How To Lay Siege To A Star Fortress In The 16th and Early 17th Century

From the 14th to the 17th century the star fortress became ever more important for siege warfare. Engineers and tacticians developed fortresses that were more elaborate and more solid than ever before. As a result, siege warfare reached an immense level of complexity. Throughout the middle ages, high and relatively thin walls were enough protection against storming ladders, siege equipment and projectiles.
But since the 14th century ever more effective firearms and artillery challenged the defensive potential of fortresses. A to and fro of military innovations began - improved fortifications countered improved gunpowder weapons and vice versa. This went on until the end of the 16th century, when according to historian Stephan Hoppe, “a successful solution to all important issues of defense had been found”. One famous type of stronghold that was crucial to this evolution was the trace italienne better known as star fortress. It was to be found quickly all over Europe, though in a variety of forms. Historian John A. Lynn states that at the same time the number of fortified sites increased drastically, so that central European warfare shifted away from open field battles and finally revolved above all around sieges.
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#history #siege #sandrhoman
Sources:
Hoppe, S., s.v. Festungsbau, in: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit.
Lynn, J. A., States in Conflict 1661-1763, in: Parker, G. (Ed.), The Cambridge History of Warfare, Cambridge 2005.
Lynn, J. A., The trace itallienne and the Growth of Armies, in: Rogers, C. J. (Ed.), The Military Revolution Debate. Readings on the Military Transformation of Early Modern Europe, Boulder / San Francisco / Oxford 1995.
Ortenburg, G., Waffe und Waffengebrauch im Zeitalter der Landsknechte (Heerwesen der Neuzeit, Abt. 1, Bd. 1) Koblenz 1984.
Parker, G., The Limits to Revolutions in Military Affairs: Maurice of Nassau, the Battle of Nieuwpoort (1600), and the Legacy, in The Journal of Military History, 71;2, 2007; S. 331 - 372.
Rogers, C.J. / Tallet F. (editors), European Warfare, 1350-1750, 2010.
Van Nimwegen, O., The Dutch Army and the Military Revolutions, 1588-1688.

[@naufalali8704]

Me at 3am with instant ramen: I wonder how to siege a star fortress

[@The_FatGeneral]

me rn

[@zapanimevideos]

BRO literally me rn

[@cloud8813]

^

[@vukashin88]

What do you put into your ramen

[@naufalali8704]

@@vukashin88 medieval education

[@JamesBond-fg6bt]

Plot twist: the seige lasts so long that the attackers end up building a city around the sieged city to deal with day to day necessities, eventually building a wall around their own city, and that city gets sieged. Siege-ception.

[@comradewestov3047]

So the battle of tralee in that time or alesia in ancient times

[@thibaudduhamel2581]

Pretty much what happened during the siege of Arras where the french army besieging Arras was itself besieged by a spanish army, that itself was then besieged by french reinforcments. Siegeception

[@ReapingTheHarvest]

There's always a bigger fish... I mean usually.

[@parkerjeans5777]

Did julius caesar do that shit lmao

[@zach11241]

That sounds more like a Siegeducken?

[@ASTRO_NAUTIKAL]

Before Quarantine: Who the hell cares about 17th century warfare? Week 6 Quarantine: I must know everything about siege warfare.

[@portostrengthunion]

Week 50 Quarantine: Duh, just use biochemical warfare

[@geradosolusyon511]

@@portostrengthunion 1 year after the start of quarantine: So infiltrating a government base is this easy....

[@David0lyle]

No no, I was interested in this before that happened. I just didn’t stay home to look it up.

[@yannikoloff7659]

@@portostrengthunion They did. They was throwing dead animal parts into town with catapults

[@alexnovak3319]

It is our purpose of life to learn those tactics!

[@VaeVictisXIII]

Glad I saw this, I was really worried about laying siege to my neighbours star fortress, but now i'm more informed than ever! SALLY FORTH!

[@crusaderkaiser2000]

How’d the siege go my man?

[@mingpingxie3563]

I tried it, 0 out of 10. All my equipment and manpower were destroyed in the assault. Don’t try it.

[@themanwithallthewrongopini3551]

0 out of 10, got stalingraded

[@liammurphy2725]

You leave Sally alone. She's a good girl and doesn't need your attention.

[@mingpingxie3563]

@@markdavis7397 A wild star fortress has appeared!

[@napolien1310]

How to do SIEGES!! Me taking notes in these difficult times.

[@useodyseeorbitchute9450]

Stockpiling toilet paper become so mainstream. Good that you are thinking a few steps ahead of others.

[@quyenmojos9004]

Counter-sapper that try to steals your toilet papers and do sorties on your nearest store before you get in any contact.

