The slope acts as an effective defensive measure in two ways. First, conventional siege equipment is less effective against a wall with a talus. Scaling ladders may be unable to reach the top of the walls and are also more easily broken due to the bending stresses caused by the angle they are forced to adopt. Siege towers cannot approach closer than the base of the talus, and their gangplank may be unable to cover the horizontal span of the talus, rendering them useless. Furthermore, defenders are able to drop rocks over the walls, which will shatter on the talus, spraying a hail of shrapnel into any attackers massed at the base of the wall.[1]
The walls of the citadel of Tughlaqabad Fort in Delhi, India. The walls and towers are reinforced with a solid talus.
The walls of the Sasanian fortress at Derbent, the southernmost city in Russia, featuring tall taluses.
^"Talus". A Dictionary of Military Architecture. Retrieved 2011-06-28.
Further reading
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Talus" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 26 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 386.
James, Charles (1805), A New and Enlarged Military Dictionary, T. Egerton, pp. 227–228, 908
January 06, 2023
talus, fortification, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, talus, fortification, news, newspapers, books,. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Talus fortification news newspapers books scholar JSTOR February 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message In architecture the talus is a feature of some late medieval castles especially prevalent in crusader constructions It consists of a battered sloping face at the base of a fortified wall The Krak des Chevaliers in Syria with a tall and clearly defined talus Contents 1 Feature 2 See also 3 References 4 Further readingFeature EditThe slope acts as an effective defensive measure in two ways First conventional siege equipment is less effective against a wall with a talus Scaling ladders may be unable to reach the top of the walls and are also more easily broken due to the bending stresses caused by the angle they are forced to adopt Siege towers cannot approach closer than the base of the talus and their gangplank may be unable to cover the horizontal span of the talus rendering them useless Furthermore defenders are able to drop rocks over the walls which will shatter on the talus spraying a hail of shrapnel into any attackers massed at the base of the wall 1 The walls of the citadel of Tughlaqabad Fort in Delhi India The walls and towers are reinforced with a solid talus The walls of the Sasanian fortress at Derbent the southernmost city in Russia featuring tall taluses See also EditGlacis Counterscarp SiegeReferences Edit Talus A Dictionary of Military Architecture Retrieved 2011 06 28 Further reading EditChisholm Hugh ed 1911 Talus Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 26 11th ed Cambridge University Press p 386 James Charles 1805 A New and Enlarged Military Dictionary T Egerton pp 227 228 908 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Talus fortification amp oldid 1104891258, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
