Old castles. Secrets of ancient castles. Ancient castles of the world

Old castles keep secrets. Majestic, impregnated with a sense of dignity, gloomy and lush, they draw to themselves, promising to show something special. The most ancient castles are striking in their scale and sophistication.
Man - a creature infinitely curious, in connection with which every year around the world locks are visited by thousands and thousands of tourists. Attracts them not just a desire to look at the life of the past. Everyone tries to see through the keyhole what the walls of buildings remember. Whose fates were decided in them, what kind of things were they doing?

Old castles. General characteristics and functions

If we consider these structures outside of the epochs, then we can distinguish the following features that distinguish the old locks:

• Location. Virtually all the castles are located on the hills, which could be both natural and artificial - it all depended on how lucky the owner was with the lands.
• Courtyard. Its existence is conditioned by the necessity to conduct life and, in the event of which, to be able to support an autonomous existence outside the rest of the world. It included craft workshops, smithies, kitchens and other elements designed to maximize the way of life.
• The main tower (donjon). The heart of the castle. By and large, the dungeon was a castle in the castle, since it was in the safest place and was fortified from all sides. It was the dwelling of the feudal lords, in parallel included food and arms stores.
• Fortress walls. Surrounded the courtyard, serving as a protection, and an external sign of power. They tried to do as thick and unapproachable as possible.
• Rov. Surrounded the fortress walls, serving as an additional means of defense against those who really wanted to profit by the contents of the castles. His presence solved two problems at once: it made impossible the digging and deprived potential stormers to come close to the walls. The ditch for constant filling with water was connected with a nearby pond. Communication with the outside world was supported by a lifting bridge.
• Goal. They were called to control the mass movements of people, animals and transport.

Locks as a means of protection

Prototypes of these buildings appeared in Iran, later moved to Ancient Rome, then advanced to Byzantium, where they became very popular due to the fact that they were used as forts.

However, castles flourished during the Middle Ages, they were used as dwellings of feudal lords and, in the first place, were defensive in nature. It was then that they came to the habitual form. The locks were geographically located on steep hills and hills, in order to complicate as much as possible the possible assault. These measures were not related to the widespread mania of persecution of the powerful worlds of the time. We must not forget that the Middle Ages passed "under the aegis of" feudal fragmentation and turmoil, the protection of life under such conditions was paramount.

Locks as a sign of status

Time passed, morals changed, the Middle Ages with its theological dictates and the need to live, looking back, gave way to the Renaissance, which erected anthropocentrism in the cult. Locks from the impregnable fortresses naturally become simply human dwellings. Buildings have become lighter, more elegant, more beautiful, each created something of his own, competing with a neighbor as far as strength and opportunity.

Locks as the focus of secrets

Walking along the winding corridors of castles, it's difficult to get rid of the feeling that you are being watched. Too many secrets and innuendos they store. Overthrown monarchs, corrupt servants, unhappy love stories - all this excites the imagination and causes shivers. Consider some secrets of ancient castles?

Tower

They mentioned ancient castles with their secrets and hauntings - what comes first? Of course, the Tower. This is a London building Served as a prison for those who from now on had only one road - to the scaffold. Anna Boleyn, the second wife of Henry the Eight, did not escape this fate. The church did not allow him to divorce, and a new love demanded decisive action. The monarch, who became the prototype of the Bluebeard, found a way out - he accused his wife of incest and sentenced him to death. Eyewitnesses said that the queen was infinitely calm and majestic, ascending to the block, no hysterics and tears. In turn, her husband also "relented" - provided a skilled French executioner and after the death of Anna did not put his head on public display, and buried, placing it under his right arm. Since then, not only in the Tower, but also in the territory of London itself, the blurred image of a woman in a luxurious dress that periodically keeps her head in her right hand has been noticed.

Mayerling Castle

When you look at this photo, the old castle seems so serene that it's hard to believe in its dark and tragic history for Austria. It was there, under mysterious circumstances, the heir to the throne, Rudolph, the only son of Sisi and Franz Joseph, died. Rudolph, according to contemporaries, suffered from depressions and temporary opacities of the mind, from which he was "treated" with shock doses of alcohol. On one frosty January day in 1899, together with his mistress, Maria Vechera, he entered the Meyerling Castle, never to return. They were found after a while dead - the girl was shot, and Rudolph - poisoned. There are many versions of what happened: some say that the Crown Prince persuaded Mary to leave with him and shoot himself after he takes the poison, others - that the heir himself killed her, then committed suicide, while others insist that both were killed by their opponents Crown to destabilize the situation in Austria.

Olesky Castle

When old castles of Ukraine are mentioned , then first of all this building is remembered. His story is rich in events - what is the fact that in the 17th century the father of Bogdan Khmelnitsky served at the court , and then the tragedy that still exists is happening. The owner of the castle was a beautiful daughter, whose hands persistently, but to no avail, the young Adam. The mission to get the blessing of the beloved's father was initially doomed to failure, since he wanted to see only a member of the royal family in his sons-in-law. Unable to withstand the next failure, Adam committed suicide in front of everyone. Due to the fact that he became a suicide, he was buried without the Christian rite - according to one version, they were buried near the castle walls, on the other - they just threw the body into the swamp. The daughter of the owner could not survive the loss and also lost her life. The daredevils, who decide to spend the night in the castle of Olesk, say that two restless souls are still wandering about the structure, tearing the silence with moans.

Woodstock Castle

The most famous ancient castles of the world include Woodstock. Speaking about the distinctive features, we can mention the fact that the echo in it is surprisingly distinctly heard 17 times in a row. However, this does not excite the imagination of people. In the XII century, he witnessed a love triangle, two corners of which were represented by the most influential spouses of that time, and the third corner was a brilliant beauty. We are talking about Henry II Plantagenet, Eleanor of Aquitaine and Rosamund Clifford. According to legend, Henry hid his mistress Rosamund in the tower of the castle Woodstock. The path went through a labyrinth, which it was impossible to blindly cross. And this measure was justified, for the monarch knew perfectly well that his crowned wife was not only clever, but extremely vindictive. Contrary to everything, Eleanor followed her husband and discovered a beautiful woman. Her decision was inexorable - Rosamund had to die. The choice was given her death by a dagger or poison. Beloved Henry chose the latter and met death in terrible agony - indeed, from an angry woman it is difficult to expect a quick, merciful death. Plantagenet, having learned about the tragedy, became mad with grief and imprisoned his insidious wife forever. He retained the memory of Rosamund until the end of his days and allegedly died the same day as she, but after 13 years. The spirit of the girl still wanders around the castle, waiting for her king.