[@dariusw1776]

I just started fortifying my house to protect the Toilet paper. Come at me, if you want the real siege experience

[@Oldschool747]

@@dariusw1776 don't care about the tp, but I definitely want that siege experience!

[@wolfgangkranek376]

@@useodyseeorbitchute9450 Don't forget to (stock-)pile the toilet paper in star shape formation!

[@Rojoyerf]

I love how you quote actual historians and do your own historiography rather than simply regurgitating something you read off wikipedia. Keep up the good work!

[@artyomarty391]

wikipedia has quotes as well. So you can steal those quotes from wiki

[@sumoking3002]

But still manages to be unable to tell the difference between English and British, doh

[@ubellubo]

@@sumoking3002 The English is the correct term in this context. The Kingdom of Great Britain did not come into being until 1707.

[@sumoking3002]

@@ubellubo the flags

[@haileyscomment8474]

All of this information is on Wikipedia too.. it’s 2021, that’s like insulting somebody for learning from an encyclopedia.. You must be stuck in 2004 or something when anybody can change wiki pages

[@raylast3873]

Julius Caesar: I‘m just gonna counter their walls by building more walls around them. Let‘s see how they like THAT lmao 16th Century tacticians: furious note-taking

[@Ezyasnos]

That's why it's called the Renaissance (which means rebirth - of the Roman empire, as they envisioned)

[@Haannibal777]

How to you defeat wall? By building more walls outside it. Then how do you defeat those outside walls? By building further outside walls???

[@raylast3873]

@@Ezyasnos except Caesar did this once, as a gimmick, because his army was smaller than the Gaulish Army. In the post-feudal era, this was the systematically dominant approach to siegecraft.

[@agentbarron3945]

@@raylast3873 Id say up to ww1 or so, just a wall of men instead of stone

[@raylast3873]

@@agentbarron3945 eh...the warfare in WWI was already veeery different. First time there were really continuous fronts and whatnot.

[@NakedGeep]

I’m so glad this got recommended to me. I’m actually laying siege to a star fortress next week, and this has been really helpful! Thanks!

[@macgarymusic]

How did it go Mr. Cannon?

[@celticlad5866]

I have to defend a star fort next week, now I have a basic idea on how to counter the enemy use these tactics.

[@soldiergg199]

@@macgarymusic by his lack of reply in past 2 months. He didn't survive. He truly died like a hero. May his country man remember him as brave general who led the besiege.

[@macgarymusic]

@@soldiergg199 F

[@antonioacosta568]

Same! Shout-out to historical accuracy

[@andreascovano7742]

Man, the spanish weren't fooling around at amiens....

[@ilo3456]

There is a reason they once had the largest empire in the world unfortunately they weren't so good at economics, as the downfall of their empire shows.

[@nikushamosidze1951]

@@ilo3456 yes

[@DudeWatIsThis]

@@ilo3456 People talk as if anyone knew any better back then. This is the 1500s and 1600s, right before people started slowly figuring out "modern economics". The Spanish Empire lasted 200 years as the World's #1 world power. USA has been the dominant world power for 80 years so far, and it has seen 2 great market crashes (3, if you count today's pandemic). The British Empire is usually the one everyone gets compared to, but their hegemony lasted only about 150 years. And yes, they were arguably the best Empire handling their money, BUT, you have to take into account that they had it MUCH easier than anyone else: - Technology allowed it (which the Spanish didn't have). - "Global morality" also allowed it (which the USA have to contend with today). There wasn't the modern conciousness of "hating war/colonialism" that there is today. You could go somewhere, give people smallpox-ridden blankets, install a puppet king, and then grab everything for yourself. Essentially, they were in the right place, at the right time. And by the way, both the British and the Spanish both "hated" slavery, don't get me wrong. Each Empire used its own loopholes to still justify and use it extensively - and the USA would do it as well if they could (and they do, when and where they can).

[@MisoElEven]

@@DudeWatIsThis I would like to know how they knew that those blankets had smallpox in them when they didnt know anything about bacteria and even less about viruses..they thought that diseases are transmitted through bad smells as far as I know but Im willing to hear you out. (hope I didnt sound agressive, I really would like to know)

[@JoshuaKevinPerry]

@@DudeWatIsThis Smallpox blankets are historical fiction. We did enslave the Germans after WW2 to rebuild Europe.

[@Heff-Curry]

I used to only really read about early-medieval and ancient history, but your channel has single handedly ignited my interest in this time period. You have such consistently great content, very much appreciated.

