Explanation: In medieval Europe, warfare had largely been reshaped in the post-Classical period by the advent of ever-more-numerous and ever-stronger fortifications, which we generally refer to as ‘castles’. These fortifications allowed small groups of elites to impose their will on a broad swathe of the countryside, slow invading foes for months at a time, and cut enemy supply lines if they were left to their own devices.

When Muslims in Spain introduced gunpowder to Christian Europe in the 14th 13th century AD, Europe eagerly began constructing cannons and blowing down all of their fancy castles, eventually causing a radical shift in the nature of European warfare by the 16th century AD. Fortifications became increasingly secondary to massive professional armies and artillery corps, and the influence of elite warrior-knights faded in both military and political terms.

What the fuck is this photo? “Let’s make ¼ of our child’s height her hair for some reason and put her behind a full machine gun”

This reminds me the destruction of the Parthenon in Athens at the Siege of Acropolis (1687). .

Basically the Ottomans used the Parthenon as a gunpowder storage, while the Venetian forces sieged the acropolis with cannons and mortars. On the evening of 26 September 1687, a mortar shell hit the building, the resulting explosion killed 300 people and led to the complete destruction of the temple’s roof and most of the walls.

This is why you get some parts of Europe with many preserved medieval castles and others with few.

Those at war during the transition period were most likely to get blown up. Areas conquered by the Ottomans suffered most damage.

Those that survived long enough to become completely obsolete are still around today.

See, people complain about museums appropriating stuff from various cultures, but stuff like this happens a lot. See also: Babylonian paving destroyed by US tanks, most of Hadrian’s Wall being repurposed as housing and enclosures…