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Author
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Topic: Creating a floor plan
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Em the Architect
Member
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posted 04-14-2002 04:18 PM
  
Hey, my name's Emily, and I'm an aspiring architect. I love medieval history, specifically castles. I have tried repeatedly to create a floor plan for a castle that will prove to my friends that my dreams of one day building one is not completely unrealistic. I own a decent architecture program, and have made various castle floor plans. My problem is that every time I create one it always ends up looking plain and squarish, symmetrical. I want to create one that is small but has many towers. I'd like it to be a modernized castle, which looks and feels like medieval castles, but is built with modern construction materials and techniques. I need some suggestions on how to make a floor plan that is not symmetrical, has more than four towers, and could be built today to house a normal family. Any help? |
Erik Schmidt
Senior Member
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posted 04-14-2002 07:30 PM
There have been discussions before about trying to recreate a castle using modern materials and methods as well as making it 'livable'.
Personally, I think it is impossible, especially to recreate a medieval castle that can be lived in comfortably, let alone without using the old methods and materials. You cannot get something which looks or feels like a true medieval castle.
The main problem is windows. Medieval castles had very few if any, and they were small or just arrow slits.OK, as for trying to make a small catle with many towers. Towers had a function and cost resources to build, so a castle would generally not have any more than it needed. So if you put lots of towers onto a small castle, it will not look right.
The arabs in Spain and Turkey tended to build small towers close together. Look up Almourol castle(Portugal) or Banos de la Encina castle(Spain) for examples. As for your layout. Most castles built on flat, even land temded to be symmetrical, especailly the later castles which survive unchanged today.
To make your plan less plain, look at creating a hilltop castle. Almourol is a great example.
There are many plans shown on this site; http://www.burgenwelt.de/frameset.htm
Click on 'Burgen', then go through the listings for each region. Click on the picture of any small hilltop castles you see and you will get extra pics and a floorplan.
Go here for more suggestions; http://www.castlesontheweb.com/quest/Forum15/HTML/000055.html
The first link might be very usefull for you. Erik [This message has been edited by Erik Schmidt (edited 04-14-2002).] | |
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