[@nick-qb4fd]

Read about the siege of Malta

[@eldorados_lost_searcher]

It's strange how the transition from Medieval warfare to Early Modern is seriously neglected, but I like how it seems to be attracting more attention now.

[@drsnobby881]

Lmao most of this isn't about medieval and ancient times. Have you even watched the video?

[@eldorados_lost_searcher]

@@drsnobby881 He did. And the channel has ignited an interest in the subject. Do you even read, bro?

[@DerDoctor69]

Same here, but for me it was more the modern histroy that was interesting to me

[@lastword8783]

Sieging the same fortress for 21 years: OMG im tired of playing this map.

[@herculean616]

_Outside the Fortress:_ *Screams, Guns, Explosion* _Inner Fortress_ *Birds chirping, peaceful farming, fortress lasted long enough to put a child into college*

[@eldorados_lost_searcher]

There is no war in Ba Singh Se.

[@qwertyerror601]

oh dont worry. the chikd who reached college will now become a new officer, and lead his classmates into a sally forth

[@yeet877]

Not really. There was only military men in the fortresses, people were living outside them because farming fields as you said were outside the fort. So the whole thing was just a big bunker with barracks and lots of resources to repair with.

[@rifkifanani3694]

@@yeet877 what about a walled city? sure there's proably no farm inside but there are atleast some civilian doing their thing

[@yeet877]

@@rifkifanani3694 Well a walled city is not a fortress.

[@JonatasAdoM]

"You are wrong, Total war taught me that the walls were stormed using ropes that come from nowhere"

[@jordanfleck5113]

YES!!

[@arcamean785]

@nikolai bahtin Or multiple ladders that a single man could put up all at once from no where.

[@qwertyerror601]

or your peasants climbing the walls while half of them fall off from freindly fire, causing a demoralized troop to get F'd by 45 samurai

[@Bruh-hq1hx]

That is how samurai sieged stuff throw a rope and fall of it and die due to bad cardio

[@T33K3SS3LCH3N]

@@qwertyerror601 that was at least a far more realistic scenario than modern TW sieges with the aforementioned Ladders Ex Machina.

[@mariushunger8755]

I rather prefer to be quarantined in my living room than caged in a beleaguered city...

[@Tridentus]

Tough times breed tough kids who turn into tough adults. We're like domesticated dogs if you compare them to their wolf ancestors. If we'd lived in those times we'd be tougher to cope (or be dead I spose).

[@Sandouras]

They had no internet back then. It must have been horrible!

[@brokenbridge6316]

I'd don't think I'd want to be inside a besieged city either, friend.

[@chiefexecutiveaccelerator]

you can image your living room as a star fortress then defend it

[@cambuurleeuwarden]

thats like saying 'I much rather be sleeping in my own warm bed at home than be quartered by four horses'

[@theflyingcatz]

Watching this September 15th 1608, really helpful. Captured a french star fort in no-time.

[@SandRhomanHistory]

good luck!

[@user-uy1rg8td1v]

@@SandRhomanHistory Great videos and animation style. I do feel your accent does make it hard to understand you. Since your audience is English speaking, I was wondering would you be open to hiring an English voice actor to narrate your videos? That's what the youtube history channel Kings and Generals do, they use a posh English professional voice actor and he does a great job. I would also caution against using background music too loudly or even too much as I feel background music is unnecessary for the middle of the video past the intro music especially since you have a thick accent that makes it harder to understand you.

[@PrinceOfDolAlmroth]

Easily one one of the most informative military history channels I've seen on here. the points are well covered and backed by historians, the visuals are simple yet effectively convey the ideas and subject matter in an entertaining way, and the narration is concise and pleasurable to the ears. If Dovahatty is the meme side of youtube history channels, this is the exact opposite of the spectrum, but still incredibly entertaining.

[@thedestroyer7530]

0:31 Mr. Stark i dont feel so good

[@jakehughes6087]

Lmao

[@grondhero]

Oh, snap!

[@stephenday2342]

@@grondhero I see what you did th....

[@nilspochat8665]

Here in France you just have to use the name of Vauban (or an adjectiv made of it and a suffix) to make someone understand you're talking about "star fortress". Even though the guy did not invent this kind of shaped city walls, he engineered most of them or converted them to that kind of fortification, and more. He is THE reference conscerning the fortresses and sieges of that time, *no one here doesn't know about the guy* . After all, he worked with Louis XIV almost for almost the entirety of his reign, quite a long and belligerent one, starting at only 22, and there's so much to say about him it fits to say he's a legend.

[@TeutonicEmperor1198]

He and Coehorn were the masters of star fortification not only by building them but also by finding ways to capture them!

