The South Tower
The South Tower was one of the hardest structures to reimagine. The sources say it was a two-storey building primarily intended to be a high quality lodging for very important personage. It was completed in 1450 and since its destruction after the civil war, a folly doorway was erected on top to beautify the ruins. The problem lies with the lack of evidence for the structure above the great windows. It is clear from the ruins that the structure was at least as high as the curtain wall from the east however the curtain wall from the west appears to be considerably higher. This extra height does not seem to make much sense as after visiting the structure, the ceiling of the upper floor appears to start about a metre above the window. With the structure supposedly being as high as the south curtain wall then this makes the ceiling far too big, especially if the 1562 drawing (figure 73) is to be believed as it shows it with a large pointed roof. The other problem is that after researching other castles stately lodgings, most have castlings round the top and the roof on the inside.
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In the 1562 drawing (below), the South Tower is depicted as only having one large window which goes all the way to the roof which is clearly incorrect. It is unclear which side of the structure is drawn here, however it could be the left (east) with the right (west) obscured from view by a building. There is a very small pointed roof hidden in between the two large chimneys in the right of the picture. This could be the west wing of the Tower. The other noticeable difference is the lack of the central staircase tower. The large black chimney attached to the South Tower could be it. With this drawing being pretty inaccurate, it is not beyond belief that the South Tower was rimmed with crenulations like other structures of the time. |
