Defensive structures are a bright and unique phenomenon in the history of ancient Russian culture. Much attention was paid to the construction of such structures. This was explained by the fact that military operations in the Middle Ages took place almost continuously. However, for the most part, the battles were of a very limited scale, and small military detachments participated in them. At the same time, they could occur not only on the borders of the country, but in any place and at any time. It was possible to live more or less safely only under the protection of the fortress walls. That is why the defensive structures were of such great importance and were built in such large numbers. In the Middle Ages, the feudal lord, as a representative of the ruling class, owned not only land, but also a fortified castle, which gave him the opportunity to subdue the surrounding population and not be afraid of clashes with the troops of neighboring feudal lords. The castle-both a feudal lord's dwelling and a fortress-is one of the most characteristic phenomena of the Middle Ages. But fortifications were built not only by individual feudal lords; powerful fortresses were built by the central authority of the feudal state, such structures were all medieval cities, and in early times, many rural communities. Russian chronicles are filled with reports about the construction of cities, their siege and defense. But the word "city" in the Old Russian language did not mean a city in the socio-economic meaning of this concept, but only a fortified settlement, as opposed to an unfortified one. Thus, the concept of "city" included both medieval cities proper, as well as military fortresses, feudal castles, and even fortified villages. Everything that was surrounded by a defensive wall was called a city. Moreover, up to the 17th century, the word was often applied even to the fortifications themselves, denoting defensive walls with this term. Historians have long been interested in th ... Читать далее