[@kamilszadkowski8864]

I was hoping that they would also mention the Dutch and French styles of building fortifications. From the video, it almost sounds like there was just the Italian style. Although I imagine that time constraints are to blame here. You can only fit so much ina relatively short KZbin video.

[@oddballsok]

funny to think that when today a nations power is counted in ballistic missiles, in (pre) WW1 in numbers of dreadnoughts, in 16th-17th Century it was counted in fortified cities. Vauban on the french side, and Coehorn on the dutch side working "like mad" (paid by their sovereign leaders) to construct these mathematical perfect shaped fortresses.

[@nilswettlin2012]

Indeed, I live very close to one of vaubans forts (neuf-brisach, close to the German border) it was never conquered in a real battle, the city surrendered once, in the franco Prussian war, when they were out of food

[@user-ld4qt6ci7b]

There's a (very mediocre) Russian alt-history book which mentions him

[@Yuyu-ox3xl]

Girl: He's probably thinking of other women Guy: I wonder how you lay siege to a star fortress?

[@PANZERFAUST90]

Is that a question?

[@LuizAlexPhoenix]

@@Io-vz2jq I mean, if you are cool with that, more power to you. I ain't kinkshaming people that fantasize about their SO getting gangbanged to the point of projecting on others, but you don't need to tell us about it.

[@joehopkins3684]

cringe

[@lavtekk2086]

10:00 that poor hanging dude at the right

[@grondhero]

Nice catch.

[@Wo0dGlue]

The spanish movie Alatriste shows the famous Siege of Breda from the view of the attackers, with some rather gritty trench warfare, matchlock sniper duel and trench crawling. Great historical flick that you can find on youtube

[@smithrick7051]

I live there and never saw it. Gonna find it now tho

[@Damo2690]

"Matchlock sniper duel" wat

[@angelopueyygarcia43]

Damo2690 believe it or not that happened. You have to be very skilled though and extremely lucky.

[@WiseSnake]

You didn't mention Aragorn is the lead role. lol Looks pretty good so far.

[@robertasvaicius4437]

@@Damo2690 they take turns to 360 no-scope one another until one of them wins.

[@miguelmontenegro3520]

Romans generals: I wonder if in the future people will stop building stuff around the besieged city, it's so unpractical. What great times those shall be. Generals a millennia later: What a beautiful ring of stuff I built around this little town. Look at it.

[@wu1ming9shi]

Honestly though, even if they didn't knew about the romans like we do today (was the story of Alesia that widely known at the time?) they still would've come to the same conclusion of you had half a brain.

[@miguelmontenegro3520]

@@wu1ming9shi We expect that generals are keen to read ancient warfare books for guidance. Many ancient scrolls survived, mainly in italy, as the schollars from Constantinople fled there.

[@wu1ming9shi]

@@miguelmontenegro3520 That may indeed be a possibility but it's also likely that it was a logical conclusion.

[@miguelmontenegro3520]

@@wu1ming9shi The thing is: I compared both as a joke, because almost a millennia later they were doing It again

[@RagbagMcShag]

@@miguelmontenegro3520 is that the medieval equivalent of building a net-deck? :-]

[@Edekje]

I live right next to the fully preserved Naarden star fortress. Whenever I go running on its walls, I always imagine it being sieged!

[@CharitonIosifides]

Hi, Greetings from Nicosia, Cyprus. That 21 year siege was actually of Chándax (Χάνταξ), which is modern day Heraklion in Crete. The fortifications were first made by the Saracens who just called the place Castle of the Moat (Chantax in Greek). The Venetians just changed Chandax to Cadia and made a huge upgrade to the walls. 40 meters thick and more than 20 meters tall in places. They still stand and they are an impressive sight even today. Unfortunately, and despite it’s modern walls, Nicosia fell easily to the Ottomans in 1578. Famagusta on the other side gave them a black eye. Look it up.

[@pikeshotBattles]

Ey, I I was going to do this video in just a couple of months time, but you beat me to it! One thing I would add is that the reason for the wet ditch was so the attacker couldn't dig a tunnel to undermine the bastion. In order to do that they first had to drain the ditch, and that took a lot of time. This is one of the main reasons why it was so hard to take Dutch fortifications, as water was always abundant, and often impossible to drain (as at Antwerp 1584-85). BTW would you be interested in a cooperation? I have a few ideas that might fit your roster.

[@evanx383]

A worthwhile comment. Tunneling defeated because the tunnel would flood. Clever.

[@lamolambda8349]

I was born in the water raised by it I didn't see dry land until I was already a man.

[@SandRhomanHistory]

I'll write you an email :)

[@rudy103069]

@michael dowson all have bs building narrative just like fort prince of wales by church hill manitoba. these where left over building from the antedulvian time. you can still see their grid on google earth.

