You write about the baron in the castle - pleased to simply see how the castle was heated, as was ventilated than illuminated ...
From an interview with G. L. Oldi

With the word "castle" in our imagination, there is an image of a majestic fortress - a business card of the genre of fantasy. It is hardly there is another architectural structure that would attract so much attention from historians, experts of military affairs, tourists, writers and lovers of "fabulous" fiction.

We play computer, desktop and role-playing games, where we have to explore, build or capture impregnable locks. But do we know that in fact represent these fortifications? What interesting stories are associated with them? What are the stone walls hide behind them - witnesses of whole epochs, grandiose battles, knightly nobility and grade betrayal?

Surprisingly, the fact - the fortified dwellings of the feudalists in different parts of the world (Japan, Asia, Europe) were built on very similar principles and had many common structural features. But in this article we will discuss primarily about medieval European feudal fortresses, since they served as the basis for creating a mass artistic image of the medieval castle as a whole.

Birth of a fortress

Middle Ages in Europe was a hectic time. Feudals for any reason were arranged between themselves small wars - rather speaking, not even war, but, expressing modern tongue, armed "disassembly". If the neighbor started money - they had to be selected. Many land and peasants? It's just indecent, because God ordered to share. And if the knightly honor will be bored - then here without a small victorious war it was easy to do.

Under such circumstances, the large aristocrats-landowners did not have anything else, except to strengthen their homes with the calculation that one day the neighbors who do not eat bread - let someone be slaughtered to visit.

Initially, these fortifications were made from the tree and did not resemble the locks known to us - except that the ditch before the entrance was died and wooden frequencies around the house was supplied.

Merzic courts of Hasterknaup and Elmendorv - the ancestors of the castles.

However, progress did not stand still - with the development of military affairs, feudalities had to modernize their strengthening so that they could withstand the massive storm with the use of stone nuclei and Taranians.

The European castle goes to its roots in the era of antiquity. The earliest structures of this kind copied the Roman military camps (tents surrounded by Palokol). It is believed that the tradition of building the Giant (by the standards of the time) of stone structures began with Normanov, and the classic castles appeared in the 12th century.

The deposited castle Morthan (kept the siege for 6 months).

Very simple requirements were presented to the castle - it should be inflicted for the enemy, to ensure the observation of the area (including the nearest villages owned by the owner of the castle), have its own source of water (in case of siege) and perform representative functions - that is, to show the power, the wealth of feudal.

Bolomari castle, belonging to Eduard I.

Welcome

We keep the way to the castle standing on the protrusion of the mountain slope, with the edge of the fertile valley. The road goes through a small settlement - one of those that usually grown near the fortress wall. Here lives a simple people - mostly artisans, and warriors guarding the external perimeter of protection (in particular - the energies of our road). This is the so-called "Castle Lud".

Scheme of castle structures. Note - two short towers, the largest stands separately.

The road is laid in such a way that the aliens are always facing the castle with the right side, not covered with a shield. Directly in front of the serf wall there is a naked plateau, lying under a significant bias (the castle itself stands on the elevation - natural or bulk). Vegetation here is low, so that there is no shelter striker.

The first obstacle is deep moat, and in front of it - the shaft of the earth. Mocion can be transverse (separates the wall of the castle from the plateau), or the sickle, curved forward. If the landscape allows, the entire lock is swinging in a circle.

Sometimes separation rally discovered inside the castle, which makes the enemy movement on its territory.

The form of the bottom of the RVs could be the V-shaped and U-shaped (the last most common). If the soil under the castle is rocky, then the moons either did not do at all, or they were cut into a small depth, which only impossible to promote the infantry (in the rock, it is almost impossible to make a subpople under the wall of the lock - therefore the depth of the RVA did not have a decisive value).

The crest of the earthen shaft lying right in front of the moat (why he seems even deeper), often carried by a parisade - a fence from covered in the ground, pointed and tightly fitted wooden cooles.

To the outer wall of the castle leads the bridge, peroxided through ditch. Depending on the magnitude of the RVA and the bridge, the latter supports one or more supports (huge logs). The outer part of the bridge is fixed, but its last cut (right at the wall) is moving.

Castle entrance scheme: 2 - gallery on the wall, 3 - lifting bridge, 4 - lattice.

Counterweight on the gate lift.

Gate castle.

This lifting bridge is designed so that in the vertical position it closes the gate. The bridge is driven by mechanisms hidden in the building above them. From the bridge to the lifting machines in the wall holes, ropes or chains leave. To facilitate the work of people serving the mechanism of the bridge, the ropes were sometimes supplied with heavy counterweights that take part of the weight of this design on themselves.

Of particular interest is the bridge that worked on the principle of swing (it is called "tilting" or "swing"). One half of his half was inside - lying on the ground at the gate, and the other stretched through the ditch. When the inner part rose, closing the entrance to the castle, the external (on which he sometimes had already had time to run) went down, in the ditch, where the so-called "wolf pit" was arranged (sharp stakes, lined in the ground), invisible from the side, The bridge is omitted.

To enter the lock when closed gates, there was a side gate, to which a separate lifting ladder was usually laid.

The gate is the most vulnerable part of the castle, usually done not directly in its wall, but were arranged in the so-called "short-lived towers." Most often, the gate was bivalve, and the flaps were laid out of two layers of boards. To protect against arson outside, they were born with iron. At the same time, in one of the flaps there was a small narrow door, in which it was possible to go through, just bent. In addition to locks and iron bolsov, the gate closed the transverse beam, lying in the wall canal and bargaining into the opposite wall. The transverse beam could also start in the hook-shaped slits on the walls. Its main purpose was the protection of the gate from their planning by the attackers.

Behind the gate was usually a descending grille. Most often it was wooden, with cable glands. But Iron lattices made from steel four-pointed rods met. The lattice could drop out of the gap in the arch of the gate portal, or be behind them (from the inside of the short tower), dropping over the grooves in the walls.

The grille hung on the ropes or circuits, which in case of danger might be cut down so that it quickly fell down, blocking the path to the invaders.

Inside the short tower there were rooms for guards. They carried a watch on the top of the tower, learn from the guests of their visit, opened the gate, and, if necessary, could hit all those who passed under them from Luke. To do this, there were vertical loopholes, as well as "resin noses" - holes for pouring hot resins on the attackers.

Resin noses.

All on the wall!

The most important defensive element of the castle was the outer wall - high, thick, sometimes on the inclined basement. Processed stones or bricks accounted for its outer surface. Inside it consisted of a boob stone and hated lime. The walls were put on a deep foundation, which was very difficult to make a subpople.

Often, double walls were built in the castles - high outer and small inner. Between them there was an empty place, which received the German name "Zwinger". The attackers, overcoming the outer wall, could not take additional assault fixtures with them (bulky stairs, sixtes and other things that could not be transferred inside the fortress). Once in Zwinger before another wall, they became a light target (for archers in the walls of Zwinger there were small loopholes).

Zwinger in Lanek Castle.

The gallery for a soldier of defense took place on the wall. From the outside of the castle, they were protected by a durable brusher in half of human growth, on which stone teeth were regularly located. Behind them could be in full growth and, for example, to charge the crossbow. The shape of the teeth was extremely diverse - rectangular, rounded, in the form of a swallow tail, decoratively decorated. In some castles of the gallery were covered (wooden canopy) to protect the soldiers from bad weather.

In addition to the teeth, behind which it was convenient to hide, the walls of the castle were equipped with braces. Through them was the shelling of the attackers. Due to the peculiarities of the use of throwing weapons (motion freedom and a certain position of shooting), the loopholes for archers were long and narrow, and for crossbars - short, with expansion on the sides.

Special view of the loophole - ball. It was pinned in a wall, freely turning a wooden ball with a slot for making shooting.

Pedestrian gallery on the wall.

Balconies (the so-called "machine") were arranged in the walls very rarely - for example, in the case when the wall was too narrow for the free passage of several soldiers, and carried out, as a rule, only decorative functions.

In the corners of the castle on the walls, small towers were built, most often flanking (that is, protruding), which allowed defenders to fire along the walls in two directions. In later, the Middle Ages they began to adapt to the repository. The inner side of such towers (addressed to the castle's courtyard) was usually left open to the enemy, bursting onto the wall, could not fix it within them.

Flanging angular tower.

Castle from within

The inner device of the locks was different than the manifold. In addition to the mentioned Zwingers, a small rectangular courtyard with braces in the walls could be located at the main goal - a peculiar "trap" for attackers. Sometimes the locks consisted of several "sections" separated by the inner walls. But the indispensable attribute of the castle was a big courtyard (economic buildings, well, chelladi premises) and the central tower, she also "Donjon" (Donjon).

Donjon in Vincenne castle.

The life of all the inhabitants of the castle was directly depended on the presence and location of the well. There were often problems with him - after all, as already mentioned above, the castles were built on elevations. Durable rock soil also did not make it easier for the water supply task of the fortress. There are cases of laying of castle wells to a depth of more than 100 meters (for example, the Cuffhi Castle in Thuringias or Kenigstin Fortress in Saxony had wells of a depth of more than 140 meters). The well, the well occupied from one year to five years. In some cases, this was absorbed as much money as all the inner buildings of the castle were worth.

