Water castle

Plan of Doorwerth Castle (Gelderland, the Netherlands)
Bodiam Castle (Sussex, England)
Mespelbrunn Castle (Bavaria, Germany)

A water castle is a castle or stately home whose site is entirely surrounded by water-filled moats (moated castles) or natural waterbodies such as island castles in a river or offshore.

Description

Topographically water castles are a type of lowland castle. The term is mainly found in European-language sources, e.g. under its German names of German: Wasserburg or Wasserschloss, but is also used in English-language sources, usually those referring to European castles of this type. Forde-Johnston describes it as "a castle in which water plays a prominent part in the defences..."[1]

There is a further distinction between:

  • Water castles, that are protected by artificial water-filled moats or ponds (man-made defences) i.e. a moated castle
  • Water castles, whose primary means of protection is from river courses or which stand on islands in a lake or natural pond (natural defences). Island castles are an example.

In all cases, water is used as an obstacle to hinder an attacker. That apart, an abundant supply of water was also an advantage during a siege. Such a castle usually had only one entrance, which was via a drawbridge and that could be raised for protection in the event of an attack. To some extent these water castles had a fortress-like character.

Legacy

In many places in Central Europe castles that had formerly been fortified changed their role or were converted over the course of time so that they became largely representational and residential buildings. The characteristic moats thus lost their original security function, but were retained in some cases as an element of landscaping. Today, in monument conservation circles, they are often described as burdensome, cost-intensive "historic legacies" because of the water damage caused to their foundations. As a result, many moats around castles in Germany have been drained, or more rarely filled, especially since the 1960s.

Examples

Austria

Baltic

Trakai Castle

Belgium

Kasteel van Wijnendale (Wijnendale Castle)

Czech Republic

Denmark

Finland

Germany

Bad Rappenau
Brennhausen
Friedewald water castle
Schwerin Castle
Vischering Castle
Klaffenbach Castle, (16th century, Saxony)
Gommern Water Castle
Moritzburg Castle
Glücksburg Castle

Baden-Württemberg

Bavaria

Berlin

Brandenburg

Bremen

  • Blomendal Castle
  • Schönebeck Palace

Hamburg

  • Bergedorf Palace

Hesse

  • Friedewald Water Castle in Friedewald
  • Fürstenau Palace near Steinbach

Lower Saxony

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

North Rhine-Westphalia

Rhineland-Palatinate

Saarland

Saxony

Saxony-Anhalt

Schleswig-Holstein

Thuringia

  • Kapellendorf Water Castle

Greece

Hungary

Italy

Japan

Imabari Castle

Netherlands

Cannenburgh Castle

Portugal

Slovakia

Slovenia

Otočec Castle

Sweden

Kalmar Castle
Vittskövle Castle
Chillon Castle
Caerlaverock Castle
Caerphilly Castle

Romania

  • Oradea Citadel

Switzerland

Turkey

United Kingdom

England

Scotland

Wales

References

  1. ↑ Great Medieval Castles of Britain by James L. Forde-Johnston (1979). Retrieved 20 Jul 2014.
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