DSC_9199

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DSC_9199
DSC_9199

Caerphilly Castle, In the town centre, Caerphilly, South Wales, UK
Caerphilly Castle is one of the great medieval castles of western Europe. Several factors give it this pre-eminence - its immense size (1.2h), making it the largest in Britain after Windsor, its large-scale use of water for defence and the fact that it is the first truly concentric castle in Britain. Of the time of its building in the late 13th century, it was a revolutionary masterpiece of military planning
One of Henry III's most powerful and ambitious barons, Gilbert de Clare, lord of Glamorgan, built this castle. His purpose was to secure the area and prevent lowland south Wales from falling into the hands of the Welsh leader Llywelyn the Last, who controlled most of mid and north Wales. Llywelyn realised the threat and tried but failed to prevent the castle from being built; it was begun in 1268, was attacked by Llywelyn in 1270, and was begun again in 1271. This time it was completed without hindrance. Apart from the remodelling of the great hall and other domestic works in 1322-6, no more alterations were carried out, making it a very pure example of late 13th-century military architecture.
Caerphilly is unusual in being a late castle built on a virgin site. This allowed a unity of conception rare in medieval castles. It is a double-skinned parallelogram surrounded by large-scale water defences. The concentric arrangement was more flexible than earlier plans. It gave rapid access to any part of the castle by mural passages and wall-walks, towers and gatehouses could be independently held, attackers could be well covered and there was no possibility of mounting siege engines against the inner walls. The castle’s cellular structure and strength is indicated by the presence of numerous portcullises.

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Taken on: June 11, 2008
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Sets appears in:   • Wales UK   
Camera: Nikon D70, f/11.0, 1/200 sec, 19mm (=28mm), ISO 400 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Nikon D70
Lens: 18.0-55.0 mm f/3.5-5.6
Aperture: f/11.0
Exposure Time: 0.005 sec (1/200)
Focal Length: 19mm (35mm equivalent: 28mm)
ISO: 400
Exposure Bias: +2/3 EV
Flash: No Flash
Exposure Program: Shutter speed priority AE
Exposure Mode: Auto
Metering Mode: Center-weighted average
White Balance: Auto
Color Space: Uncalibrated
Software: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4.4 (Windows)
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