Due to the fact that the water had difficulty getting out of deep wells, questions of personal hygiene and sanitation went into the background. Instead of shifting themselves, people preferred to care for animals - first of all, for expensive horses. There is nothing surprising in the fact that the townspeople and rural residents wrinkled noses in the presence of the inhabitants of the castles.

The location of the water source depended, first of all, from natural reasons. But if there was a choice, then the well dug out not on the square, but in a fortified room to provide it with water in case of shelter during the siege. If, due to the peculiarities of the groundwater, the well dug out behind the wall of the castle, the stone tower was built above it (if possible, with wooden transitions to the castle).

When there was no way to dig a well, a tank harvested in the castle, collecting rainwater from the roofs. Such water needed cleaning - it was filtered through gravel.

A combat garrison of locks in peacetime was minimal. So in 1425, two co-owners of the Castle of Rehelsberg in the Nizhne Drkonsky Aube concluded an agreement that each of them exhibits one armed servant, and two gatekeepers and two guards are paid together.

The castle also had a number of buildings that provide autonomous life of its inhabitants in full insulation (blockades): bakery, steam bath, kitchen, etc.

Kitchen in the castle Marxburg.

The tower was the highest structure in the entire castle. It provided the possibility of observing the surroundings and served as the functions of the last refuge. When the enemies broke out through all the lines of defense, the population of the castle was hidden in Dunzon and withstood a long siege.

The exceptional thickness of the walls of this tower did its destruction almost impossible (in any case, it would take a huge amount of time). The entrance to the tower was very narrow. It was located in the courtyard at a significant (6-12 meters) height. The wooden staircase, leading inside, could be easily destroyed and thereby block the path of the attacker.

Entrance to Donta.

Inside the tower sometimes had a very high mine, running down. She served either a prison or a warehouse. The entrance to it was possible only through the hole in the top floor arch - "angstloch" (it is a frightening hole). Depending on the purpose of the mine, the winch lowered the prisoners or provisions.

If there were no prison premises in the castle, the captives were placed in large wooden boxes of thick boards, too small to get in full growth. These boxes could be installed in any room of the castle.

Of course, captured, first of all, to obtain a ransom or to use the prisoner in a political game. Therefore, VIP persons were provided on the highest class - for their content, protected quarters were highlighted in the tower. It is so "Motal" by the Friedrich is beautiful in the castle of Thyusnitz on Pfaimda and Richard Lion's Heart in Trifelse.

Chamber in the castle Marxburg.

Abenberg castle tower (12th century) in the context.

At the base of the tower there were a basement, which could also be used as a dwarf, and a kitchen with pantry. The main hall (dining room, a common room) occupied a whole floor and heated with a huge fireplace (he spread the heat just a few meters, so that iron baskets with coals were put on the hall further). Above the chambers of the feudal family, heated with small stoves.

At the very top of the tower was open (less often - indoor, but if necessary, the roof could be reset) the playground, where it was possible to install a catapult or another throwing gun for the enemy shelling. There was also a ladder (banner) of the castle owner.

Sometimes the Donjon did not serve as a residential room. It could well be applied only in military-economic purposes (viewing posts on the tower, the dungeon, the provisions repository). In such cases, the feudal family lived in the "Palace" - a residential room of the castle, standing apart from the tower. Palaces were built from stone and had several floors in height.

It should be noted that the conditions of residence in the castles were far from the most pleasant. Only the largest palaces had a large knightly hall for celebrations. In the donjons and palaces it was very cold. The fireplace heating was cut off, but the walls are still covered with thick tapestries and carpets - not for the sake of decoration, but to preserve heat.

The windows have passed very little sunlight (the fortification character of the castle architecture has affected), not all of them were glazed. Toilets were arranged in the form of an erker in the wall. They were unheated, so the visit of the need for the winter was left by people just unique sensations.

Castle toilet.

Completing our "excursion" on the castle, it is impossible not to mention that it has necessarily attended a room for worship services (temple, chapel). The castle's indispensable inhabitants of the castle belonged to a chaplain or a priest who, in addition to his main responsibilities, performed the role of writing and teacher. In the most modest fortress, the role of the temple performed a wall niche, where there was a small altar.

Large temples had two floors. Simparishes prayed at the bottom, and the Lord gathered in warmth (sometimes glazed) choir on the second tier. The decoration of such premises was rather modest - altar, benches and wall paintings. Sometimes the temple performed the role of the tomb for the family living in the castle. Less often, it was used as a shelter (along with Danjon).

There are many non-residents about the underground strokes in the castles. The moves, of course, were. But only very few of them led from the castle somewhere in the next forest and could be used as a path to escape. Long moves, as a rule, was not at all. Most often there were short tunnels between individual buildings, or from Dongon to the Cave complex under the castle (additional shelter, warehouse or treasury).

War on Earth and underground

Contrary to common misconceptions, the average number of military garrison of an ordinary castle during the conduct of active hostilities rarely when exceeded 30 people. This was enough for defense, since the inhabitants of the fortress were in relative security for its walls and did not carry such losses as attackers.

To take the castle, it was necessary to isolate it - that is, overlapping all the ways of the food provision. That is why the attacking armies were much larger defendants - about 150 people (this is true for the war of the feudal of the average hand).

The issue with the provincial was the most painful. Without water, a person can live a few days, without food - about a month (at the same time, its low combat capability should be taken into account during the hunger strike). Therefore, the owners of the castle, who was preparing to the siege, often walked to extreme measures - they drove out of all commoners beyond its limits that could not benefit defense. As mentioned above, the garrison of the locks was small - to feed the whole army under the conditions of the siege was impossible.

The inhabitants of the castle were infrequently taken by counterattacks. In this simplicity there was no meaning - there were fewer them than attackers, and they felt much calmer in the walls. A special occasion are fragments for food. The latter were carried out, as a rule, at night, small groups that went through poorly protected paths to the nearest villages.

There were no less problems with attackers. The siege of the castles was sometimes stretched for the years (so, the German fuel was defended from 1245 to 1248), so the question of the rear supply of the army in several hundred people was especially acute.

In the case of the siege of the Turant, the chronicles argue that for all this time, the soldiers of the army drank 300 fades of the wine (Fudge - a huge barrel). This is about 2.8 million liters. Or the correspondence made an error or a constant number of deposited was more than 1000 people.

For the capture of the castle, the most preferable season was summer - rains dropping less than in the spring or autumn (in winter the inhabitants of the castle could get water, melting snow), the harvest has not yet matured, and the old stocks have already ended.

The attackers tried to deprive the castle of the water source (for example, built on the river dam). In the most extreme cases, "biological weapons" was used - corpses were thrown into the water, which could provoke outbreaks of epidemics throughout the district. Those inhabitants of the castle, who were captured, the attackers littered and let go. Those returned back, and became involuntary choppers. They could not accept them in the castle, but if it were wives or children besieged, then the voice of the heart turned the considerations of tactical expediency.

No less severely accepted with residents of surrounding villages, trying to deliver supplies to the castle. In 1161, during the siege of Milan, Friedrich Barbarossa ordered the hands of 25 citizens of Piacenses who tried to supply enemies to the provincial.

The precipitating broke the permanent camp near the castle. He also had some simplest strengthening (palisades, earthy trees) in case of a sudden shooting of the defenders of the fortress. For the protracted ozia, the so-called "counter-" was built next to the lock. It was usually located above, which is precipitated, which made it possible to conduct effective monitoring of precipitated from its walls and, if the distance allowed to install them from throwing guns.

View of the castle of Elz from the control of Trutz-Elz.

War against the castles had its own specifics. After all, any little, high stone strengthening represented a serious obstacle for ordinary armies. The direct attacks of infantry on the fortress could well be crowned with success, which, however, was obtained by the price of large victims.

That is why, for the successful castle, a whole range of military measures was needed (about the siege and the capture of Izmor was already mentioned above). The most labor-intensive, but at the same time, the extremely successful ways to overcome the protection of the castle treated the subpople.

The subopes were made with two goals - to provide troops direct access to the courtyard of the castle or destroy the section of his wall.

So, during the siege of Altvindstein's castle in North Alsace in 1332 brigade of sappers from 80 (!) The man took advantage of the distracting maneuvers of his troops (periodic short attacks on the castle) and for 10 weeks, it was driving a long passage to the southeast of the fortress in a solid rock .

If the wall of the castle was not too large and had an unreliable foundation, then the tunnel was broken under its base, the walls of which were strengthened with wooden struts. Next, the struts were settled - just under the wall. The tunnel collapsed, the base of the foundation acted, and the wall above this place was crumbled into parts.

Storming the castle (thumbnail of the 14th century).

Later, with the appearance of powder weapons, bombs were laid under the walls under the walls of the castles. For the neutralization of the subpoint, the counter-platocopes are besieged sometimes. The enemy sappers were filled with boiling water, launched the bees into the tunnel, lily there feces (and in the ancient times, the Carthagean was launched into the Roman subcrops of living crocodiles).

Curious fixtures were used to detect the subop. For example, large copper bowls with balls inside were separated throughout the castle. If the ball in some bowl began to tremble - it was a faithful sign that the subpople was conducted nearby.

