On my way back from getting my car serviced today I passed Carrickfergus Castle (Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland), probably the best preserved example of a Norman castle in Britain. I haven't been there in years, so I thought I'd stop for 5 minutes and take a few pictures for my Steemit friends.
Back last century when I was a geeky 12 year old, I was probably one of the world's top authorithies on the building as I'd combed every library for 30 miles in every direction for every book on the subject after it became a bit of an obsession.
Much of what you see was built by John de Courcy starting in 1177 which is a ridiculously long time ago! King John of Magna Carta and Robin Hood fame stayed in the castle in 1210 and in 1760 it was successfully besieged by the French.
The Gatehouse (above) which as theoretically the weakest part of the castle's defences was the only bit of the castle that was accessable by land in the past. The other three sides were surrounded by sea.
If you attacked the gatehouse you would first be fired on from the arrow slits on either side of the door
A machicolation arch above the main gate allowed the defenders to drop projectiles on the heads of the attackers.
If you got through the main gate and portcullis and into the gatehouse proper, a 'murder hole' in the archway above you head allowed the defenders to attack with boiling oil and water.
The back 'postern gate' for escaping to a waiting boat.
The large tower in the middle is the Keep. This was the main living accommodation and the final defensive retreat of the castle if the outer walls had been breached. The slots/shutes on the right hand side are garderobes, a mediaeval form of toilet/privy!
