Drawbridge

Drawbridge
This was a wooden bridge in front of the main gate of the castle. In the early centuries of castles it was moved horizontal to the ground and in the later centuries it was built so it could raise up in a hinged fashion.
Heavy timber platform built to span a moat between a gate house and surrounding land that could be raised using ropes or chains, to block the entrance, when required. Hemyock Castle is believed to have had a counter-weighted drawbridge, pivoted at the inner end.
The moveable section of a wooden bridge or causeway, often over a moat, operated by counterweights to keep an enemy force from the easy approach to the gatehouse.
♦ A wooden bridge leading to a gateway, capable of being raised or lowered.
(Gies, Joseph and Francis. Life in a Medieval Castle, 226)

Medieval glossary. 2014.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Drawbridge — Draw bridge , n. A bridge of which either the whole or a part is made to be raised up, let down, or drawn or turned aside, to admit or hinder communication at pleasure, as before the gate of a town or castle, or over a navigable river or canal.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • drawbridge — 14c., from DRAW (Cf. draw) (v.) + BRIDGE (Cf. bridge) (n.) …   Etymology dictionary

  • drawbridge — ► NOUN ▪ a bridge which is hinged at one end so that it can be raised …   English terms dictionary

  • drawbridge — [drô′brij΄] n. a bridge that can be raised or drawn aside to permit passage of watercraft or prevent access, as to a fort …   English World dictionary

  • Drawbridge — This article is about a type of bridge. For the California ghost town, see Drawbridge, California. For the broader American meaning of the term, see Moveable bridge. Drawbridge at the fort of Ponta da Bandeira; Lagos, Portugal A drawbridge is a… …   Wikipedia

  • drawbridge — n. to lower; raise a drawbridge * * * [ drɔːbrɪdʒ] raise a drawbridge to lower …   Combinatory dictionary

  • drawbridge — UK [ˈdrɔːˌbrɪdʒ] / US [ˈdrɔˌbrɪdʒ] noun [countable] Word forms drawbridge : singular drawbridge plural drawbridges a bridge that can be pulled up to let ships pass or to stop people getting into a castle …   English dictionary

  • drawbridge — [[t]drɔ͟ːbrɪʤ[/t]] drawbridges N COUNT A drawbridge is a bridge that can be pulled up, for example to prevent people from getting into a castle or to allow ships to pass underneath it …   English dictionary

  • Drawbridge, California — Drawbridge   Former settlement   …   Wikipedia

  • Drawbridge Peak — Drawbridge Peak …   Wikipedia

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