But the main argument when attacking the castle was siege cars - catapults and tarana. The first few differed from those catapults that were still applied by the Romans. These adaptations were equipped with a counterweight that give the lever with the greatest effort. With due skill, the "instrument calculation" the catapults were quite accurate weapons. They are made of large, smoothly shedding stones, and the range of battle (on average, several hundred meters) was regulated by the weighing of shells.

A variety of catapults - requested.

Sometimes the barrels stuffed with combustible materials were charged to the catapult. To deliver a couple of pleasant minutes to defenders of the castle, the catapults crossed them into them the repeated heads of the prisoners (especially powerful cars could transfer even whole corpses through the wall).

Storming the castle with the help of a mobile tower.

In addition to the usual Taran, pendulum was used. They were fixed on high mobile frames with a canopy and were a log, suspended on the chain. The precipitating hid inside the tower and swayed the chain, causing a log to beat into the wall.

In response, the precipitated rope descended from the wall, at the end of which steel hooks were fixed. With this rope, they caught a ram and tried to toss it up, depriving mobility. Sometimes such a hooker could have a shared soldier.

Overcoming the shaft, breaking the panelies and falling asleep, the strikers or stormed the castle with the help of stairs, or used high wooden towers, the top platform of which was on the same level with the wall (or even above it). These gigantic structures were poured by water to avoid arson defenders and rolled up to the castle on the flooring from the boards. Heavy star dropped on the wall. The assault group climbed upstairs on the inner stairs, went on the platform and invaded the gallery of the fortress wall. This usually meant that in a couple of minutes the castle will be taken.

Quiet supa

Sapa (from Franz. Sape, literally - Moth, SAPER - to maintain a subpoint) - the method of passages of the RVA, trench or tunnel for approaching its fortifications used in 16-19 centuries. Famous (silent, secretive) and bats are known. The work of the cake was made from the bottom of the source RVA without the exit working on the surface, and the bat - from the surface of the earth under the cover of a predetermined protective embankment from the barrels and bags of the ground. In the 2nd half of the 17th century, specialists appeared in the armies of a number of countries.

The expression to act a "quiet sapoy" means: suffocating, slowly, imperceptibly go, penetrate somewhere.

Fights on the ladder of the castle

From one floor of the tower to get to another could only be on a narrow and steep screw staircase. The rise across it was carried out only after each other - she was so narrow. At the same time, the warrior who went first could only count on his own ability to fight, because the rotation of the turn was chosen in such a way that due to the back of the leader it was impossible to act a spear or a long sword. Therefore, battles on the stairs were reduced to the martial arts of the castle defenders and one of the attackers. It was the defenders, because they could easily replace each other, as a special expanded plot was located behind their back.

In all castles, the stairs are spinning clockwise. There is only one lock with a reverse twist - the fortress of valenonstein graphs. When studying the history of this kind, it was found that most men in it were left-handed. Thanks to this, historians realized that such designing stairs significantly facilitates the work of the defenders. The strongest blow to the sword can be applied towards her left shoulder, and the shield in his left hand is best covered by the body from this direction. All these advantages are only defending. Attacking can only strike on the right side, but his shock hand will be pressed against the wall. If he will put a shield forward, it almost loses the opportunity to act as a weapon.

Castles samurai

Castle Himedezi.

The least we know about exotic castles - for example, Japanese.

Originally samurai and their suzenines lived in their estates, where, in addition to the Watchtower "Yagura" and a small RVA around the housing, there were no other defensive structures. In the case of a protracted war, fortifications were erected on hard-to-reach areas of mountains, where it was possible to defend from the superior enemy forces.

Stone locks began to be built at the end of the 16th century, taking into account European achievements in fortification. The indispensable belonging of the Japanese castle is wide and deep artificial languages \u200b\u200bwith cool slopes surrounding it from all sides. They were usually filled with water, but sometimes this function was performed by a natural water barrier - river, lake, swamp.

Inside the castle was a complex system of protective structures, consisting of several rows of walls with internal courtyards and gates, underground corridors and labyrinths. All these facilities were located around the central square of Honmar, on which the Palace of Feodala and the High Central Tonxyukaku Tower were erected. The latter consisted of several, gradually decreasing the upward rectangular tiers with protruding tiled roofs and frontones.

Japanese castles, as a rule, were small - about 200 meters long and 500 wide. But among them there were also real giants. So, Odavar's castle occupied an area of \u200b\u200b170 hectares, and the total length of its fortress wall reached 5 kilometers, which twice the length of the walls of the Moscow Kremlin.

Charm of antiquity

Locks are built and understood. Those of them that were in state ownership are often returned to the descendants of the ancients. Castles - a symbol of the influence of their owners. They are a sample of an ideal composite solution in which the fusion combines (defense considerations did not allow picturesque structures on the territory), the multi-levelness of the buildings (main and secondary) and the limiting functionality of all components. The elements of the architecture of the castle have already become archetypes - for example, a cloth tower with teeth: its image is sitting in the subconscious of any little-old person.

French Castle Saumur (thumbnail 14th century).

And finally, we love the castles for being simply romantic. Knight's tournaments, solemn techniques, great conspiracies, secret moves, ghosts, treasures - with reference to castles, all this ceases to be a legend and turns into history. Here, as it is impossible, the expression "walls remember": it seems that every stone castle breathes and hides the mystery. I would like to believe that medieval castles will continue to keep the aura of mystery - after all, without it, they sooner or later turn into an old bunch of stones.

When defense, the architecture of the fortress played a decisive role. Area information, walls, equipment - all this determined how successful sturm will be successful, and is it worth it at all.

Athenian long walls

After the victory in the Greek-Persian wars, the flourishing of Athens begins. To protect against an external enemy, a huge policy was covered with a fortress wall, not only surrounding the city, but also defended the path to the main sea gates of Athens - the port of Piraeus. The long walls worked in the short time stretched for six kilometers. Since in the V century BC, the supply of Athens bread was conducted from the colonies of the Northern Black Sea region, it was strategically important to maintain the possibility of supplying a huge city by sea. The external threat to Greece at that time was absent, most of the Greek policies had much smaller than Athens, the armies, and the chief probable opponent of Athenians - Spartans were invincible in the field battle, but they could not take the fortresses. Therefore, Athens theoretically turned into an impregnable fortress capable of withstanding a long-term siege, without prospects for the enemy to master the city. In fact, it turned out to be - for victory over Athens, Sparta had to build a fleet, and only after the seaside paths were blocked, Athens was forced to capitulate. Under the conditions of the peaceful residents of the city were forced to destroy the walls, which were subsequently restored and finally destroyed only in the Roman era.

Castle Krak de Cheval

In the Middle Ages, when each other against each other was fought in small armies, consisting of several dozen, hundreds and extremely rare thousand people, powerful stone walls surrounded by the moat, were practically impregnable. Long sieges that demanded a colossal voltage of forces, also practiced extremely rarely. Only in cinema and a number of works of artistic literature you can find a dick description of the storming of the medieval castle. In reality, this is a task of difficulty and extremely complex. One of the most powerful fortresses of the Crusaders in the territory of modern Syria was the castle of Krak de Chevalé. The efforts of the Order of Hospitallers were erected with a thickness of 3 to 30 meters thick, enhanced by family towers. In the XIII century, the castle had a garrison to 2,000 people and a huge number of reserves that allowed to withstand a long siege. Krak de Chevalé was actually impregnable, repeatedly reflecting the Natius of the enemy .. it was repeatedly precipitated, but always unsuccessfully. Only in 1271 the fortress was taken, however, not storming, but only with military tricks.

San Elmo. Malta

By the middle of the XVI century, the stronghold of Maltese knights was an impressive fortress. It was surrounded by a system of serf walls with bastions, and the batteries had the ability to cross the fire, inflicting a significant damage to the attacker. To destroy the fortress, it was necessary to schedule it with artillery fire. The Maltese fleet was reliably covered in the inner bay behind the line of defensive structures of the city of Borgo. A narrow entrance to the bay brazed with a massive chain. In 1565, when the Turks attempted to master the fortress, the garrison consisted of 540 knights, 1300 hired soldiers, 4,000 sailors and several hundreds of Malta residents. The siege army of the Turks numbered up to 40 thousand people. During the fighting Turks, the price of colossal losses managed to take Fort San Elmo, but in the future I had to abandon the attempts to assign other fortress fortifications and remove the siege.

Shusha

The safety of the fortress does not always depends on the massiveness of its walls and defense structures. A profitable location can be reduced to any numerical superiority of the siege army. For example, as in the case of Shusha's fortress in Karabakh, which Russian troops defended in 1826. Erected by practically in the cliffs of the Citadel, was actually impregnable. The only way to the fortress was a winding path, which perfectly shot out of the fortress, and two instruments installed along it could be able to reflect any attempt to approach the goal. In 1826, Shusha withstood the 48-day siege of the 35-thousand Persian army. Two assault attempts were repulsed with huge losses for precipitated. Features of the position of the fortress did not allow the enemy and completely block the tiny fortress, which received food from the outside. It is noteworthy that during the siege, the garrison of the fortress lost only 12 people killed and 16 missing.

