Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence.
A water-filled moat made the practice of mining – digging tunnels under the castles in order to effect a collapse of the defences – very difficult as well.
[4] The term moat is also applied to natural formations reminiscent of the artificial structure and to similar modern architectural features.
[citation needed] With the introduction of siege artillery, a new style of fortification emerged in the 16th century using low walls and projecting strong points called bastions, which was known as the trace italienne.
Recent work by Patrick Darling has established it as the largest man-made structure in the world, larger than Sungbo's Eredo, also in Nigeria.
Even in modern times the moat system of the Tokyo Imperial Palace consists of a very active body of water, hosting everything from rental boats and fishing ponds to restaurants.
'furrowed shape empty moat') is a series of parallel trenches running up the sides of the excavated mountain, and the earthen wall, which was also called doi (土居, lit.
[citation needed] Moats were also used in the Forbidden City and Xi'an in China; in Vellore Fort in India; Hsinchu in Taiwan; and in Southeast Asia, such as at Angkor Wat in Cambodia; Mandalay in Myanmar; Chiang Mai in Thailand and Huế in Vietnam.
As Brisbane was much more vulnerable to attack than either Sydney or Melbourne a series of coastal defences was built throughout Moreton Bay, Fort Lytton being the largest.
Built between 1880 and 1881 in response to fear of a Russian invasion, it is a pentagonal fortress concealed behind grassy embankments and surrounded by a water-filled moat.
[citation needed] Moats were developed independently by North American indigenous people of the Mississippian culture as the outer defence of some fortified villages.
Dry moats were a key element used in French Classicism and Beaux-Arts architecture dwellings, both as decorative designs and to provide discreet access for service.
Excellent examples of these can be found in Newport, Rhode Island at Miramar (mansion) and The Elms, as well as at Carolands, outside of San Francisco, California, and at Union Station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Additionally, a dry moat can allow light and fresh air to reach basement workspaces, as for example at the James Farley Post Office in New York City.
[11] The structure, with a vertical outer retaining wall rising direct from the moat, is an extended usage of the ha-ha of English landscape gardening.
[12] In 2008, city officials in Yuma, Arizona planned to dig out a two-mile stretch of a 180-hectare (440-acre) wetland known as Hunters Hole to control immigrants coming from Mexico.
