Castles in Context - from Medieval to Modern

Module Leader: Dr Linsey Hunter

Castles are one of the most visible, iconic and even imposing reminders of our past. The buildings and ruins that we encounter represent dynamic changes over hundreds of years and reflect significant developments in society, culture, politics and military technology. The study of castles facilitates interdisciplinary research. In this module, you will investigate castles in their historical, geographical and chronological context using archaeological evidence, landscape and architecture alongside written documents. You will consider how people of different time periods shifted from viewing these buildings as purely military installations to a more complex understanding of their social, political and symbolic functions. This module will scrutinize the architectural development of the castle from its twelfth-century Norman origins to its Victorian re-invention and its persistence to the present day.

Indicative Content

• The Continental origins of feudalism and castles
• Castles and Conquest or Colonisation (e.g. David I and the ‘Normanisation’ of the Scottish north, castles and frontiers, castles at war)
• Castles, Power and family identity (e.g. island castles in Orkney and Norway, the castle in West Highland clan society, Coastal castles)
• The donjon as symbol of lordship
• Castles as cultural centres (e.g. the “palatial” tower-house of the Renaissance)
• Persistence of the tower-house
• Looking at the Castle in the Landscape (castles and fortresses)
• The modern re-invention of the castle (e.g. the castles of the Rhine, Balmoral Castle, etc.)
• The application of the architectural language of castle-building in Victorian and 20th-century Highland society.