Bobruian fortress

By the beginning of the Patriotic War of 1812, the fortress of Bobruisk was considered a new one and one of the strongest on the Western borders of the Russian Empire. The main defensive line of the fortress included 8 bastions. It was in service with a four-thousandth garrison was 337 guns, huge reserves of powder and food. In the success of the frontal assault, the enemy could never be sure, and a long siege meant that the fortress performed his main role - to delay the enemy and win time. In the Patriotic War of 1812, the Bobruisk Fortress withstood a multi-month blockade, while in the deep rear of the Napoleonic army throughout the war. The 16-thousand Polish detachment, which carried out the siege, after several unsuccessful collisions, limited himself only by the blockade of the Bobruian fortress, leaving the assault attempts.

Kavaleher trannery - The siege building proposed by Vahan in 1684 K. t. Used when the excretion of precipitating, in the midst of the last, right and left, on the continuation. Consisted of high in 3 tiers. Bruisier adapted to the rifle defense and allowed to fill off the covered path with oblique fire and crowd out from there defending themselves. The prototype of K. t. Was, used in the ancient war during sieges.

Caucasian fortification - The term appeared during the conquest of the Caucasus in the XIX century. And established himself, although not quite, in the military-engineering literature. Under it was understood by the leading combat and technical data for the construction of fortifications in the Caucasus when conquering this edge. The resulting mountainous nature of the Caucasus, the peculiarities of a slow and stubborn war with the mountaineers and the nature of the tactics and weapons of the latter. K. F. It was reduced to the construction of fortifications consisting of residential buildings and connecting their high walls. Adapted to defense. Particular attention was paid to the mutual flank defense of individual parts. Inside the fortification was necessarily erected from stone defensive buildings.

Basharma defensive - Currency premises adapted to defense and safe siege artillery. They were high-rise (2 - 3 floors) stone or brick buildings with thick walls and arches. Adapted for action of artillery. They were arranged at 1 - 2 guns, acting through large, in peacetime closed with shields. K. about. Constructed in all those who have independent meaning of fortification fortifications, forming independent general and private and. Often they were placed in the city (). Sometimes the defensive barracks were multi-storey. With the advent of severe siege artillery at the end of the XIX century. Lost your meaning.

Catemaated fire facilities - Long-term and field fortification, erected from reinforced concrete and stone on the solution (in the latter case with overlapping from iron beams) and give protection from a whole projectile.

CANOMED TRANSFER - cm. .

Cane flanks - cm. .

Chanismates - Rooms safe from heavy artillery fire and arranged in. Prototype K. are premises in the walls of the fortresses of the ancient centuries. The proposal in the literature of the first rational K. belongs to Albrecht Dürer in 1524. In practice, in Russia, K. was erected much earlier and called or Pechera. K. are divided into defensive and protective. To defensive, K. includes gun and machine-gun shooters, arranged in the fortresses; To protective - powder cellar, residential premises for people, shelters for guns and machine guns, etc.

Stone City (Kamen City) - the initial name of the ancient-Russian, erected from stone.

Kamenomy (Camnames Fugas) - obstacle. They were arranged in the form of a pit, like the inclined truncated pyramid. With a charge of throwing BB of about 25 kg, closed with a wooden shield and filled with a stone (about 1.5 - 2 m3). Fugas is masked and exploded by an electric or firing way. For the first time, K. was applied by the Swedes under the siege of the Knights in 1633.

Capital - Imaginary line dividing in half outgoing and incoming angles. C. Outgoing angles is of great importance, since in its direction before the angle there is a so-called classic or weakly defendant sector, which has no front defense. Currently, due to the presence of an automatic long-range weapon, the weak side of K. is significantly compensated by the creation of the creature before the outgoing angle of cross-fire.

Caponier - flanking building, giving fire on two opposite directions. K. are case-based, blond and open; The last two types are used in, and the first one is mainly in. In Under K., a camicumated defensive structure at the bottom of the RVA, adjacent to and appointed for the longitudinal shelling of the RVA instrument, machine-gun to rifle fire. For the shelling approaches to the neighboring were made, located in.

Caponiary system - A system consisting of a combination.

Caponiary Front - the former name of the serf, obtained by the flank defense of the RVA from the middle of the line of the landfill, on which the pivans were shilled and stuck to.

Castra - Roman fortified camp.

Castrement (Lat. Castra - Camp and Metor - Measure) - an old term that came out of use in the XIX century. and denoted the art of choosing places for the camp of troops to provide them with strengthening and obstacles from the attack of the enemy. Initially, K. as the Military Art Department appeared in the ancient Persians and the Greeks, and special development reached in ancient Rome. In the Middle Ages, K., as military art disappears, and the lagi will be asked the most primitive way. In the XVI century, since Gustav-Adolf, this art is reborn again, and in the XIX century, with a change in the nature of the armies and the very military art, completely disappears.

Catapult - the throwing machine of the ancient and middle ages, until the invention of firearms used for mounted shooting. K. consisted of two RAM - horizontal and vertical, firmly attached at the end of the first frame. At the base of the vertical frame there was a beam of twisted lived, in which the lever with a spoon was inserted at the top for the projectile. For throwing the lever, the gate or rope in a horizontal position, and a stone was laid into a spoon. After moving the lever, the latter with force, under the action of twisted lived, hit the vertical frame crossbar and threw a projectile. Large K. - - Throw Stones Weight 150 kg to 600 Steps, Small - Blides - Stones up to 30 kg at 1200 pitch. Small K. Preserved to the XIV - XV centuries. And at that time were applied on a par with the first firearms.

Cataract - a homing grid for closing the gate of the ancient and middle ages.

Katka Brononbashnya - cm. .

Column barrels Totleben - cm. .

Cap - Monolithic or precast element from reinforced concrete or metal, installed motionless on a wooden or stone base. Designed for fire facilities or observation and protects against fragments, bullets and mines. Depending on the material, K. reinforced concrete and metallic (armor) are distinguished.

Barbed wire - Special type of wire used for the device. There are several types of K. p. - Two-end, single-rigid, round and square sections. In a single trigger, a piece of wire with pointed ends is screwed into a wire thread, in a two-income - it is woven between two strands. The ends of these pieces are cut under a sharp corner. K.p. appeared at the end of the XIX century. For agricultural needs - fences, hedges. In the Anglo-Board War 1899 - 1902. The borants first applied it as an obstacle; After them, it began to apply the British. This wire received widespread use in the Russian-Japanese war. Currently is one of the main anti-personnel obstacles.

Command post - The area of \u200b\u200bthe location of the commander with the main part of the headquarters and means of communication, from where it controls the battle or operation, is equipped in engineering to ensure the work of the management bodies and to protect against land and air attack.

Command of fortification facilities - Exceeding their fire line (ridge) over the local horizon or the crest of the bars of another facility ahead. Currently, the term is rarely applied.

Counter-aprochi. - Initially, under them understood all the fortification structures that the deposited (,, and pr.) In addition to countering the promotion () of the enemy. K. a. As a means of active struggle contributed to the duration and perseverance of defense, which is the defense of Sevastopol 1854 - 55. It is brilliant proof. At the end of the XIX century. Under K. a. They began to understand the main way wide, which was conducted towards the attacker. For the first time K. a. It was applied in 1592 by Villar during the defense of Rouen.

Counter-Battery. - Siege cannon batteries suitable for attacking fortress against flanks to destroy flank wubble pvv.

Counter-valance line (Lat. Contra - Against, ValreRe - Strengthen) - a continuous line of fortifications, built in the ancient and the Middle Ages, is assumed to ensure that garrison from the fortress and breakthrough. The strength line was usually from a solid RVA with a shaft and located at a well-known distance from each other with a trench or towers.

Counter Gard (Franz. Contre-Garde - Protect anything from any attempts) - in the form of a shaft, armed with artillery and located in the RB in front of the faces.

Counter-mine - A combination with connecting sleeves and ramifications located in front of individual fortifications or areas for defense by mines of the nearest approaches to them.

Kremlin - Ancient-Russian, domestic strengthening of Russian cities, erected from stone with thick walls and towers, more frequently located than on the external walls.

"Fortresses Skeletons" - cm. .

Fortress tree - Earthworks. Which before the appearance, was observed all, and after the core of the fortress. Its appointment was to serve together with a moral barrier for storming, to give the superiority of the command of serf artillery over the enemy, the convenience of shelling the surrounding area and siege works of the enemy and cover the inside of the fortress from the longitudinal shooting. Consisted of, and a number of additional facilities. Also carried the name of the main fortress tree - in the event that there were even additional shafts, such as a lowered shaft, located ahead.

Fortress polygon (fortress landfill) - Polygon, along the sides of which are located. The parties of the polygon are called a polygon line; Corners. They formed, polygon angles, and straight. Delated angles in half, - capital of the corners of the landfill.

Fortress front - a combination of long-term fortification facilities () having independent flank defense of the RVs. Fronts, depending on the nature of the flanking, are divided into bastion, tonal, polygonal (or caponiary) and creamery.

Fortress lattices - vertical in the form of iron lattices from rods up to 5 m high, installed on, and in the Rips on a concrete foundation as an obstacle for storming.

Fortress - there are the following definitions of K. a) K. - a fortified position of a long-term nature, allowing to defend this strategic point the least forces against superior enemy forces and equipped in peacetime all necessary for its defense, stubborn and quite independent; b) K. - Slender, always ready for battle a combination of troops, management, weapons, stocks and long-term fortifications. adapted for self defense of this point having military importance, small forces against the excellent forces of the enemy to the end of the war; c) K. is a strategic point that has been strengthened by means of long-term fortification and equipped with a constant garrison, weapons, reserves and management.

