The reason why most staircases in medieval castles were extremely narrow and winding in a clockwise direction is of a strategic nature. These castles were mainly built for defense, and such staircases made it very difficult for enemy fighters to reach the top.
As most soldiers were right-handed, they had to go around the inner wall to strike, inevitably exposing themselves in the process. The clockwise spiral also gave the defenders the advantage of using the inner wall as a shield and being able to swing their weapons freely without the outer wall obstructing them.
In addition, the stairs were often poorly lit and unevenly built, which further hindered the attackers by making it difficult for them to maintain balance and momentum during their upward struggle.
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Wow thank you for your lesson Chris!! I did not know that!! I did not visit a lot of castles because my mom does not like to walk too much when we have vacation 🙂
But I remember that we climb a church tower and you also have round stairs and you get like dizzy walking it. But that is not for defending but maybe just because the tower is high. But if i read what you write for the castles it is not just that but they keep you safer. 🙂