Water castle

[

Doorwerth in the Netherlands.]

A water castle is a castle with outside walls generally surrounded by water ditches called moats. The surrounding water originally served as defense. Water castles were typically built on flat land where there are no steep hills or rocks to reinforce the stronghold.

They were usually developed from an early medieval motte-and-bailey.Originally water castles were constructed to make it difficult for enemies to attack. The surrounding ditches were also used as a source of water when under siege or during periods of drought. Typically castles only had one entrance served by a drawbridge, which would be raised when under siege. Some water castles were constructed more like a fortress.

Over the course of time many central European fortified castles were converted into palaces, primarily to receive guests or as living quarters.

Some typical water castles:

Austria

*Anif Palace located near Salzburg

Belgium

*Alden Biesen Castle, located near Hasselt

Czech Republic

* Blatná in the town of the same name

Denmark

* Egeskov Castle on central Funen

England

* Bodiam Castle located in East Sussex
* Leeds Castle in Kent

Germany

* Schloss Brennhausen in northern Bavaria
* Schloss Dyck near Jüchen in the Rhein-Kreis Neuss
* Burg Gudenau in Wachtberg in the Rhein-Sieg district
* Irmelshausen in northern Bavaria
* Mespelbrunn Castle in Bavaria
* Schloss Rheydt in Mönchengladbach (enlarged to a fortress by Maximilian Pasqualini (1534–1572))
* Burg Vischering near Lüdinghausen in the district of Coesfeld
* Schwerin Castle in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
* Haus Kambach in Eschweiler
* The "Wasserschloss" in Bad Rappenau

Lithuania

* Trakai Island Castle in the town of the same name

Netherlands

* Muiderslot in Muiden 15 kilometers southeast of Amsterdam
* Slot Loevestein at the point where the Meuse River and Waal River flow together, 3 kilometers east of Gorinchem
* Doorwerth Castle on the river Rhine near Arnhem
* Menkemaborg in northern Groningen
* Croy Castle in North Brabant
* Castle Duivenvoorde located between The Hague and Leiden

cotland

* Eilean Donan castle in Eilean Donan in the western highlands of Scotland

lovakia

* Bytča Castle in Bytča in northwestern Slovakia

Wales

* Beaumaris Castle on the island Anglesey
* Caerphilly Castle with a rare double moat