K. As a fortification element of common activities for the protection of the territory and boundaries is known in ancient times. The Pharaohs of the ancient Egypt and the kings of Babylon built fortress structures on the borders. K. consisted of high walls, sometimes in several rows, with high tower, which most corresponded to the siege art of that time. In the era of feudalism K. as an element of the defense of the borders disappears, but the entire territory of the country is covered and. The revival of K. is completely connected with the advent of absolutist states, eliminating feudal fragmentation.

The appearance of artillery has changed the nature of strengthening to: the high walls and towers disappeared, and there were earthen shafts on their place, covered low walls that had bastion, then a tonal and polygonal inscription. However, K. continued to be in the small territory of the city, an obscured solid fence. Similar types K. were responsible as the number of the armies of the XVII - XVIII centuries. And the military art of that time.

The appearance of mass armies (the beginning of the XIX century) showed not the compliance of these K. New principles of military art and the very number of armies who were fluent in themselves in their rear and allocated small detachments for their siege. For new conditions, there was a new form K. Such a form was K., consisting of a nucleus (old K.) and a belt of individual fortifications (), rendered a few kilometers ahead, and called. For the first time appeared in Russia for the first time in Russia at Peter I in Kronstadt. The new idea theoretically substantiated the French engineer Montalumber at the end of the XVIII century. In Russia, the word "fortress" appears for the first time in the XVII century, but only in the meaning of material means to enhance the fortified points, and in the XVIII century. It is replaced by the name "fortified long-term item."

Development of artillery in the second half of the XIX century. - its range and destructiveness of the action - forced to increase the diameter K., build a second string belt and begin to strengthen. Before World War II 1914 - 18. K. shared as follows: or maneuverable K., who served as a support for maneuvering the field army; Small K. or K.-Outpasses - a few separate forts, which made one group, whose task was to cover only this item from the capture of the opponent Fort-Out - K., consisting of one strengthening, whose task was the same as for K. - Set. But at the secondary sections of the war.

In addition, large fortresses had even the following gradation: K. Normal location, when the radius of the fortress did not exceed 5 - 6 km; K. Tight location - with a smaller radius; K. Wide location - with a larger radius, in which there were two belts of external fortifications - internal forts and external and.

World War 1914 - 18 He showed that although K. and played their role to a certain extent, but they were no longer answered by the element of fortification preparation of the borders, which was equipped with the most perfect military equipment, and they were replaced. However, the Great Patriotic War showed that closed forms of circular defense of large areas in certain conditions still can find themselves use, therefore the term K. with modified content may appear again.

Fortress-finding - cm. .

Fortress-camp - The name at that time when they looked at her as a shelter for a broken army. After the Franco-Prussian War of the 1870 - 71, when the inconsistency of this appointment turned out, the name of the maneuverable fortress as a support for the action of the field army appeared.

Fortress of normal location - cm. .

Fortress close location - cm. .

The fortress of wide location - cm. .

Chrome - Ancient-Russian term, which meant an outdoor defensive fence of fortified cities.

Crown Bruzhera - The term applied in the XVIII and XIX centuries. And currently coming out. Mete the highest point or line intersection of the planes of the bar of bars and its inner bareness. This line is also called the covering line, the peak of the brush and the comb of brush.

Cron-Verk (It. Kronwerk - Coronu-shaped strengthening) - the outer, which served to strengthen and consisting of one bastion and two semi-lastons on the sides of the crown appearance. Where and the name is. For the first time, it was applied in the Netherlands during the war for independence in the XVI - XVII centuries, when the hasty of the construction of fortifications, in the absence of a stone, forced to compensate for the missing strength of the buildings with their number, and consequently the defense depth.

Covered supa - Reception of work on an excerpt or, in which over the open area, a coating from the boards, Pyshen of the Swell, etc., is immediately made. And so the indoor move is formed behind the working. First used by the Spaniards in the Siege of Gaarlem in 1572

Hook-destroyer - The destructive car of the ancients. He was a long wooden bar with an iron hook attached to one end, which was suspended on the ropes to a high narrow frame installed on the wagon. It was used to disrupt the teeth and other covers from the walls.

KUVR-FAS. (Franz. Couvrir - cover, face - face) - Building in the midst of the RVA in the form of a long narrow fortification, covering fats from the destruction of the enemy artillery, from where and the name.

Kurtin (Ital. Curitne - curtain) - a plot of a fortress fence between two adjacent or between two towers.

Ditch - deep ditch in the middle of the bottom of dry fasteners for removing the water, up to 4 - 6 m and a depth of 2 m. It was commonly filled with water and served as an additional obstacle attacking. It is also called Kunet.

Notes:

Abshnit (it. Abschnitt - segment) - a serf auxiliary in the form of a shaft with a moat in front, which made it possible to continue the defense after. As the enemy occupied the main shaft (see), and the shelling of the inside of the latter. The term "Abshnyt" appeared in our XVIII century. and existed long; It was replaced by the term.

Acropolis (Greek. Acros - Upper and Polis - City) - Internal strengthening in ancient Greek cities, located usually in the sublime part of the city. Played a role.

Active flooding - cm. .

Albanian kamnomete - Antular infantry, applied during defense in mountainous conditions and consisting of stones laid on the steep and keeped on it logs parallel to the brown. To bring A. to. The rope or rope, holding the logs, was engaged - the stones rolved down and the cripples of the attacker.

Barking point (Franz. Embarcation - Transportation and other small maritime ships) - Sex coast site, occupied and reinforced by the landing landing in order to relieve and provide the emergence of an attachment to the enemy coast and further an offensive in the country, and in case of failure - to cover his retreat and Popular landing on ships. Currently, the disembarkation is called and not quite successfully - in a bridgehead or strengthening (see).

Embrasure (Franz. Embrasure is a bobbed, a window hole in the wall expanding inside the room) - a horizontal cutout in or wall of strengthening such sizes and such a shape so that the instrument and the other fire means can be included in it. Turn to the sides and, if necessary, go down and climb to the required angles. It has the form of a truncated pyramid, converted usually to a wide base outside. The lower surface of A. is called, the side surfaces - the cheeks of A. Part of the embankment or wall below A., between its sole and the standing horizon is called Chair A. The most narrow part of A. is called Shakoy A. See also.

Ambrazorny barrier - Device for sewage tools from the enemy's rifle fire, directed in, and to mask the latter.

Anveleop (Franz. Enveloppe - wrapper) - Outdoor B, applied in the era of smooth-bore artillery to cover the escarp walls (see) dry and main shaft (see) from the destruction of the enemy artillery fire from. A. Locked directly for and surrounded by a continuous line one or more fronts of the serf fence. Before A. It was arranged outside the same depth as the main shaft of the main shaft, but less width and with his longitudinal defense. The special development of A. received in the XVII and XVIII centuries.

Anchor (Franz. Ancre - Anchor) - Device to hold clothes of embankments from the collapse under the action of the pressure of the Earth. It consists of a pointed cola of about 1 m () and a delay from the rope, wire or two intertwined between them. The delay in one end is captured by the count of clothing, and the other tight attracts to the anchor cola, firmly driven by the line of natural slope of this soil, is usually at a distance of at least 1.5 depths of dressed pit.

Ensemble (Franz. Ensemble - together) - large groups associated together with one tactical task and a single fortification solution. Erected in the northeastern borders of France (on "Lipni Maginos"). A., occupying every area of \u200b\u200babout 1 km 2, were equipped with firing facilities like reinforced concrete guns and machine-gun and armored machine-gun machine guns and armored monkeys, connected between their deeply laid underground messages and acquired and. The barren premises for the garrison A., the command post, the power station, warehouses, etc., were erected, the command post, the power station, and the items were created in the prompt sense of paragraphs and had to have a big firing force. The "Line of Magini" was looked around by the Germans in 1940 and therefore did not undergo complete check in combat conditions.

ANNIFUL FIRE (Franz. Enfilade - a cannonal volley along the ship) - shooting in the direction of filling faces in order to chop the guns located nearby. Represents the development of the Vobanovsky ricochetic fire. With the introduction and for the guns turned into a felt shooting for the purpose of guns. Currently, this term does not apply.

Anfive - Application.

Ramp (Franz. Apparelle - Entry) - Coloring Earthy Sweep for Message and To Insert guns to high mounds used instead of a staircase. A. also calls german descents in various pivops, trenches, shelter, etc.

Aprozy (Franz. APPROCHER - approach) - wide, erected attackers with a fortress for moving forward and for a secure message between. For. Shields from longitudinal fire from the fortress A. was carried out with zigzags. Moreover, in places of turns, each knee somewhat went over behind the lying, forming deadlocks or charging. Work on the construction of A. was carried out mainly at night or overhead. For the first time, A. were applied by the British in Central War in 1418 at the Siege of Rouran and the French in 1420 in the siege of Melulun. Russian name A. -.

