Page:Medieval Military Architecture in England (volume 1).djvu/348

 322 MedicEval Militaiy Architecture. and, passing off in a long straight wall, crosses the Nant-y-Gledyr, and terminates in a icfe-du-ponf and a postern. This wall contains a large mural garderobe tower at its angle, and is supported exteriorly by seven quadrangular solid buttresses. In one place it ii perforated for the discharge of the waste waters of the mill, and in another for the passage of the Nant-y-Gledyr, being, at that part, where subjected to great pressure, 1 5 feet thick. This curtain is accessible from the tete-du-pont ; and upon it, through the garderobe tower is a mural chamber, serving as a " place d'armes." The face of the wall, between the buttresses, is wrought into a concavity, increasing towards the summit, so that any missile dropped from it would be projected outwards. The soil of the platform behind this curtain is 25 feet above the exterior level. The Platform is a large surface of sward behind the southern curtain, between it and the counterscarp of the inner moat ; upon it stood the mill, and from it dropped the inner drawbridge. It increases in breadth from the dam to the dividing wall, where it measures 94 feet. The Tete-du-pont terminates the southern curtain. It consists of a curve of the wall, westward, into a semicircle, with towers and a postern gate, protected by a bifurcated wall, intended to prevent the curtain from being outflanked. It rests upon the outer edge of the lake. In front of this great line of defence is a moat, about 60 feet wide, and crossed by a double drawbridge of two spans of 18 feet each at the great gateway, connected with a large pier in the centre of the moat, capable of being converted into a sort of barbican. This moat communicates with, and admitted of being filled from, the Nant-y-Gledyr. Such is the principal front and eastern line of defence, not only calculated to withstand attacks from the front, flanks, or rear, but also capable of being held out, the southern against the northern part. From the northern extremity of this front, at the northern postern, a bank of earth, lined inwards, or on its southern face, by a wall, and at one part thickened into a dam, divides the middle from the outer moat, at present skirted by the Nant-Garw road. This is the north bank. From the same front, from the end of the covered way, close to the dividing wall, a second bank of earth is given off, and, passing westwards to unite with the horn-work, divides the inner from the middle moat, and forms a part of the northern defences of the castle. Its inner face is partially lined by a wall, in which is a sluice- tunnel. This is the curved ridge. II. — The Horn-work covering the western front of the castle^ and placed between the middle and outer gates, is an irregular polygon of about three acres, revetted all round with a wall of 15 feet high, above which is a talus of about 8 feet more. From its south- western face issues one of the feeding springs of the lake. On the eastern, or longest face, is a semi-pier, to receive the drawbridge, of