Why did castles change?
L/O - To understand and explain how and why castles
changed over time
Why build Castles?
Where should you build castles?
A castle’s first defence was its location.
Harlech Castle was
almost impossible to
surround – why?
Other castles were built on hills.
This helped the defenders spot approaching enemy forces and
meant that objects could be thrown down on attacking soldiers.
Attackers would also be tired from climbing the hill.
Choosing a Site!
• King William has asked
you, his Baron, to build a
new castle in newly
conquered English lands.
• It must:
1. Dominate the local
population.
2. Control traffic in the
area.
3. Be easily defended.
4. Provide a home for you.
‘But where
shall we
build it me
lord?’
‘Be prepared to
justify your
choice of
location to the
King!’
‘Don’t forget to chose a
name for your castle!’
1.) Motte and Bailey Castles
• Motte and Bailey castles
were simple designs made
out of wood.
1. Why did William build
Motte and Bailey
castles?
2. What weaknesses did
Motte and Bailey castles
have?
KEEP (Watch Tower or don jon
in French)
PALISADE OR
STOCKADE
MOAT (usually
water filled)
BAILEY
MOTTE
BRIDGE
KILLING GROUND
DRAWBRIDGE
2.) Shell Keeps
• How is this castle
different from the
motte and bailey?
• Why did the Normans
start to build castles
like this?
• What problem did it
solve?
• What problems could it
have?
Shell Keep at Restormel
Castle, Cornwall
1100-1150 AD
3.) Square Keep
1087-1189 AD
• How is this castle different?
• Why build like this?
• What problems did it solve?
Bailey
Curtain Walls
Old Motte
Built in 1127, Rochester Castle
is a stone castle with a square
keep. The keep is the big tower
in the middle of the castle.
Square Keep
Forebuilding
Dormitory
• Now make a labelled
copy of the keep!
Forebuilding
This protected the entrance to
the keep.
Dormitory
A place for the women and
children to sleep
Cellars
Food, arms and ammunition
were stored here along with
prisoners.
Kitchen
Used for very basic cooking.
Great Hall
Used for eating and meeting.
Lord’s Room
Great Hall
Kitchen
Cellars
4.) Concentric Castles (Caerphilly, Wales)
Keep
Outer Walls
Ring Wall
Moat
Gatehouse
1272-1307 AD
5.) Residential Castles
Later on,
comfort
became more
important as
life in England
became less
violent. Some
later medieval
castles were
just fortified
stately homes.
How does this castle differ from earlier medieval
castles built for defence?
How did Castles Develop?
How did Castle
Defences
change?
How did castle defences change?
Castles were often built near rivers.
Why do you think this was?
Common Castle Defences
1.) The Castle Entrance
The castle entrance often had a barbican attached. This was
an extra gatehouse which protected the weakest part of the
castle – the main gate.
Barbicans usually had
portcullises. These
were metal gates
which could be
raised and lowered.
__________
____________
Soldiers attacking this
barbican had to get
through three entrance ____________
gates with portcullises.
Barbican
Defending the Main Entrance
2.) The Battlements
The castle battlements sometimes
had a wooden hoarding (or
battrice) at the top.
This provided a place from which
soldiers could fire arrows or drop
heavy stones and boiling tar onto
the enemy below.
At the bottom of the curtain wall the
walls were angled so that when stones
were dropped they would bounce off
the bottom and hit the attackers.
If there was no slope at the
bottom of the wall, how
would the stones fall?
3.) Towers and Keeps
There were a number of features which could
be added to the castle to make it stronger.
Most castles had round towers in their
walls. This was so soldiers could fire in
all directions along the battlements.
The strongest part of the castle was the
keep. The keep was usually in the centre of
the castle or on its highest point.
Keeps had numerous defensive features
including thick walls, narrow staircases and
big cellars for sieges. Some even had their
own drawbridges.
Castle Defences
How did siege
tactics
change?
Why did siege warfare change?
As castles became stronger and harder to capture, armies
had to think of new ways to attack them.
As the attackers improved
their methods of attack…
…so the castle builders had to
improve their castle’s defences.
This led to continuous development in siege
warfare technology.
1.) Battering Rams
2.) Catapults – The Mangonel
Catapults were used to throw stones and other objects at
castles. There were two main types:
The mangonel threw
medium-sized rocks or
other objects using
tension created by
twisting ropes.
twisted rope
The mangonel had a range of about 150
metres.
3.) Catapults – The Trebuchet
The trebuchet used a
counterweight to fling
larger objects.
As the weight dropped,
the throwing arm flung
the missile.
Edward I had a massive
trebuchet, nicknamed
‘Warwolf’, built during his
Scottish campaigns.
counterweight
Trebuchets had a range of around 200 metres.
Given that a longbow could kill a man at about
250 metres, why could sieges take a long time?
Which type of projectile weapon is being used in
this picture of the Siege of La Rochelle?
4.) Siege Towers
Siege towers were used to get
soldiers over castle walls.
They had wheels so that they could be
rolled into position, and a drawbridge
at the top to bridge the gap between
the tower and the battlement.
The soldiers would climb up the tower
and rush across the drawbridge onto
the wall. Towers were often covered in
animal skins to protect them from fire.
What do you think were the
main disadvantages with this
method of attack?
5.) Mining
6.) Biological Warfare
Catapults were not just used to
throw stones – sometimes
attackers used more gruesome
methods.
During one siege in the fourteenth
century, plague victims were
catapulted over the castle walls to
spread the disease. Dead, rotting
animals were also thrown.
Psychological warfare was used too. The
heads of executed prisoners were sometimes
flung over castle walls and body parts thrown
through murder holes onto attacking soldiers.
7. Starving them Out
Castles were sometimes so strong that the only method
of attack was to wait. This was called laying siege.
The attackers would surround the castle, preventing
supplies getting in. Eventually, the defenders were forced
to give up or starve to death.
Sieges could take a very long time. Many castles had
wells in the keep and large storerooms full of supplies.
The best time to attack would be spring
as, by then, the supplies from the previous
year’s harvest would be running low.
Which method is best?
Which of the methods of attack do you think
would have been the most effective? Why?
Can you suggest any other methods attackers
might have used?
Plenary
Plenary
Introduction
Who first built castles in England? Why were they built? What
purpose did they serve? What is this essay about?
Motte and Bailey Castles
Why were they built? What problems did they solve? How were they built? What
features did they have and why? How were they defended? How were they attacked?
What problems did they have?
Shell Keep Castles
Stone Keep Castles
Concentric Castles
Residential Castles
Conclusion – Why did castles change? What was the reason? Why were they no
longer needed? What do they teach us about life in Medieval England?