Arcobalist (Toxobalist) (Lat. Arcus - Arc, Ballo - throw) - Ancient and middle ages, on its device resembling big crossbows. Long bow, reaching up to 3.5 m. Wooden or iron, attached to the frame located on a pair of wheels of large diameter: The ATT was pulled by the collar fortified on the frame. Shooting was made by ordinary archers and stone or lead balls. Transported with troops.

Artillery Val. - cm. .

Artillery Glasis - Person-shaped embankment (see), erected in between forts and adapted for statements to the military time of serfs, and at a well-known distance from each other there were niches for shells and charges. He was proposed for the first time by Sobleba based on the experience of the defense of Sevastopol in 1854 - 55.

Artillery Okop. - Bulked to the ground to a certain depth of an instrument platform, obscured by low. It serves to protect against the lesion of the instrumental calculation, I am the best masking of the gun. To batten and pull out the gun behind it is arranged; There is an open in Bruvier, and on the sides - roar for numbers and a niche for ammunition.

Arrigard positions - Positions that took the goal to facilitate the retreat of the main forces in the hiking (and that in battle). Used to World War II 1914 - 18.

Attack by boolean wells - The destruction of the enemy, not counter mines, and from above, from the surface of the Earth, -. It is possible only with complete carelessness of the enemy and special locality conditions (invisibility of work for the enemy).

Afghan towers - small round-shaped strengthening, located on the hills, with a fence of a folded dry wall with a stone or wooden stuck to it. On the wall at the top, the teeth of stone or bags of the ground were laid out. The entry into strengthening was blocked by a small moat with an easily disassembled bridge. Inside there was a wooden bara for garrison. Applied by the British for advanced posts during the war with Afghanistan in 1877 - 1880. The name was obtained for similarities with the same fortifications in the Afghan settlements.

Bakul - The name of the ancient lifting fortress gate at the inputs in or into a separate independent part of the fortress.

Balista (Lat. Ballista - a throwling projectile) - ancient, resulting into action by elasticity of twisted beams lived. B. was a long wooden jolobe mounted on wheels or on a special bed. By the end, Zholoba was attracted by a transverse frame with tensioned by its edges, the bunches of lived, in which the lever was inserted. Both levers were connected to the guide. By the last in the middle, the slider was attached, sliding along Joloba. The slider with the help of the gate was drawn back, then lowered from the gate, under the influence of tension from twisted lived with force rushed forward. The shell in the form of a stone or arrows received a strong blow of the slider and departed from Zholoba. B. For the first time appeared apparently at Phoneyan in IV - III centuries. BC er, and then switched to the Greeks and Romans.

Balustaria (Balisticians) - Personnel serving throwing sieges. In Russia, they corresponded to collars.

Bank (Franz. Banc - Bench) - part over in field fortifications. When the shooting was made not through, but on top of Bruster, it was called "shooting through the bank".

Banquet (Franz. Banquette - attacks) - mound for high fortifications for placing hands on it shooting because of this Bruzier. B. Height was done so that, standing on it, it was possible to shoot, that is, B. must be lower than the fire line on. In Starina B. Also called observation points that arranged during siege and intermediate batteries to observe the fall of shells and to adjust the shooting.

Drum Tower - The cylinder in armor towers, which relies the tower dome.

Barbican (Persian. Bala-Khanch - window, balcony for firing over the entrance) - an old fortification building. During the crusades, the wall was so called in the fortified cities of Palestine. Later, this name passed to a separate towers, defended the approaches to posts or to the outer inputs of the fortress fence, and the stone corridor with the walls in the walls came from the fortress gate. In the XV century B. began to call a separate wall covering between two towers and having a loophole. Sometimes B. was called themselves and loopholes.

Barbet - bulk platform for fortifications for installation of guns and machine guns shooting through the bars or, as they say, "through".

Barricade (Franz. Barricade is a barrier) - from a different kind of breeding materials and items in the settlements across roads, streets and bridges in order to delay the enemy, mainly its infantry, horsemen and tanks. B. For the latter, a special design is made and should be distinguished by special strength, height and obstacle barriers.

Barrier Gate. - Wooden gates to lock out the exit from field and temporary fortifications (type) and ensure them from an inappropriate attack; Sometimes instead of the gate put.

Bashea - semicircular stone fortress building XVI century, replacing the fortress towers, for the longitudinal shelling of the fortress fence. B. was located mainly in the outgoing corners of the fence, had a large protrusion in the field and open. Bastei Albrecht Dürera (1527) had an open defense on top, and below, at the bottom of the Rib, - closed. From firmly constructed chambersmates. In ancient Russian fortresses, such buildings were called. We appeared earlier than in the West.

Bastid. 1. Small fortified villages in the south of France in the XII - XIV centuries, surrounded by the shaft with the towers to provide from sudden attacks of small detachments. Sometimes B. was called Watching towers on urban walls.

2. Wooden tower in 2-3 floors used in the Middle Ages during sieges. In the ancient century, these towers were known entitled.

Bastille. 1. Preparable strengthening in the form of towers on both sides of the entrance to protect the latter.

2. Fortified castles in the cities of France (in the Middle Ages). intended mainly to protect in the event of popular uprisings; called also.

3. Separate fortifications from stones or wood, which were erected in the siege in the XIII - XVI centuries; Sometimes they were connected between their earthen moans and shafts.

Bastion (Ital. Bastionato - any protruding construction) is a pentagonal in the form, with two, two and open, built on the corners of the fastener fence and adjusted to it. Halfing two adjacent B. addressed to each other and connecting their fence plot - form. The combination of several bastion fronts reinforced with auxiliary buildings was called. Inventor B. Unknown. It is historically reliably that the first two B. were built in 1527 by the Italian engineer of San Michele when strengthening Verona. The predecessor of the bastions of San Michele was rectangular strengthening of another Italian Martini, built at the end of the XV century.

Bastion system - cm. .

Bastion corner - The angle compiled by the faces.

Bapto - a stone or brick building, which was arranged in the fortress RBD and had the appointment to keep water in water raids at the required height, and in dry Rips - to intercept the shells directed in, if the enemy can use for the firing of any other RVA. resting to the chief.

Dugout - Initially, this term was called any coating that protects live strength from the defeat. Then B. began to call any field fortification protective structure, having one or another degree of protection against defeat from above. Such B. treated the simplest buildings, ranging from visors to facilities that give protection from whole shells of heavy artillery. Depending on the cover position B. was divided into horizontal, in which the coating was horizontal, and inclined, in which the coverage, covered in front of high embankment, had an inclined position, with a drop toward the shell's flight. Currently, all protective facilities, built in some distance from the fire line, are known as the shelter for living force and fixed assets suitable near the firing position under or next to it. B. Received a big distribution for the first time in Sevastopol in 1854 - 55.

Blinking - Providing from artillery fire structures appointed for various needs of troops or directly for fighting. B. It was possible to organize the ceiling device from rigid materials - wood, iron - and sinking ground.

Blockade fortress - Surroundings of the fortress for troops to stop all the external relations. As a result, the garrison is deprived of the possibility of getting any help from the side and due to the depletion of life and combat reserves in the end, it is forced to pass the fortress (most often from hunger). In the ancient and middle ages under the blockade, the fortress was usually applied to the fortifications constituting. In the XIV - XVI centuries. The latter also called the blockade line and consisted of separate fortifications (s), connected by the RV and the shaft.

Blockhouse (it. Blockhaus - a log structure) - fortification, adapted for conducting circular fire and for residence in it garrison. B. Form and design is the most diverse and depends on the purpose, the nature of the enemy, the terrain and the presence of certain materials. B. Usually apply to protect communications and in forest conditions. Being more or less isolated and being, which should resist independently for a long time, they usually have durable walls and overlaps that can withstand the fire of artillery of one or another calculation caliber. For rifles and for machine guns, it is cut so that before B. did not have dead angles (non-storm spaces), using which the enemy could come in safe to the construction itself. Ambrusuras for machine guns are made in the most dangerous directions. With cordon location B. Each of them should fire approaches to the neighboring. In 1917, an attempt was attempted under the term "blockhouse" to attribute all severely, not even intended for housing. As, for example, machine-gun and, frontal machine-gun firing facilities, even mortar firing facilities. However, in such an arbitrarily expanded understanding, the term "Blokhuz" did not intensive, retaining its formerly narrow value. For the first time B. appeared in 1778 in Silesia during the war for the Bavarian inheritance. Since then, they began to apply widely. B. The most widespread use was found in the Anglo-Board War of 1899 - 1902, when 8,000 blockhouses of different types have been erected for 6000 km in organizing the protection of English communications from the boots attack. In the Great Patriotic War, the Germans also used B. to protect their communications from the guerrilla attack.

Combat readiness fortresses - The readiness of the latter to combat actions when moving from a peaceful position on the military. Based on the definition of both a slender combination from the garrison, the management of them, weapons, stocks and long-term fortifications, believed that for B. G. K. It is necessary:

According to the troops and management of them - so that the troops: 1) were familiar with the terrain on which they will have to act. 2) firmly learned the receptions of the fortress war. 3) could take a timely combat position and meet the enemy, even unexpectedly invading them. 4) Could promote active support for the flanks in the flank and the rear of the opponent past the fortress and the struggle for the surrounding area.

In terms of weapons and ammunition - so that all artillery products, ammunition and auxiliary means, appointed according to the plan of artillery defense in the fortress. and were in their places or kept in the near neighborhood.

