medieval architecture in tropical climates

[QuentinGeorge]

Let's get an image up, so folks have a full idea....

Count the subtropics and you can use North Africa and the middle east.

 

[Bohandas]

Count the subtropics and you can use North Africa and the middle east.

And parts of Japan and a good chunk of china

 

[aramis erak]

North-Africa isn't tropical, though. It's arid/mediterranian and/or desert. Not at all humid enough to count as tropical.

Tropical is anything between 23.5°N and 23.5°s. Including the Tropical Deserts and Tropical Mediteranean climate zones in North Africa.

 

[Bluenose]

I probably could have posed my question more clearly. Basically what would a medieval European (or traditional fantasy) culture look like if it originated in or migrated to a tropical climate?

You probably can find something about how "Frankish" architecture was adapted to the middle east in the Crusader states. It included many things that were of local design, but with some typically European additions and modifications. So, pick a tropical architecture that you like, identify parts of it to replace with European architecture from the era you choose - try to make sure the adaptations won't ruin the advantages of the indigenous architecture for the climate - and use that as your "Colonial Gothic" style. Perhaps also look at some of the Portugese buildings from Africa from the 15th century, some still exist, and see what they were doing.

 

[Eltab]

St. Augustine FL, the Spanish built a traditional European fort ... out of limestone and coral. Modern visitors are told not to touch the walls because you can rub down the chalky rock with your bare hands.

Another possibility: Chinese diaspora into the South China Sea area.

Angkor Wat (Cambodia) - building in the tropics with stone.

Spanish colonial architecture in the US Southwest and northern Mexico.

 

[aco175]

I was looking at some Indonesian buildings with curved roofing that let the heat move and cooled the buildings. I would think that castles could be the same with lots of awnings to shade the courtyards and streets. You could even design something like a termite nest that is built to allow the heat to rise out of the top and let in the cooler air from the bottom.