This article is my attempt to establish that, while Castle Black is capable of movement, it has remained in (or returned to) the place it was originally raised throughout the novels. Bryan Newell (http://bryann.net) >From such lofty heights I have fallen, and only the worms await me. --begin document-- Has Castle Black Moved? Morrolan lives in a floating castle named Castle Black. This castle appears to be capable of movement. There are two references to Castle Black's ability to move. The first is when Tazendra raises it. She is asked if she can move it, and she responds yes, but it will take 5 or 6 years to travel the 50 miles to Dzur Mountain. 235 The second is when Kragar describes it to Vlad. He refers to where Castle Black "usually" is. 29 The Tazendra quote also sets the speed at which it moves: roughly 10 miles/year. Of course, it is entirely possible that Morrolan has found a way to make it move faster, but there is no text to support such a claim, so I hold off making it, unless it becomes necessary. I. Where Was Castle Black in The Lord of Castle Black? Morrolan discovered there was a crashed floating castle in his ancestral homeland, the County of Southmoor. 213 On the site of this crashed floating castle, he found two walls that had survived the fall. He used these to construct a temple. 217 When Kana's army threatened him, Tazendra lifted the temple (and some surrounding land) into the air. 235 Morrolan named his newly floating temple Castle Black. 240 So, any text references to this crashed floating castle, Morrolan's encampment, or Castle Black in this book all refer to the same physical location. At this time, it was 40 or 45 miles south of Dzur Mountain. 225 II. Where Was Castle Black in Taltos? Taltos takes place about 240 years after The Lord of Castle Black, which is enough time to move 2,400 miles. According to Vlad, it is about 50 miles from Dzur Mountain. 29 Is "40 or 45 miles" the same as "about 50 miles"? Even if it is, there's nothing to "pin it" in place. Maybe it was 40 or 45 miles South of Dzur Mountain, but now it's about 50 miles west. III. Where Was Castle Black in Dragon? The chapters in Dragon take place immediately after Taltos (the interludes take place after Yendi), so I'd say Castle Black is in the exact same place as it was in Taltos. At this time, there does not appear to be a village beneath Castle Black 268 when I believe there should be one 217 although there is a river, which matches The Lord of Castle Black. 225 On the other hand, the river in The Lord of Castle Black was moving southward. No speed is given for this southward migration, so it's unclear if the river under it in that novel should have moved a significant distance within 240 years. This suggests that Castle Black might have moved. However, it is also possible that Vlad simply ignores the village below in his narration. IV. Where Was Castle Black in Yendi? Yendi takes place about 2 years after Taltos/Dragon, so Castle Black might have moved up to 20 miles (if it spent the entire 2 years moving). Herein lies the most specific location of Castle Black in any of the novels. Castle Black is about 175 miles from Adrilankha, and to the east Vlad can see the "tip" of Dzur Mountain. 16 It is also floating over a small village (although we don't know if it's the same village as the one in The Lord of Castle Black). There is no mention of a river. The reference to the "tip" of Dzur Mountain to the east is a bit confusing to me. He doesn't say "peak", which I would have expected. Does "tip" imply the "leading edge" of the mountain (the foot of the mountain)? V. Where Was Castle Black in Jhereg? Jhereg takes place about 1 year after Yendi, so Castle Black might have moved up to 10 miles. Castle Black is around 200 miles from Adrilankha. 5 and 7 The second text reference implies the distance is actually LESS than 200 miles. If it moved directly away from Adrilankha, it could now be, at most, about 185 miles away. VI. Where Was Castle Black in Orca? Orca takes place about 4 years after Jhereg, so Castle Black might have moved up to 40 miles since then. The reference to Castle Black here is very weak. Vlad tells Kiera that some of the terrain around Northport reminds him of the prairie around Castle Black and to the west of Dzur Mountain. 264 One way to read this is that there is a prairie surrounding Castle Black, and Dzur Mountain is to the east of that prairie, which lines up with the other text above. VII. But What Does it Mean? The only text that really makes me wonder if Castle Black has moved is the fact that it is south of Dzur Mountain when raised, but the "tip" can be seen to the east 240 years later. Unfortunately, I'm not entirely sure what the "tip" is. If it's the leading edge of the mountain's foot, Dzur Mountain could be northeast of Castle Black, which satisfies both quotes. Sethra's lair being more north than east, but the mountain extends far enough south to be more east than north of Castle Black. The main reason I don't think it has moved is because no one says it has. At no point does Vlad mention it moving, which is the sort of detail I'd expect >from him. If it has moved, I'd say that movement took place between The Lord of Castle Black and Taltos. Even if I accept this is true, and exclude the information in The Lord of Castle Black when trying to locate Castle Black in "Vlad's Time", there is enough information in the other novels to pinpoint its location fairly precisely. However, based on the text referenced above, I do not see any indication it actually has moved, so I will go forward under the assumption it has essentially remained in the same location (or always returned to the original site) for the last 240 years.