So, in Prince Caspian when the Pevensies come back to Narnia after a thousand or so years, they find Cair Paravel in ruins. What's bugged me about that since I read PC, VDT, and SC, is that by even the time of VDT, everybody seems to be going about business in Cair Paravel like nothing ever happened. How long does everybody think it takes to rebuild a ruined castle? 😛 ....or have I totally missed something in one of the books?
Thank you, Hobbit!
You know, I've always wondered this. I guess they just rebuilt it very fast. They wouldn't have the 'technology' to get it done quickly but don't underestimate the willpower and willingness of Narnian citizens.
Not to mention they had a bunch of, well, different Creatures to help with the building. I'd take a Giant over a crane any day.
😆 Yeah, that's right.
Thank you, Hobbit!
And if we want an example of quick building in ancient times, look in the book of Nehemiah. 😉 Perhaps they had a similar plan once they knew what the overall look was going to be. Plus, in the books, it seems to be less destroyed than it was in the movie, so perhaps they had enough to build on to help them out.
Would it be stable enough, though, building on what was left? They would have the layout to go by, so that would reduce the time.
Mm, point...
Yes, I don't suppose the foundation would have to be redone, would it?
I've wondered about this before, too. I always figured that Caspian either lived in a different castle (and Cair Paravel referred to this other castle, or else Lewis made a typo (neither of these are likely)), or they simply rebuilt it and Lewis didn't tell us. I think what you guys have already mentioned is most likely what happened.
There is an ongoing castle building project in the works in France, they are building a mediaeval style castle using only techniques and technologies that existed in that time period. It's a 25 year long project and the castle is nowhere near as fancy as Cair Paravel (the BBC did a miniseries on it which I watched, it was very interesting). It would NOT have been finished by the time of VotDT, by the time of SC when Caspian is old maybe, but not VotDT.
That's just my pennies worth.
If anyone wants information on the project here's their website, check it out if you're interested in that manner of thing.
http://www.guedelon.fr/en/
Ooh, cool!
I'm not sure how long the gap between the high kings and queens leaving Narnia through the wardrobe and their return to find Cair Paravel in ruins, but some chronologies put the gap at 1000+ years. I have, however, visited israel and Turkey and I can tell you in that amount of time the flora would have taken over the structure and I believe the real castle would be buried under a mound similar to the one over the stone table, and definitely would not normally be accessible from the surface ground level. The fact that Cair Paravel was so well preserved and so easily accessible --yet its treasure trove was untouched over the centuries-- points to a miracle that only Aslan can explain.
Mm, point, Benisse! I'd forgotten how overgrown and otherwise buried things can get over a relatively short amount of time.
"Some magic of the place" is thrown around as a possible reason, yes.
It's not the rebuilding that bothers me as much - the cathedral in the Prague Castle wasn't really finished until the 20th century, but it didn't stop people from using it; you could always temporarily roof some sections to use them and work on others, so it would be finished by the time of Caspian's last voyage. What bothers me is the fact that in PC, it's on an island, yet there's no mention of an island in SC.
I wonder how long it would have taken them to refill the channel... after all, with the dwarfs and Moles and other of that type of Creature, it doesn't seem like it would be too long...???