[@justinokraski3796]

also the defenders can see the water level going down

[@JamesKerLindsay]

Fascinating video. Thanks. I lived in Nicosia, Cyprus for many years. A classic example of a star fortress built around a city. The Venetian walls around the Cypriot capital still stand to this day. A really lovely feature of the city.

[@SandRhomanHistory]

I've visited Nicosia and Cyprus with an Ancient history seminar. We've stayed at Nicosia as well. Amazing Island, amazing history, amazing food and cool people ;)

[@JamesKerLindsay]

SandRhoman History I lived there for 8 years. Still have family on the island. So many great historical sites - from all eras. Love the channel, by the way! :-)

[@machofriz857]

0:31 Holy shit that spear guy rekt the knight so hard that the knight shattered.

[@galshaine2018]

One of the last battles of the Great War, Nov. 4th 1918, was ironically a modern 'siege' (or... Breach of) the Star fortress city of Le Quesnoy in France by the New Zealanders and against the German army. A very interesting read, and combat action.

[@TR-ru7wl]

Thanks, was a good read

[@G1ennbeckismyher0]

Finally, a helpful tutorial i can use in my everyday life.

[@brianoneil9662]

Seriously, I absolutely LOVE your art style and animation. I already like history but your videos not only look AWESOME, the information and presentation are just fantastic! Kudos sir!

[@brianoneil9662]

@zztop3000 That's what I mean by "style". Colorful, simplistic and unique. It's not about realistic CGI. It's animation and having a distinct visual style is a mark of good animation. Anybody can do cheap crappy CGI.

[@4f52]

@zztop3000 Sign me up with your kid, I love his art style.

[@brianoneil9662]

@@4f52 Right? Kid's a prodigy!

[@user-cd4bx6uq1y]

With the rising amounts of this kind of fortification being applied for defence and housing by all kinds of potential opponent military organizations, it has become very important to stay educated on them. Thanks for the fantastic guide on this "real world" medieval RTS game that cool kids play nowadays

[@alexanderjim9301]

"Artillery adds dignity to what would otherwise be a vulger brawl" Otto Von Bismarck

[@loganb7059]

Oof that quote aged like milk when WW1 started

[@johnpotter4750]

Do you kill the oxen once in siege position, Food. Then hire new oxen when the commander payments cease. Always a risk for the hired gun.

[@ColoradoStreaming]

"The artillery conquers, the infantry occupies." -General Phillippe Pétain

[@johnpotter4750]

@@ColoradoStreaming Wrong Century....

[@philRminiatures]

Just painting my Renaissance army today, your super video is a first class break... Gorgeous!

[@hotsprinkles]

Loved the video! The detail, actual use of photos, and a non-boring format are the difference between having a good time on KZbin and accidentally zoning out every 45secs!!

[@alclay8689]

finally watched after 6 months on my recommended. the back and forth arms race trying to outwit each other was far more fascinating than i thought it would be. nice vid

[@adjectivenomad]

1.1million people: “hmm yes this is exactly what I need!”

[@Brakvash]

"Laying siege to a Star Fortress in the 16-17th Century" This is what inspired Warhammer 40K...

[@slappy8941]

Holy fuck you made a Warhammer reference! That's so fresh and hot, and not totally worn the fuck out now for years and years.

[@corvusboreus2072]

The ranges of weapons in Warhammer 40k were also based upon 16th century firearms.

[@SirPano85]

@@Commodore22345 You're right, but CA made the things different by making TW: Warhammer 1 & 2 and in the military story community it often happens. But you still are right... ;-D

[@TheGodEmperorOfMankind_]

Hey as long as they don't crash the Star Fortress on the planet

[@patrioticwhitemail9119]

@@slappy8941 You people are toxic. What the hell. Just because something isn't new to you doesn't mean it isn't new to someone else. Someone coming across fantasy warfare and discovering that it came from history doesn't make him a nerd, it makes him curious. By you logic, I bet my mortgaged home that you are also a fucking nerd. You saw swords in cartoons being wielded by space warriors before you saw one in real life you fucking no-life geek. Get over yourself.

[@Thraim.]

I would ask a question here, but this video was so in depth that everything was answered already.

[@johnpotter4750]

Where's the B.P. stores and trackways to bring forth, plus firelocks guard to strip them of combustibles. A very real Danger.

[@thetriumphofthethrill2457]

One of the best and most informative videos I've seen on the topic. Good graphics and animation, engaging narrator and the right amount of knowledge. Well-done.

