What is a turret in a medieval castle?
In architecture, a turret (from Italian: torretta, little tower; Latin: turris, tower) is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle. As their military use faded, turrets were used for decorative purposes, as in the Scottish baronial style.
Did medieval castles have turrets?
Castle turrets are essentially small towers that were built into medieval castle fortifications, most typically walls and towers. The name ‘turret’ comes from the Italian torretta, meaning ‘little tower’, and the Latin word turris meaning ‘tower’.
What is a turret room?
Turret and round rooms offer a distinctive space along with with decorating challenges. Turrets in family homes became popular during the Victorian era, when they were prized for their abundance of light and air. A turret room can offer special place for your little pleasures.
What’s the difference between a tower and a turret?
A turret is simply a small, circular tower attached to a larger structure, usually on a corner or angle. The difference between a turret and an actual tower is that turrets typically don’t start at the ground level and, rather, cantilever out from another upper level.
What are parts of a turret?
Turrets provided a projecting defensive position that covered fire to its adjacent walls. A turret could have a circular top with crenellations, a pointed roof, or an apex of some kind. Turrets sometimes contained a staircase that projected higher than the rest of the building.
What is the top of a turret called?
When the height of a roof turret exceeds its width it is usually called a tower or steeple in English architecture, and when the height of a ridge turret’s roof exceeds its width, it is called a spire in English architecture or a flèche in French architecture.
How tall is a castle turret?
It measures some 25.3 metres (83 ft) in height while each side is around 29.5 metres (97 ft) in length. The massive walls, supported by a central pilaster buttress in each centre, measure up to 6.4 metres (21 ft) in thickness.
What architectural style is a turret?
The most recognizable use of turrets in Victorian architecture is in the Queen Anne Revival style. This style was popular in America from the late 1880s to the early 1900s. Although it began in England, this style was used in many American homes and is the style most associated with Victorian architecture.
What does a turret look like on a house?
A turret is a small tower on top of a tower or attached to a side or corner of a building. They may be round, square, hexagon and octagon … anything that results in a narrow tower-like structure attached to or part of the main structure. Turrets had a very practical purpose for castle and fortress defense.
What is a synonym for turret?
In this page you can discover 27 synonyms, antonyms, idiomatic expressions, and related words for turret, like: tower, gun turret, armored tank top, casemate, battlement, revolving dome, watchtower, parapet, , minaret and fuselage.
A castle’s Turret is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall. Turrets provided a projecting defensive position that covered fire to its adjacent walls. A turret could have a circular top with crenellations, a pointed roof, or an apex of some kind.
What is a turret in architecture?
Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. In architecture, a turret (from Italian: torretta, little tower; Latin: turris, tower) is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle.
What is a turret on a baronial building?
Turret (highlighted) attached to a tower on a baronial building in Scotland. In architecture, a turret (from Italian: torretta, little tower; Latin: turris, tower) is a small tower that projects vertically from the wall of a building such as a medieval castle.
What are the most important features of a medieval castle?
A large, fixed crossbow which fired large wooden bolts or iron-headed bolts. Used by both attackers and defenders. A short stretch of fortification outside the castle, especially used to provide extra protection for gates. An arched vault between two walls. A turret which overhangs the wall below.