity for doing damage in the process! The 'battered' tower seen here is the Comyn Tower at the north-west angle.
Also visible in this photo is a low and rather sorry looking wall on the left, behind which the gravel path disappears, which is all that remains of the north (external) gatehouse, the principal purpose of which would have been to provide access to the river - a water gate. The equally sorry looking wall to the right, along the line of trees, I suspect has something to do with the jetty. The meadow to the right may well have been water 700 years ago.