As part of the stocks of food and medical - so that the combat readiness of the fortress was ensured by the supply of it at the time of war.

As part of long-term fortifications - so that the accurate and detailed plan for bringing the fortress for defense, calculated by day and hours, from which each boss would know what and when to do and where to take labor comes from. Materials, tools, etc. The construction of the fortress should also follow a certain plan, according to which the fortress, not even ended, would have a certain extent a part of the structures that could be used for defense.

The practice of war showed that no fortress at the time of the beginning of hostilities was not ready for a number of reasons to be completely for defense.

Battle line or line of watchdogs - So in the first world warrior of 1914 - 18. It was called the first rifle line engaged in the guard parts of the defendant troops, abundant machine guns. The success of her defense was founded mainly on the skillful combination of artificial, machine-gun fire and the counterpart of the closest support.

Combat comb - Learning of the area of \u200b\u200bthe area, from where the entire underlying skate and soles can be fired from the range of valid shots.

Fights fitted, medium and top - In the ancient-Russian fortress fences to place the gun. The soles and middle battles were called the pechers and they were equipped with each tool. The upper battles were intended for placing the arrow, soles - for floor shelling.

Bulgarian - name; We used in the XVIII century. A little consuming term found only in special literature.

Bonet. - Local elevation (0.45 m above the line of fire) with in them for rifle fire. Arranged to the Russian-Japanese war in fortifications to protect the head of the arrow during shooting.

Bonet-Capoo - Defensive case-building in the Rips of the XVIII and the first half of the XIX century, which had separate escarp walls and for them. Placed in the outgoing corner of the wall. B.-K. Gave a longitudinal rifle defense to the sentiment, served for his defenders and provided it with a message on the internal strengthening. They also called the bonet-incomemate.

Breshing - Artillery shooting in order to collapse vertical fortress fortifications or dooms in them.

Breache battery (Royal Battery) - the battery located, before the appearance, against the bastion front and the appointment to produce the casting of the curtains, make the attacker breech in it.

Armored door - The door made from armor to protect the inputs. The armored door for protection against OB is usually done hermetic. It is a variety of armor shutter, which was installed earlier to protect light holes in residential concrete or.

Armored fortification -, built defenses based on artillery fire from armor plants, and. The appearance in the second half of the XIX century. Curving artillery and fugasal shells caused the need not only to constructive changes, but also an increase in the diameter of fortresses, i.e., the change in the nature of the fortress itself. The latter circumstance and played a decisive role in the appearance of the ideas of B. F. An increase in the diameter caused an increase in the number, and consequently the garrison required for the fortress. Thus, a question or to increase the total number of the army, or on the increase in the number of serfs due to the decrease in the field, was raised. For the latter, no state could go, but the first not to all countries were under power, especially small. It is not by chance that there is no idea B. F. I found myself use mainly in countries such as Belgium, Holland, Romania, Switzerland, Denmark, and only partially in Germany and France. The ideologists of armor fortification were the Belgian military engineer Brialmon, according to the ideas of which Belgium, Romania were strengthened, in France - Merne, in Germany - Sauer and Schuman. The extreme expression B. F. Reached in the ideas of Sauer and Shuman. The first suggested a line of forts to change the belt of individual armor towers, built at a distance of a half-kilometer one from another, or even better, double rain towers at a distance of 1 km from each other. The garrison of the towers was exclusively artilleryrs. Schumann, in order to reduce the garrison of fortresses and the cost of the latter, proposed to build forts without infantry, in the form of armor batteries armed with artillery and machine guns and surrounded by obstacles, and the defense course was to be sent by pressing the electrical appliance buttons from the central observation station. These ideas, as extremely utopian and unreal, did not find their applications. In Russia, the ideas of B. F. They did not receive recognition and the main element of the fortress was still recognized as a support point for the active actions of the garrison, and not, which was an expression of the passive force of the fortress. World War showed the correctness of the ideas of Russian fortification, which. Without damaging the use of armor plants in the forts for anti-co-artillery, the basis of defense still built on active actions of the garrison.

Armor brush - Fat metal wall for covering guns (mainly shore), replacing an earth shaft. B. b. Made in the form of separate segments associated between them with bolts, wedges, etc. at an appropriate height, was dispersed, and the horizontal axis of rotation of the gun was transferred to its muzzle, as a result of which a rather large shelling sector was preserved. The segments were convex to the head of the plate, sealed in a stone masonry and equipped with transverse brackets, which were simultaneously serving as it were for guns. B. b. In the 60s of the XIX century. In England, from where they moved to other countries, including Russia. However, such brutals were little comfortable, and soon they refused them.

Bronnefet. - armored lightweight design of the guns, sometimes associated with machines of an instrument fauthete, which is supporting the dome. The drum is not available, and rotation is made on the central axis of the rack. It is used for light systems of guns - warmts and shortened rapid powders of medium calibers.

Armored vehicles - armor closures for observers.

Armored bath - Advanced armor, a joining tower room in tower structures and a reinforcing concrete array.

Armor project - Highed armor turret for small rapid artillery appointed to beat the assault in. Wears another name.

Parapet (it. Brustwehr - breast protection) - a part that is a closure from the aiming shots and opponent's eyes. In old fortifications, where B. reached a height of 1.4 m and more, he was simultaneously a barrier storming with the moat in front of him. B. There are earthlings, metal, armor, reinforced concrete and in general from any materials. Thickness B. For field fortifications is determined by the condition of the impenetrant of the bullet, and for long-term - the condition of non-destructiveness of the projectile. Profile B. Determined by three planes: almost vertical inner, horizontal and outer inclined. The inner plane (almost vertical) intersects with an almost horizontal plane. This part B. is called the name of the inner twist B. The second segment "between the planes of the inner and outer, inclined to the ground at an angle of 30 ° - 45 ° (i.e., at an angle of the natural slope of the soil), bears the name of the skate B. The last segment, between The skate and horizon of the Earth is called the front cliff B. Thickness B. is equal to the length of the Skate B. If the front alone B. is a continuation of its skate, that is, if both planes merge, then such B. is called the name of the game or Glash. Skate B. give such a slope to the bullet with a gun lay on it, flew over the horizon not higher than 0.5 m. Other parts B. Wear the following names: The line of intersection of internal coolness with the horizon is called B. sole, with a skate - internal B. ridge or it, the crossing of the skate with anterior outdoor - the outer ridge B. Bruschors are known with deep antiquity. They were made in in the form of a vertical wall - C, and in field fortifications - from logs.

Booleardi - The name of the bastions that had frozen and longline flanks. Also called basins and tourists, and the Germans are for the Germans.

Boolean wells - vertical wells with a cross section of about 0.75 m in a square and up to 4 - 5 m depth, which served to destroy the enemy open dawn. House of explosives. laid on the bottom of the well. Borage charges were calculated as for obtaining a quadruple funnel, taking the distance from the bottom of the well to the ceiling of the gallery. They received their name by the name of the French inventor Captain Bul. Also called martial wells.

Boulevard - Closed earth fortifications used in the XV century. in siege. For the first time, B. were applied by the British in 1428 at the siege of Orleans and were square with round protrusions in the corners, which were placed on 3 guns, which shot through the blond. Later, the name "Boulevard" switched to the line of earth shafts in, and on the abolition and disruption of the shafts were preserved for the alleys planted in their place.

Defensive curtain - The system of fortifications consisting of a number of large, in between which has selected large sizes for the fire link - which served to block the main routes of communication. It was proposed to protect the northeastern and eastern borders of France after the war of 1870 - 71. Engineering General Serya de Riviera and carried out with some change. It was the first proposal of a continuous strengthening of state borders of a new time.

Defensive barracks - cm. .

Defensive caasemate - cm. .

Defensive Karaulka - The simplest view, built to protect bridges and tunnels from the attempts of small batches of the enemy, penetrated into the rear, and saboteurs. He was individual structures and walls that block access to the coastal stacked bridge or inputs in tunnels.

Defensive line - The term has several values.

1. In the strategy, it was difficult for the troops, such as a water barrier, a mountain range, a number of local items, convenient for defense, etc. O. l. - The same, but calculated for strategic actions and can render this or that effect on the overall course of the events of this theater of war. Therefore, it had to satisfy the same basic requirements that were presented to any position, i.e. Have secured flanks and submit a number of natural or artificial reference points and convenient outputs to go to the onset of considerable forces. Currently, this term is replaced by a term line.

2. In the XVII - XVIII centuries. O. l. A position reinforced with the RV, which had a common or tonal, and more often a mixed inscription. Such lines had a huge stretch - up to hundreds of kilometers. The appearance in the XVII - XVIII centuries. such o.l. It is explained by the small character of the wars of this time caused by the character of armies (hired armies) and weapons, the store supply system and finally the reluctance of the commander to risk their armed forces. For the defense of these lines, whole armies stretched on the enormous distance. If the opponent is indecided by O. L. They achieved their goal, but with the enemy activity, the importance of them quickly fell. Revolutionary Wars of the French Republic of the late XVIII century. And Napoleon's War led to the rapid disappearance of these lines, although in the literature they were still still offered as a form of strengthening of the locality.

