Essay on Caerphilly Castle. 135 



eggai) on Ca^rjpf)in|) Castle* 



No. IJI.— CAERPHILLY AS IT FORMERLY STOOD.* 



C Continued J lom page 104.J 



We now opproach the third and most important division of our subject, 

 the description of the castle as it formerly stood ; and in drawing up this 

 description care has been taken to distinguish between fact and hypothesis, 

 between those restorations which are warranted by a critical examination 

 of the remaining portions, and those which in the absence of a sufficient 

 remainder, have been deduced from analogous and more perfect structures. 



For the purposes of description we shall consider the castle as composed 

 of ten parts, each of which will be further subdivided, so that the whole 

 may pass before us in regular review and in a convenient order. 



These parts are : A The gatehouse; composed of a the moat ^ /3the 

 draw-bridge ; ythe gate-house proper; c the gate-house tower j ethe 

 dividing-tvall. B The northern curtain j a. ihe grand postern ^ b the 

 covered way; cthe buttress towers; d the north postern ; eihe postern 

 gallery. C The southern curtain; a the semicircular bastion; ithe 

 mural chamber; cthe buttresses; rfthe sluices. D The terre plein : 

 1 the jnill. E The tete du font ; composed of I the mural tower ; II the 

 south postern ; 111 the ^anhing tvall. F The luxated ridge; containing 

 X the inner sluice. G The horn work; including 1 the spring; 2 the 

 outer; and 3 the inner western draw-bridge. H The middle ballium j 

 including 1 the principal bastions ; 2 their curtains ; 3 the middle eastern ; 

 and 4 the middle western gate-houses ; 5 the water-gate and steps ; 6 the 

 offices; 7 the tank. I The inner ballium; containing a the principal 

 bastion towers ; (i their curtains ; y the inner eastern ; and ^ the in7ier 

 western gate-house ; e the triforial galleries and ramparts ; ^ the court ; 

 jjthe tvell ; 6 the hall ; i the chapel and smaller rooms ; /cthe slate apart- 

 ments. K The redoubt. 



The eastern or grand fafade of Caerphilly is one of the finest and most 

 complete specimens of a feudal line of defence, extant in this or any 

 other country. 



It is composed of a long curtain wall of appropriate height and thick- 

 ness, strengthened on the exterior by proper buttresses, rising in the centre 



• Many of our readers will feel disposed to consider the following description as 

 tedious : should they, however, ever inciudc Caerphilly within their summer excur- 

 Bions, and visit the castle with this description in their hands, wc do not apprehend 

 that they will find it either too dry, or running unnecessarily into details. 



Hitherto but little attention has been paid to ancient military architecture, the 

 descriptions extant of castles and such buildings being deficient in critical informa- 

 tion. It is hoped that many of the terms above introduced will be found useful in 

 future descriptions. 



