Is there any truth to the story that all castle staircases turn clockwise to help right-handed defenders?
A widely repeated story holds that all staircases in mediaeval castles turn clockwise so that right-handed defenders were free to swing their weapons at an opponent, whereas any attackers trying to advance up the stair would find their sword arm hampered by the central newel post.
Is there any truth to this story? Were castle staircases really designed to be a military feature? Do anti-clockwise staircases exist? Are there any other explanations? How and why did this story develop?
The speaker, James Wright (Triskele Heritage), is an award winning buildings archaeologist. He has two decades professional experience of ferreting around in people’s cellars, hunting through their attics and digging up their gardens. He hopes to find meaningful truths about how ordinary and extraordinary folk lived their lives in the mediaeval period. He is the author of the popular Mediaeval Mythbusting Blog and his book Historic Building Mythbusting will be released via The History Press on 6 June 2024.
