Bodiam's courtyard plan grew from forms already used for manor houses and colleges, but it was only one late medieval option. Courtyard castles at Maxstoke and Sheriff Hutton existed alongside renewed great towers at Tattershall, Ashby de la Zouch, and Raglan. Nunney, Saltwood, and Warkworth illustrate buildings that resist easy classification. The examples present late medieval castle design as a period of experimentation and individual choice rather than decline toward a single residential formula.
Notable Point · 8:48-9:53
Late medieval castles resist one design rule
Courtyard castles, revived great towers, and hard-to-classify hybrids reveal an age of architectural experimentation.