[@patrichausammann]

15:28 They often did not only set the pillars on fire, they rather made a big fire below the fortification, for example with wood and animal fat to make the structure collapse. The result was anyway that the wooden pillars caught fire too. I guess gun powder worked a bit faster, but was also more expensive. As I know, the defenders used kettles filled with water to see where the enemy was digging such mines.

[@k.s.m.1197]

This video reminded me of the siege of Vienna by the ottomans , especially the idea of digging under the city to destroy the walls.

[@christianweibrecht6555]

Did you watch the extra credits series on that?

[@juanzulu1318]

Digging under the walls was already known and done in the middle ages.

[@HighKingBob]

Juan Zulu since ancient times

[@heckleypanes4988]

Its a desperate race against the Mines and a race against time THEN THE WINGED HUSSARS ARRIVED

[@SuperNintendawg]

Sapping! A common tactic deployed all over the world. Sometimes you'd have counter-tunnels dug at the same time by the defenders. Skirmishes underground were terrifying due to cramped conditions and lack of light. Cave-ins could happen at any time. This was not an enviable job.

[@crypt0sFX]

Imagine spending 21 years of your life taking down one fort. Honestly worth it.

[@leifrobinson6118]

I was literally 2 seconds into this and I subscribed just from the artwork. My first time seeing your videos. Unbelievable work!

[@SandRhomanHistory]

Thank you so much!

[@bernlack]

Its like someone took the books in the school library history section and used all of its art in a video

[@thomasmuntzer684]

Excellent. Renaissance warfare getting the attention it deserves. Just subscribed.

[@coffeeNTrees]

glad i found your channel. well done. interesting and enjoyable animations. you sponsors are well served as your segways are unmatched.

[@deutschamerikaner]

I love to hear about 16th and 17th century warfare. It is a very unique topic and you do a good job showing it.

[@kamilszadkowski8864]

Maybe in the future, you could make a video that dwells deeper into the topic of early modern fortifications? You know, how different styles came into existence and evolved, like the old-Italian style evolved into new-Italian and so on?

[@AdamNoizer]

Yep. Indeed mining/sapping under the walls ⛏ was a very useful strategy. It often helped the attackers to destroy city walls without suffering as many casualties. But it was a long process and as shown by the siege on Vienna in 1683, ran on borrowed time and gave the defenders more time to gather a relief force.

[@Perzyn]

Just the tutorial I've been looking for! You guys are lifesavers!

[@chrism7395]

Plymouth, UK had/has (they're unfortunately in varying states of restoration) a massive network of smaller star forts and redoubts built around it. Along it's northern (landward) edge alone there were at least 9 forts and redoubts that were designed to provide flanking fire on one another if any were attacked, with trench works and a covered military road (thought to now follow Crownhill Road and Fort Austin Avenue) connecting them so reinforcements could quickly move between them. Many of them were still used up to WW2 as anti aircraft batteries or billets for American GIs prior to D Day. In fact, one of the Blockhouses in Crownhill Fort has chunks missing from its internal roof where GIs used the rooms to practice grenade drill. Add to that fortifications on Rame Head and Staddon Heights and it must've been an incredible undertaking to build them all. Apparently, the Royal Artillery Regiment surveyed Crownhill Fort and said that, even today, it'd be a hard target to capture without levelling it!

[@Kitties_are_pretty]

13:43 War is truly hell. Never forget.

[@Ranstone]

XD

[@arhumzia6360]

No in hell no one is innocent war is worse

[@nabucodonosor2]

As an historian and a philosopher I enjoy a lot your channel. Specially the inclusion of a conceptual framework to talk about the past, one of the few channels to do that. Kudos to the SandRhoman Team!

[@SandRhomanHistory]

Hey, thanks for the comment. We appreciate your words a lot! It's so nice when people notice and value the effort that goes into the vids :)

[@CHoskins1861]

Well done! Great use of graphics to create an engaging lesson in military history. Thank you!

[@petermuller608]

Finally a tutorial I can apply to my day-to-day live!

[@maanvis81]

I'm not used to seeing mountains in the background when types of dutch and flemish siege tactics are discussed ;). Ostend and geertruidenberg are very much surrounded by flat land and venlo has very small hills at best. Thanks for the informative lesson nonetheless!

[@thhseeking]

Very much the kind of country in Brel's "Mijn vlaake land" :P Of course, he was Bruxellois...it's a bit less "vlaake" in the south :P

[@paulosabib]

What was generally more expensive? A very long siege (like 20 years one, quoted in the video) or the build plus the maintenance of a fortress to resist such a long siege?

