Torun – Torun Castle (Battering Ram)

This is one of several recreated medieval weapons on display at Torun Castle, with this being a not unsubtle battering ram. Various types of battering ram have been in use from antiquity through to around the sixteenth century, although the police in the UK now use an enforcer, or their own mini battering ram, to get through doors.

The battering ram had to be pointed and covered in metal to have the most devastating effect on gates and walls. Before rolling it into position, the attackers would place wet hides along its structure to ensure that the defenders couldn’t try and set it on fire. A burnt battering ram wouldn’t have quite the same effect….