Századok – 2014
TANULMÁNYOK - Feld István: A magánvárak építésének kezdetei a középkori Magyarországon a régészeti források tükrében I. II/351
386 FELD ISTVÁN wooden defensive line was replaced by a stone wall still within the period under consideration here, a clear evidence that the basic function of the construction remained unchanged. Some fortifications which never boasted considerable stone buildings are nevertheless referred to as „castles” (castrum) in the charters. More importantly, the systematic works of castle topography identify in increasing numbers such objects which, while never surfacing in the written documentation, have already been researched archaeologically, and in terms of geographical location and the remains of buildings cannot be distinguished from the constructions which are mentioned by the charters generally on mountain peaks or hilltops. These of course cannot be left out of any statistics that is intended to reflect the actual distribution of power. Recent research has also revealed the existence of constructions which, while having defensive structures (ditch, palisade) similar to those of the „true” castles, were at the same time conspicuously attached to the inner area of a settlement. Although no system of criteria that would make exact classification possible has been elaborated as yet, these could safely be regarded as manor houses. It is worth emphasising in this regard that the sites of thirteenthcentury constructions are frequently occupied in the 14th and 15th centuries by noble residences which are called „castella” in the charters. On the basis of all this it now seems evident that the functions of those fortified constructions which never appear in the written sources varied greatly. It is therefore utterly incorrect and even un-historical to group them under a single denomination (such as „small castle” or „hradek”), and it is the same unacceptable to exclude them altogether from the circle of those castles which do emerge in the charters. At the same time, neither the contemporary nor the modern scholarly terminology can be said to be consistent; in this regard suffice it to cite the parallel use of the terms „keep”, „motte” or „Mantelmauerburg” in previous Hungarian, Czech or Slovak scholarship. On the basis of the terminology used in the charters, in case of those fortifications which were dominated by a single great tower the use of the term „tower-castle” would be justified, as it reflects more faithfully the basic feature of most of the contemporary constructions, which consisted in the concentration in one single building of most architectural elements destined to ensure both housing and defensive functions. Of course, it is also possible to classify these buildings in terms of their geographical location, yet it is open to doubt to what extent this method, used widely in the European castle research, can take us closer to the main target of historical research, that is, determining the historical role of private castles in this early period.
