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Castles and there simularities from now to middle ages
Function of a castle in the medieval time period
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The high medieval Welsh princes and Gaelic Irish lords are comparable in several ways. Both had to contend with the ever-growing presence of the Anglo-Normans and were able to maintain some form of native rule throughout the period (“Gaelic lordly settlement” 209). Furthermore, castles played a significant role in the proceedings whether built or captured and whether they were of native origins or Anglo-Norman. This can be attributed to their capabilities of withstanding various scales of warfare and being one of the means of displaying lordly rank (“Settlement and Society” 97). However, the functions, characteristics, and prevalence of castles are not necessarily uniform across the three groups. Using the historical and archaeological evidence derived from scholarly sources, the various uses, distinguishing features, and similarities of castles by the native Welsh and Gaelic Irish lords during the late twelfth and thirteenth centuries can be accounted for more fully.
The account will be structured by first outlining the evidence for native Welsh castles during that time period. This will involve a description of the historical context for their construction, functions, prominent builders, distinguishing characteristics, and notable examples. The examination will be interspersed with comparisons to contemporary Anglo-Norman building patterns. The regions of Wales referenced throughout the paper will include Gwynedd in the north, Powys in the east, and Deheubarth in the south as seen in Figure 1. Following these Welsh examples, the discussion will shift to a comparison between the native Welsh and the Gaelic Irish lords concerning the extent of their castle building. This will incorporate a section describing the use of ...
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Davis, P. Castles of the Welsh Princes (Talybont, 2008).
McNeill, T.E. Castles in Ireland – Feudal Power in a Gaelic World (London and New York, 1997) pg. 157-164.
O’Conor, K. Chapter 4: “Settlement and Society in Medieval Gaelic Ireland” in The archaeology of medieval rural settlement in Ireland. Discovery Programme Monographs 3 (Dublin, 1998) pg. 73-107.
O’Conor, K. “Gaelic lordly settlement in 13th- and 14th century Ireland” in Holm, I., Innselet, S. and Oye, I. (eds.) ‘Utmark’ – the outfield as industry and ideology in the Iron Age and the Middle Ages (Bergen, 2005) pg. 209-221.
O’Conor, K., Brady, N., Connon, A. and Fidalgo-Romo, C. “The Rock at Lough Cé, Co. Roscommon” in T. Finan (ed.) Medieval Lough Cé – History, Archaeology, and Landscape (Dublin, 2010) pg. 15-40.
Rees, S.E. and Chapple, C. Dinefwr Castle and Dryslwyn Castle (Cardiff, 1999).