The Decline of the Castle by M. W. Thompson - 9780521083973

The Decline of the CastleAuthor(s): M. W. Thompson\nFormat: Paperback\nPublisher: Cambridge University Press, United Kingdom\nImprint: Cambridge University Press\nISBN-13: 9780521083973, 978-0521083973\nSynopsis\nExtensively illustrated with photographs, plans and period engravings, Michael Thompson's book examines the decline of the castle as both fortification and seigneurial residence over the two and a half centuries that preceded the Civil War. In general, this was a period in which function played less and less part and display - even fantasy - ever more in the minds of castle builders. Although few new castles were built in England after 1400, the growing power of artillery and continuing warfare in Scotland and across the Channel in France continued to provide stimuli to fresh architectural development. Dr Thompson relates alterations in design to contemporary social changes and devotes particular attention to the rapid decline of Tudor times and to the massive destruction wr.