| Auxiliary tower |
Tower
projecting from the wall, from which the terrain in front of the
fortification can be fired upon laterally. |
| Bailey |
Inner courtyard
between castle wall end main buildings or between any two outer
walls. |
| Barbican |
Outer defensive
work, usually in front of a gate; directly connected with the main
castle by walls, passages, etc. |
| Barrage |
Trench,
wall or entanglement to hinder the enemy's approach to a line of
fortifications. |
| Bastion |
Tower with
gun platform and vaulted interior, equipped mith artillery. |
| Battlements |
also wall-walks.
Covered or open passage on the wallhead of a tower or enclosing
wall, protected by a parapet on the outer side; mostly equipped
with arrow slits, gun ports or ' crenellations. |
| Bombard |
Heavy siege
cannon from the late Middle Ages, hurls stone and iron balls on
a flat trajectory. |
| Castellan |
Commander
of a feudal castle, possibly responsible for both military and
civil administrative duties. |
| Castellum |
Garrison
fortress in the Roman era. In the Middle Ages fortifications according
to the Roman tradition. |
| Cohort |
Roman army unit,
on foot or horseback, consisting of approx. 1000 men. |
| Connecting or double
wall |
Roughly parallel fortified
walls connecting two fortifications. |
| Crenellations |
Sequence
of solid parts and the intervals between them along the top of
a parapet, to facilitate firing and provide protection. |
| Crossbow |
High and late
medieval arm Made of wood, born or steel, the bow hurls bolts with
the power of an arrow up to a distance of 80-100 m. |
| Culverin |
Late medieval
fieldpiece on a carriage, fires stone and iron balls of approx.
1O cm calibre. |
| Dendrochronology |
Method
of dating aged wood, according to the principle of counting the
annual rings. |
| Drawbridge |
Moveable
wooden bridge in front of an entrance, which can be raised at the
enemy's approach. |
| Embrasure |
Opening in
a wall or parapet, usually for the use of firearms. |
| Enclosing wall |
Surrounding
a medieval fortress, equipped with defence installations. Falcon.
Ancient piece of artillery, similar to a culvarin, but more powerful. |
| Forage |
Acquire provisions
by force. |
| Garrison |
Troops stationed
in a military post, permanently or for a long time. . |
| Glacis |
Unoccupied
slope in front of a fortress. |
| Gun platform |
Platform
built inside a tower in which artillery was positioned for firing
down on the enemy. |
| Harquebus (Arquebus) |
Late medieval small firearm, ancient predecessor of the musket;
named after a hook on the barrel which cushions the recoil. The
harquebus fires lead balls of 2,5 cm calibre. Larger models and
up to 4 cm calibre can only be fired from a stationary position
(double hook). |
| Keep (donjon) |
The strongest
and innermost building of the castle, mostly used as living quarters
as it offered the most protection. |
| Machicolations |
Vertical
openings in the projecting wallwalk or tower for dropping stones,
hot liquid, etc. on the assailants below. |
| Murata |
Large barrier.
In Bellinzona this name is used to describe the wall erected between
the Castelgrande and the right bank of the River Ticino in the
15th century. |
| Outer ward |
Long barley
erected between an outer and inner castle gate. |
| Outwork |
Small position
for allround defence. Not directly connected to the main fortress. |
| Parapet |
Wall protecting
the defenders from drect fire, as a rule reaching chestlevel. |
| Podesta |
Governor. |
| Portcullis |
Massive
grating of heavy timber, reinforced with iron bars, which can be
raised and lowered over a gateway. |
| Portone |
Large gate.
In Bellinzona this is the name given to the gate-tower in the Murata
to the west of Castelgrande. |
| Ridotto |
Redoubt-area
within the main ramparts. In Bellinzona this word describes the
nucleus round the Torre Bianca on Castelgrande. |
| Round bastion |
Bastion
with around ground plan. |
| Swallowtail merlons |
Raised masonry elements
built at regular intervals along the top of the parapet, behind
which troops could hide. This form of crenellation, with a split
top reminiscent of a swallow's tail, is sometimes erroneously attributed
to the Ohibellines. |
| Murder shaft |
Vertical
shaft in a fortified wall to protect those throwing stone or hot
liquid. Frequently over a gate. |
| Torre |
Italian for tower. |
| Torretta |
Italian for
a small tower. In Bellinzona this is the name of the tower finishing
off the ' Murata towards the went. |
| Watchtower |
Well-fortified
tower, erected for the observation and supervision of a section
of terrain. |
