AZwinger[a] (German pronunciation:[ˈt͡svɪŋɐ]) is an openkill zone area between twodefensive walls that is used for defensive purposes.[1]Zwingers were built in themedieval andearly modern periods to improve the defence ofcastles andtown walls. The term is usually left untranslated,[2] but is sometimes rendered as "outer courtyard", presumably referring to the subsequent role of aZwinger as a castle's defences became redundant and it was converted into a palace orschloss; however, this belies its original purpose as a form of killing ground for the defence. The word is linked withzwingen, "to force", perhaps because theZwinger forced an enemy to negotiate it before assaulting the main defensive line. Essenwein states that the "main purpose of this feature was so that the besieging force could not reach the actual castle wall very easily withbattering rams orbelfries, but had to stop at the lower, outer wall; also that two ranks of archers, behind and above one another, could fire upon the approaching enemy".[3]
In the territories of theTeutonic Order the termsParkam orParcham were used instead of Zwinger. These were related to the wordsPark ("park") andPferch ("pen").[4]
TheZwinger of a castle is sited in front of the maincurtain wall and is enclosed on the outer side by a second, lower wall, known as theZwinger wall (Zwingermauer). If attackers succeed in getting past theZwinger wall, they would be trapped in theZwinger and were an easy target for the defenders on the main wall (Hauptmauer). Further progress was thus seriously impeded.
In central Europe mostZwingers were built in front of older castle walls as a later addition and reinforcement of the defences.
TheZwinger in front of atown gate is a fortified area between the main gate and the outer gate of a medieval town gateway system. Town gates were often built in the shape of agate tower, with a second, and sometimes even a third, gate in front of it (so-called double or triple gate systems). In front of the town walls in the area of the town gates there was usually a second wall in which the outer gate was located. An enemy who had breached the outer gate and penetrated theZwinger would find himself in an enclosed area with very little scope to exploit his initial success. By contrast, the defenders retreating behind the main town walls could easily engage the enemy below them in the killing ground of theZwinger.
Thebarbican is based on a similar concept to the gatewayZwinger and is found in front of the main wall but separated from it by an additionalmoat.
In theHussite period (around 1420/30) impressive examples were built that were mainly intended as protection against earlyfirearms.
The open area of theZwinger was mainly used in peacetime to keepanimals or as agarden. As their defensive function became superfluous, in many casesbarns,stables and storage buildings were erected inZwingers.
TheZwinger at Dresden inherited its name from the oldZwinger in front of the Crown Gate (Kronentor) on the outer wall of the fortress. It was never intended as a fortification, however, but was conceived as the outer courtyard of a new palace.
The development of theZwinger has not been well researched to date. By the fifth century A.D. a fully developedZwinger had been built in front of the Byzantinewalls ofConstantinople.
Inearly medieval fortifications, too, a succession of defensive walls can be seen. Especially during the time of theHungarian invasions, defensive castles were protected byberms and outerramparts to guard against the cavalry attacks of theMagyars. These were notZwingers in the true sense of the word; often an intermediate moat separated the lines of defence. Such a moat is also frequently part of late medievalZwingers.
Occasionally the narrow outworks of theHabsburg (Aargau) or ofAlt-Bolanden (Rhineland-Palatinate), which date to the late 10th and early 11th centuries, are seen as earlyZwingers. These fortification elements do not have any direct successors, however.
In central EuropeZwingers first reappeared in the first half of the 13th century in front of the ring-walls of small fortifications. Towards the end of that century, the defensive capability of castles was being enhanced in this way far more frequently, for example atGnandstein Castle inSaxony;Château du Landsberg andChâteau d'Andlau inAlsace. In southern France the heavily restoredZwinger in the town fortifications ofCarcassonne appears to have been built. InitiallyZwinger walls were very close to the main wall.
In the 14th century, the first firearms caused a further growth in the number ofZwingers. Countless examples were built, especially during the 15th and 16th centuries. InFranconia the fortification of late medieval city has largely survived. InNuremberg a lowZwinger was built in front of the older ring-wall. In the early 15th century,Munich was fitted with a new double ring of town walls, as depicted in theNuremberg Chronicle. By connecting the inner and the outer ring – to be more exactly, the respective inner and outer (= lower) watch towers – with numerous party walls, a succession of zwinger segments soon encircled the place as a whole.
The firstZwinger walls of theHigh Middle Ages were usually not protected by towers. Theartillery fortifications of theLate Middle Ages, by contrast, were defended by numerousflanking and, sometimes also,battery towers orroundels.
TheZwingers of a small group of castles in the FranconianHaßberge date to theHussite period. As elsewhere theterritorial lords were reacting to the serious threat of rebels from nearbyBohemia. TheseZwingers at the castles ofAltenstein,Rauheneck andSchmachtenberg have been well preserved. At Rauheneck Castle the defences are further strengthened by twobretèches. These features andhoardings (Kampfhäuser) may also be seen as part of otherZwingers.
The Hussite period additions of many castles in the endangered regions often went back to innovations that had been developed by the Hussites themselves. A prime example is the town fortification of the south Bohemian Hussite town ofTábor. Parts of theZwinger in front of the main gate have survived even today.
In general theZwinger walls were markedly lower and less thick that the actual ring walls. Often only a parapet wall was erected around the intended killing ground of theZwinger. Occasionally a covered or openwall walk was built on the inside of the wall, as atTrausnitz Castle inLandshut. Even underground wall walks with embrasures for hand guns may be seen, for example, atHochhaus Castle nearNördlingen.
Zwinger walls could fully surround a fortification or just a particularly vulnerable section. There is often a moat in front of them, theZwinger wall also acting as therevetment of the moat. On hillside castles theZwinger wall was a supporting wall and often very high to provide static stability of the whole site.
Frequently, small, hiddensally ports orposterns enabled direct combat with an enemy in the moat area. The actualZwinger area was also often accessible through sally ports.
TheKrak des Chevaliers of theKnights of St. John is generally classified as acrusader castle. Just before 1170 the first smallZwinger was built here around the inner ward. This surprisingly earlyZwinger was replaced in the mid-13th century by the present outer fortification. ThisZwinger is also one of the oldest examples of its type. A building inscription records that the castle governor,Nicolas Lorgne, had abarbacane built – almost certainly a reference to theZwinger. This source enables the secondZwinger of theCrac to be dated to around 1250. TheZwinger of the Krak des Chevaliers was extended in around 1270. Despite this reinforcement, the Muslims under SultanBaibars I succeeded in capturing the fort in 1271, after just a four-week siege.
Other large crusader castles were also surrounded by greatZwinger systems. The outer ring wall of the castle ofTartus (Syria) could have been built at the same time as theZwinger at Krak, i.e. in the middle of the 13th century. By shortly before 1168 the Knights of St. John began remodellingBelvoir Castle in present-day Israel. The outer fortification with its corner towers acts like "a largeZwinger to the structure" (U. Großmann).
The Welsh castles ofHarlech andBeaumaris (started 1295 but never completed) have a double defensive wall, the outer wing surrounding the inner one concentrically at a short distance from it. The outer fortification in Beaumaris, with its round wall towers, is particularly massive and comparable to theKrak des Chevaliers.
