The house or keep
consisted of one room
with a high ceiling and a
straw covered floor. The
room was supposed to
keep people safe. When
the nobles and lords ate
they threw the scraps on
the floor and ate with
their bare fingers.
Caricature of Castles and Knights
By Shane Thompson
4/24/13 Period: 1
In the tournaments the most popular
event was jousting. But the problem
was that the tournaments were very
expensive to stage.
The noblewoman helped run the
estates and even defended the castle
when the men were away. But the
husbands had complete authority over
noblewoman after marriage.
The knights had to follow a certain set of rules
called the Code of Chivalry. These rules stated
that a knight had to obey his lord, show
bravery, respect woman of noble birth, honor
the church, and help people.
At first he was a page who helped take care of
destriers, learned good manners and was taught
battle skills. Next he became a squire who would
accompany his noble. Lastly they would become a
knight if they proved themselves in battle.
Nobles and their families lived
in wooden houses surrounded
by palisades or high wooden
fences built for protection
before they lived in castles.
Knights were trained fighters on
horseback. The knights would
practice and train for war by
fighting in tournaments. They
would be tested for strength,
skill, and endurance.
The soft muddy moat that
surrounded the castle would
stop attackers from reaching
the castles. Since the moat
was wide it also helped from
attackers to climb over the
wall with a ladder.
Castles had thick stone walls
one within another. The
towers had archers in them
and were located at the
corners of the castle for
protection. Also on the inner
walls the towers began to be
a circular shape.
In the middle ages castles had
arrow loops or slits carved into the
walls as windows. They were fairly
small so nothing could come in the
castle. On the inside they had
carved sides on the windows for
shooting at an angle.