Editing Slighting (section)

==Methods of destruction==
[[File:Newark Castle, 06-2013 (6).jpg|thumb|300px|Each method of destruction leaves a distinctive trace. At [[Newark Castle, Nottinghamshire|Newark Castle]] in [[Nottinghamshire]] the use of gunpowder left a crater damage pattern.{{sfn|Rakoczy|2007|pp=67–68}}|alt=A ruined stone structure with a wooden walkway halfway up the wall.]]

Castles were demolished with a range of methods, each affecting the buildings in different ways. Fire might be used, especially against timber structures; digging underneath stone structures (known as [[Tunnel warfare|undermining]]) could cause them to collapse; dismantling a structure by hand was sometimes done, but was time- and labour-intensive, as was filling ditches and digging away earthworks; and in later periods gunpowder was sometimes used.{{sfn|Rakoczy|2007|p=60}}{{sfn|Nevell|2019|pp=6–11}} Manually dismantling a castle ("picking") can be split into two categories: primary damage where the intention was to slight the castle; and secondary damage which was incidental through activity such as retrieving reusable materials.{{sfn|Rakoczy|2007|pp=94–98}}

Undermining involved digging underneath a wall or removing stones at its base. When successful, the tunnel or cavity would collapse, making it difficult to identify through archaeology. Archaeological investigations have identified 61 castles that were slighted in the Middle Ages, and only five were undermined.{{sfn|Nevell|2019|pp=21–22}} While surviving mines are rare, one was discovered in the 1930s during excavations at [[Bungay Castle]] in [[Suffolk]]. It probably dates from around 1174 when the owner rebelled against [[Henry II of England|Henry II]].{{sfn|Braun|1934|p=118}}