William Castle

For more than 80 years, the remarkable, wedding cake-like structure located on the eastern fringe of Phoenix has intrigued residents and visitors alike.

For more than half a century, the Franklin Castle's dark façade has lured curiosity seekers from around the world. Behind its iron gates, this Victorian-era structure harbors rumors of everything from insanity to mass murder.

After the British garrison of Fort William Henry in the colony of New York surrendered to the besieging army of the French commander Marquis de Montcalm in August 1757, it appeared that this particular episode of the French and Indian War was over. What happened next became the most infamous incident of the war - and one which forms an integral part of James Fenimore Cooper's classic novel The Last of the Mohicans - the 'massacre' of Fort William Henry.

A man's home is his castle, or so the saying goes, but could it withstand an attack by Attila and the Huns, Ragnar and the Vikings, Alexander and the Greeks, Genghis Khan and the Mongols, or Tamerlane and the Tartars? Backyard Ballistics author William Gurstelle poses this fascinating question to modern-day garage warriors and shows them how to build an arsenal of ancient artillery and fortifications aimed at withstanding these invading hordes. Each chapter introduces a new bad actor in the history of warfare, details his conquests, and features weapons and fortifications to defend against him and his minions.