3. In the first world war, 1914 - 18. O. l. or the position was called a terrain strip, equipped with no less than two, located at a distance of about 7 - 8 km from each other, and had every about 1 km width. Thus, the total depth of O. l. reached 9 - 10 km. Currently, such fortified O. l. Wears a name.

Defensive strip - A position occupied for defense by the military compounds - from the Rifle Brigade to the army inclusive (O. P. Division, O. Army).

Defensive building - cm. .

Defensive facilities - A group designed to keep fire from them. Currently use the term.

Defensive walls - Separate stone walls in the period of dofugas bombs, adapted to the rifle defense. O. s. It was used mainly as separate escarp walls in the fastep Rips. The upper surface of the walls were covered with a single-table or liquid roof of iron or a stone slab. Sit down at a distance of 1.0 m from each other, behind the wall went.

Defensive blonde - Sheds, adapted for shooting from through in. We appeared in our Russian-Japanese war to protect against shrapnel and fragments. Big application found in the war of 1914 - 18. In the Great Patriotic War, due to the shortcomings inherent in the canopy at all, they found small use. O. b. Embedded into the front circle of the trench for 1 - 2 people, got the name of the nest for the shooters.

Defensive Glasis - cm. .

Defensive traverse - adapted for defense.

Terrain equipment - term, sometimes used instead of term strengthening of the terrain (see), but wider than the last, since in O. m. It includes not only purely fortification elements, but also carrying out roads, appliance, etc. Thus, it is more correct to speak in this case About engineering O. m., Strengthening the same area similar to the concept of "fortification equipment".

Reverse Glasis - Gulfing Earthworms 1:12. The opportunity to easily go into counter attack in all directions of the garrison gathered at the bottom of the Rib. The disadvantage of it was that for the enemy he did not represent barriers as. For example, the usual counter-escarp.

Sprinkler - Upper layer of land over having an appointment to weaken the fragmentation effects of destruction funds, limit and weaken the scan of stones, pieces of concrete, coatings and promote the dishushing of the structure. Thickness O. is made from 0.3 to 0.5 m.

Olive Rovik - Rovik for the message behind the width of about 0.7 m.

Common retrenchment - cm. .

Firepoint - area of \u200b\u200bthe terrain on which the firing agent is made for the fight. See also .

Firepoint - Fire remedy, located on and ready for action. This term is sometimes completely incorrectly called the construction itself, intended for the placement in it.

Okol city - Ancient Russian term, which meant an outdoor defensive fence in cities that had several fences.

Trench - the simplest earthy closure for firing infantry, machine guns or artillery guns. Depending on this, O. is called: ,,, Oops for anti-tank guns, etc. O. coincided with the advent of ripped weapons and fugasal shells, when the increased defeat and the accuracy of the shooting was forced to be buried into the ground. The structures that were erected to this time cannot be called O. in the current sense of the word, since at that time mainly bulk structures were practiced, such as fortifications () and bulk. It was caused by the need to have a difficultly loyal barrier for the assault and to hit the most effectively enemy, which defeated the columns to the full height of a person (therefore, a sighting line was necessary to raise higher). The only exception was also the siege of fortresses, intended mainly to approach the fortress, and not for shooting. Increasing the relics of weapons, which caused the change in the system of combat orders when attacking and defense, the appearance of fuses, as well as the disguise requirements caused the need to be burned to the ground and abandon high embankments. The first "legalized" fortificitifers of O. Types appeared during the defense of Sevastopol in 1854 - 55. in the form of various kinds (artillery, infantry). In America in the civil war, O., in the form of long tranches, was already applied in large quantities, which was caused by the arms of the Americans with rifled weapons. The appearance in 1872 infantry and the introduction of it for equipment in the following years in all armies has already led to universal use of O. Along with Railuts and Luenes.

Russian-Japanese War 1901 - 05 GG. Finally revealed that noticeable high fortifications are little suitable in modern conditions for the field war and that the only acceptable form are unobistant O. with a little. A little earlier, in the Anglo-Board War, appeared (bursk trenches). In the First World War, 1914 - 18 The main type of O. accepted O. Full profiles. The Great Patriotic War accepted for the normal type of O. For shooting standing from the bottom of the Rib, as a narrower and best protection against the fire, aviation and tanks.

In the First World War, 1914 - 18 Artillery often refused to paint the guns, but the Great Patriotic War, due to the development of aviation, showed the need and artillery trenches.

Equal strengthening profile - Profile, or other similar fortifications, similar to full profiles with a height of 0.5 m. Strengthened by artificial (wire, interface), located ahead, in the fine roar, closed from the ground observer of the enemy.

Optot - Ancient Russian term denoting a serf fence, that is, fortress walls or trees.

Reference point - In the most general sense, a fortified point, the possession of which allows the troops to defend other parts of the position and influence them and with the loss of which these opportunities are lost. Thus, the fortress area may be O. n. For the Army Group, - for the army, some reinforced village - for a shelf or battalion, etc.

In a narrower sense of O. p. Positions employed by the troops were in the XVIII - XIX centuries. Separate fortifications - or even. The first were called closed O. p., The second - open, since they were not protected.

In the First World War, 1914 - 18 Under O. p. It was understood as separate items equipped for independent defense and moreover, so that they could be held in their hands for a long time, after the enemy had already taken part of the positions of position, and with fire from which in these busy sites could be To a large extent, it makes it difficult to complete the enemy and further spread both in depth and flanks. Thus, it was possible to collect forces for counter-attack. The garrison O. p. Was constant, should always be in it and, except for his direct appointment, did not accept any actions. O. P. Could be permanent or enter or. The garrison O. p. Usually amounted to the company.

Currently, under O. p. Understand the area of \u200b\u200bthe terrain in the exclusive area of \u200b\u200bthe defense, the retention of which ensures the strength of the defense of the district. For this, it adapts to the circular defense to keep the entire strip in front of the front edge, inside the defense area and in the rear, as well as focus the fire of all funds on the flanks and the most dangerous directions. Engaged in several departments with reinforcement. The most important of the inclusive O. p. Is the main O. P. Rotes and is most strongly strengthened and enhanced with fire, including anti-tank. means and persistently held.

Gun lug - So in the middle of the XIX century. called.

Basic firing position - The firing position with which the firing tool solves the well-defined major fire task.

Prison - So called small fortified points. Russed in Russia from the XIII century. To protect the places of secondary importance, most often on the borders with nations, little skillful in military business. During the conquest of Siberia, such O. built Ermak at its movement into the depths of the country. O. Strengthening Pillars or from pointed stakes and shouldn't height up to 6 m. In terms of O., it was usually a figure of a quadrilateral, in the corners of which wooden towers were built, and in the middle of the parties there was a passing tower for a message with the field. Often the term O. or Ostrog was used for the name of the movable. Sometimes O. was called Russians, located for the siege of the fortified city.

Ozzy - Matter, which represented by an earthen fence -. Ancient Russian term.

Billing of strengthening - cm. .

Separate fortress position - Long-term position, located in a straight line or on an arc of greater or less convexity.

Separate strengthening - Rotary strengthening, located separately from the overall position.

Complete - The phenomenon of pumping pieces of concrete in the coating or walls from inside the structure when the projectile explosion from the outdoor side. For protection against O. The thickness of the coating or wall is calculated according to special formulas, and to reduce the resulting high thickness use anti-risk clothing in the form of chain meshes or flexible reinforcement or metal beams installed with a gap 25 - 40 cm.

C.

Central fence - Central fortification, which had a solid circular fence around and consisting of trees with a moat in front, connecting individual support points - fortresses (,). Rips received a longitudinal defense from the flanking buildings of support points or from separately located structures. Purpose of C. O. - Provide the core of the fortress from the attack by an open force and serve as a rear position in case of an enemy breakthrough through between.

Chain fortifications - Continuous fortified lines used in XVIII and partly in the XIX century. and consisting or from, or from, connected, or from a combination, or finally from a combination of bastions with curtains located in the leaving (crevoral lines).

Cyclopeous Fortres - so called the most ancient facilities. Established for defense of huge stones weighing a few tons. Named so the Greek traveler by PAsania, which assumed that only cyclops could be erected by such structures - mythical one-eyed beings with enormous force. Cyclopeous structures called the fortresses incorrectly, as it was rather stone settlements, where the terrain itself dictated the need to build strengthening from stones, and at first they were erected from non-stones, and later, with the appearance of slavery and division of labor, they were already folded from the tested stones. Big stones had the advantage that they had given the necessary verticality of the barrier. C. K. Especially much in the Transcaucasus.

Circus-Valance line(Lat. Circum - Around; ValreRe - Strengthening) - a solid line of fortifications, built in the ancient and middle ages under the blockade of fortified points for protection from an end to the precipitating troops of the troops who go to the revenue deposited. Consisted from a solid shaft and RVA with separate testers.

Citadel(Italy. Citadella is a small town) - an internal strengthening that had an independent defense that was a common fortress and served as the last reference point for the fortress garrison in the event of a fall in major fortifications. C. must be quite extensive so that the entire remaining garrison can fit in it, and have sufficient reserves. The initial purpose of C. was the other: it was located a garrison of the conqueror to keep the population in obedience. With the development of absolutism in cities for the same purpose, C. for government troops were built.