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Jan Sardj 1994 (14 months ago)
Very Beautiful
Very Beautiful
Mathieu Coquillas (6 years ago)
Raphael Boutin (8 years ago)
Très intéressant
Très intéressant
Fort Paté is a small oval battery on an island in the middle of the river Gironde, just big enough to hold the soldiers who defend it. It was built between 1685 and 1693 as part of the verrou de Blaye, a system of three forts built to seal the river against enemy ships.
The fort was situated so as to support the river batteries at Blaye on the right bank and Fort Médoc on the left bank. The island used to be flooded at very high tides and has varied in size considerably over the years. To prevent the fort from sinking into the muddy ground a special foundation had to be made.
The engineer François Ferry, advised by Vauban, was responsible for the construction of the fort. He constructed a grid of wooden piling, which rests upon wooden stakes, forming a raft. The fort itself was then built on top of this raft.
A similar wooden grid was laid around the island in order to stabilise it. In around 1705, the fort had sunk about two meters into the mud. Although the lower embrasures'were useless the rest of the fort was still useful. In 1730 the island had to be stabilised again because its size had been reduced considerably by the currents of the river. The technique used to make the foundation for the battery is quite common in the region; Brouage, Fort Chapus and the Corderie Royal in Rochefort all have similar foundations.
References:Trenčín Castle is relatively large renovated castle, towering on a steep limestone cliff directly above the city of Trenčín. It is a dominant feature not only of Trenčín, but also of the entire Považie region. The castle is a national monument.
History of the castle cliff dates back to the Roman Empire, what is proved by the inscription on the castle cliff proclaiming the victory of Roman legion against Germans in the year 179.
Today’s castle was probably built on the hill-fort. The first proven building on the hill was the Great Moravian rotunda from the 9th century and later there was a stone residential tower, which served to protect the Kingdom of Hungary and the western border. In the late 13th century the castle became a property of Palatine Matúš Csák, who became Mr. of Váh and Tatras.
Matúš Csák of Trenčín built a tower, still known as Matthew’s, which is a dominant determinant of the whole building.