For most people, the hundreds of star-shaped bastions that are found worldwide are uncontroversial military installations mostly built between the 16 and 19 centuries. They are generally accepted as being defensive structures responding to the advent of the heavy artillery that had made the mediæval castle redundant. Their squat and bulky structures lack the romance of their predecessors, being brutally functional and usually consisting of stout brick revetments backed by solid packed earth to absorb cannon fire and containing tunnels to shelter the garrison. Their star shapes are a function of the need for firing