[@pikeshotBattles]

A fortification was nothing more than a force multiplier. IE. the defender also had to maintain an army inside the fort in order to make it effective. So it's hard to say what was more expensive. Since most such fortifications were built around preexisting cities, the government could always share the building costs with the cities, whereas besieging a fortification was almost always the job of the government. Taking this into count, yes we can say it might have been cheaper to build than to besiege.

[@kamilszadkowski8864]

Both were very expensive but of course, building and maintaining such fortress would, in the end, pay back more than investing your resources to take such a fortress. It has to be pointed out however that such long sieges were the exception and not the rule.

[@Inquisitor_Vex]

Though if you consider that a single fortress might withstand multiple sieges. It then pays for itself several times over.

[@AudieHolland]

Besieged cities were almost always of great strategic importance. So the saying "whatever it takes" applies. If the city was a financial and/or economical hub, saving the city would guarantuee the defense would pay for itself.

[@barthoving2053]

Fortress were general only maintained at times of war. There are plenty of stories of fortresses and cities not getting there defenses repaired and updated in time. I think you generally needed a 10 to 1 ratio to besiege a fortress, plus you build your own fortifications on much larger scale, which would offset the cost any lower quality of those defenses would bring. The cost for the besieger would be much higher. Only if a large front needed to be protect with several specific build and maintained fortresses the costs for the defenders might be higher. As the other forts still needed to be maintained if siege was laid to one of them. And the loss of one fort might make the other strategically useless and actually only tie up resources. Of course for cities under siege the most expensive thing is the indirect losses caused by lack access to their surrounding lands and trade and the damage the siege and counter-siege operations to it and the city itself.The Austrian/Spanish Netherlands got in an economic decline because of continuous being invaded. So for a prosperous city to have strong enough defense important as to deter an attack in the first place is already a win. The siege generally only started if the attacker was sure he could win, because of the cost.

[@zachleavitt87]

Such a good watch learned alot! Thank you and subbed

[@km077]

Yup, exacly the info I needed. Keep up the good work.

[@dd11111]

That was a great video, informative, entertaining and with an interesting art style and animations. You sir, have gained a subscriber.

[@SandRhomanHistory]

Very much Appreciated.

[@noahkidd3359]

I love these animations!

[@jean-rochdion4898]

Nice job!!! I live 6 years in a Vauban forteress!!! We allways talk about that subject!!

[@columbidaze-p]

Thanks for this guide-- it's super detailed and really easy to follow along with! My friends and I overtook and captured a star fortress this weekend with no problem!

[@LudietHistoria]

Anither great video from my favorite youtuber!

[@gabrielvanhauten4169]

I m just a min in but bruuh this looks like a treat.

[@ramO-jp8tp]

Bruuuuhhh fr bruh

[@reallyhappenings5597]

Fascinating period of military history for its mix of tactical elements

[@nickshapland9384]

I LOVE that you quoted john lynn! I took one of his military history courses at my university and he was amazing!!

[@SandRhomanHistory]

Damn, i'm seriously jealous. Would have loved to have a course with that man. He seems like one of those icredibly knowledgeable and straight forward, though slightly old fashioned (but in a good sense) profs. His books are great too!

[@ondrejstelbacky4032]

Great video!!!

[@willotter4503]

15:42, those water physics r amazing

[@lillyanneserrelio2187]

His entire video is amazing

[@rogersledz6793]

Thank you so much for uploading this video. It is helping me get through the pandemic!

[@botondhetyey159]

Finally, a tutorial about stuff I can really use in my everyday life.

[@TechnologicZb]

I would love to see a video on how these armies kept themselves supplied and what their sanitation policies were.

[@daca8395]

7:09 oh I see! Caesar, are you having a lough from beyond the grave?

[@helixwolf100]

Awesome video, I appreciate your use of visuals.

[@AlexanderRM1000]

1:20 medieval warfare was also tremendously focused on sieges with battle being rare but much flashier and more famous; it seems there was a period in the 1400s and 1500s where cannons outpaced fortification technology making them much easier to take and making battles more important, although sieges were still very important even at the height of this period.

[@WS-le4dv]

So you just spent a fortune building a fortress around a fortress and finally, FINALLY you've taken it. What happens to all those trenches? That's what I want to know.

[@user-mw9rs8zk3n]

u get besieged by enemies from your own fortress fortress

[@Mrdevs96]

@@user-mw9rs8zk3n lol two fortresses for the price of one

[@d-rangatang5294]

They double as the graves for all the men you used to take it

[@mariosebastiani3214]

@@d-rangatang5294 That's actually a good idea

[@samuelbunkly2527]

If the fortress is worth keeping, it provides a good outter defence ring to protect the newly captured fortress.

