Forts as a class of defensive structures on the example of fortifications of the distant Chersonese Hora

Abstract

This article reviews the monuments of ancient fortification, which historically belonged to the remote chora of Chersonesus since the late IV century BC. Among them, the author highlights the urban and rural settlements that featured various defensive structures. This factor is associated with a wide territorial expansion of Chersonesus in the territory North-Western Crimea. The interpretation of some monuments remains controversial due to the absence of meticulous analysis of the functions of certain constructs and planning structures of the fortified settlements. The role of the fortified settlements of the remote chora of Chersonesus in the process of development of vast territories of the North-Western Crimea is also contentious. The key goal of this article consists in the analysis of ancient fortifications from the perspective of the existing archaeological classification and records from the written sources. For correlating the Chersonesus fortifications with the existing sections in archaeological classification, namely with the concept of “fort”, the author applies the analysis of defensive functions, which in turn, are reflected in architectural-planning solutions and provisioned by the ancient architects military tactical techniques, which can be observed in the architectural remnants. Based on the acquired results, the author offers a multifaceted comprehensive approach towards analyzing the architectural constructs, which allows conducting new historical reconstructions of defense system of the chora.