CASTLES

Castles were built long ago as a protection against enemies. The castle is where the lord, his family and followers lived. They worked for the king of the country who also lived in a castle. The first castles were made of wood and later made from stone to make them stronger. They were called 'motte and baileys'. The motte was just a high mound of earth on which stood a wooden tower.The bailey was the wooden fence at the bottom of the mound.



Castle Appearance

The wooden tower was replaced with a stone tower called a keep. The castle had a wall around it and outside it in the courtyard lived the lords followers. There was another wall around the courtyard. A moat was built around the castle to make it very difficult to attack. The moat was a deep ditch around the castle filled with water. The way into the castle was over the drawbridge. This could be raised and lowered over the moat. Inside the drawbridge was a portcullis which was a strong wooden grating which could drop down to close the way into the castle. Below you can see a simple drawing of a castle.

Click on the picture to find out how castles were built.



Inside the Castle

The first castles were very small so the people lived in the great hall that includes eating, sleeping and drinking. Imagine having only one room in your own house to live in with your family. In later castles many rooms were built on such as the lord and lady's room, the chapel, the guardroom, the prison and a storeroom. The kitchen was in the courtyard because they were afraid the kitchen would set the castle on fire.Click on the word Kitchen to find out more.


The Great Hall

The great hall was the heart of every castle certain times of the year fabulous feasts were held there. In the great hall they would do three things:
  • Eat
  • Do business
  • Have fun
Fools, jesters and mummers would perform for people as entertainment. Jesters were employed to make people laugh at the great feast. Mummers were local people dressed up who performed for food. They would sing and perform plays.To find out more about castle life click  here
This page was put together by 2nd class.