[@jakehughes6087]

A Loyal Sub

[@2Links]

Thank you for the tutorial. Just what I needed.

[@UnTotal1-Requess]

Tysm I really needed this. I was worried I was under prepared or wouldn't do it correctly. Now I can lay siege to my neighbor's star fortress. Thank you.

[@clintmoor422]

just what i needed in my self isolation, thank you. the stronghold of constantiople was way stronger though

[@SultanOfAwesomeness]

Jonathan Williams I mean all things considered, yeah, it did survive quite long against artillery. While the walls were weakened by it, the city was taken in the end by storm, and even then, they got in through an older section of the wall that wasn’t as up to par with the rest. That’s not to say that cannons didn’t help, but the fact that the Ottomans began extensive sapping in addition to doing that whole maneuver with moving their ships over land to blockade the city by sea indicates that simply using artillery wasn’t doing much.

[@IPFreelly604]

Constantinople was an inside job

[@mondaysinsanity8193]

@CipiRipi00 wait what how does a dude beseiging constantinople end up a saint

[@Nero-ho6gt]

@@mondaysinsanity8193 According to their wording, the gate is named the Gate of St. Romanus.

[@MrWafflejam]

Took me 16 minutes to realize this wasnt a total war tutorial

[@maxjohnson1448]

Thanks for the tutorial, I’ve had a lot of problems with Star fortresses in the past

[@WeaslyTwin]

Hey! John Lynn was actually my college professor at U of I! I loved his class. What a surprise to see him again.

[@saltycabbge1354]

nice

[@roberth1328]

0:30 damn that dude's halberd has a Thanos snap

[@Fleetches]

sweet vid bro, very informative. I'm glad I found your channel you just earned a sub.

[@hindolmukherjee1191]

This really helped in my war efforts .... Thanks man 👍

[@noemiekramer7699]

Thank you for your work! this topic is very complex indeed... It must have been incredibly terrifying and wearing to fight and dig between the artillery of both sides, hiding in muddy trenches for days and weeks...

[@ploptart4649]

I'm going to bullet point this under "Soft Skills" on my résumé

[@SovietReunionYT]

This is so fascinating! Until now I've had only a vague idea of post-medieval sieges despite being interested in military history.

[@DeZiio]

This will be helpful for my journey back in time

[@Darkestestmatter]

Sieges are hard? Laughs in Death Korps of Krieg ;) P.S.: Your presentation i getting better and better which each isntallment. Thumbs up.

[@peterthepeter7523]

Sure, sieges are easy for these pros - they just need to waste almost 20 years and 14 million soldiers to win. Easy peasy.

[@bloodrave9578]

@@peterthepeter7523 All worthy sacrifices to the God Emperor

[@christophermcguire7888]

Without siege guns or a corps of engineers from Badajoz to San Sebastian I refer you to the peninsula campaign.

[@cnlbenmc]

+@@peterthepeter7523+ To be Fair; Vraks was an absolute nightmare to attack; mix the Maginot Line, Atlantic Wall and Seigfried Line together and you get some idea what the Kreigers had to deal with plus with massive shield generator arrays and planetary defense lasers to boot. Nothing short of an exterminatus would have been able to neutralise it in short order or maybe 5000 Space Marines attacking all at once.

[@notsmoothie]

Ah yes, the famous Julius "Build a Wall" Caesar.

[@wetdroidedition2549]

Amazing work, good production.

[@Fg795yt]

Thanks bro was having some trouble fight this dudes fortress so I just hopped in my time machine and watched this

[@iagohauchi3694]

Great video! well explained :) Meanwhile in our current time (more so in the cold war era), empires can siege entire countries with embargoes and sanctions, depriving them of strategic resources, like Iran, Venezuela or Palestine... Or with soft war, tiring down opposition with well placed riots and popular demonstrations... In the end, war never changes, it's about economic resources to make it worth the cost or not.

[@justme6094]

Gseht spannend us.

[@BanditoBurrito]

21 year siege. That’s literally my entire life. God damn.

[@serenissimarespublicavenet3945]

And the city never actually fell. The citizens wanted to fight on, but a large part of the garrison which consisted of French mercenaries was tired and wasn't payed enough, so they decided to surrender to the Turks before those mercenaries would leave. In exchange for the surrender, the Turks spared every inhabitant of the city and those who wanted to were allowed to move to Venice. The entire garrison was allowed to leave too.

[@thekameleon9785]

Just found this channal and subbed. Im from a historic town that had these defenses and they are still in place

[@Nerewar90]

*Rolls 14* "Walls Breached"

[@ASNS117Zero]

Should have just rolled for a general with more siege pips. :D