Attacking And Defending A Stone Castle

Question 1

How was the scaling ladder used?

Answer 1

ATTACK: it was used to clime the walls of a castle.
DEFENCE: the climber was subject to attack by arrows, boiling water or oil and being pushed to the ground by the defenders.

Question 2

The Trebuchet

Answer 2

A very powerful sling shot. Used to fire rocks at the castle walls. Sometimes rotting animal carcasses were thrown to spread disease. They were made so that they could fire from a very long distance to protects the attackers from archers.

Question 3

The Siege Tower

Answer 3

They were taller than the castle walls and were used to entre the castle and shoot the defenders from above. It was protected from flaming arrows by water drenched animal hides

Question 4

The Mangonel

Answer 4

It was a catapult. It was lighter than the Trebuchet but had a shorter range. It was used to fire rocks at the castle.

Question 5

A Battering Ram

Answer 5

A Battering Ram was used to knock down thick stone castle walls. It often had a penthouse to protect the attackers from being attacked by the defenders.

Question 6

A Ballista

Answer 6

A big crossbow used to fire large bolts at the castle. It could be use to attack or defend a stone castle.

Question 7

Undermining a castle walls/tunnelling

Answer 7

ATTACK: this method was used to enter a castle. The tunnels were sometimes filled with flammable things and set on fire. It weakened the castle walls causing them to collapse.
DEFENCE: to defend castles against tunnelling they had moats dug around them