Shield wall (fortification)

As a shield wall, the highest and strongest castle wall is then referred to when it is clearly separated from the rest of the perimeter. The shield wall serves to secure the main wing. If a shield wall pulled over two or more pages, one also speaks of the High jacket or coat Wall.

Description

A clear definitional boundary of the shell wall is often not possible. The construction of shield walls became common in the late 12th century and can be considered as the Blide possibly in response to the increasing use of heavy siege engines. The strength of a shield wall could in extreme cases be up to twelve meters (castle Neuscharfeneck ). On top of the wall was usually a battlement, also the shield wall by two towers could be edged. In some cases, the shield wall replaced the keep, such as when located in the Westerwald ruin Sporkenburg or near the ruins of Alt- Eberstein near Baden -Baden. In other cases, for example in the castle love cell, the keep was centrally fitted in the shield wall.