Castles

Introduction

A castle was a fortified structure that was built during the Middle Ages by nobility, royalty or military organizations and was used as residence for their respective holders. They originated in the 9th and 10th centuries after the fall of the Carolingian Empire, which culminated in the territory being extremely decentralized and being split amongst the lords. These fortified positions had a multitude of purposes, the main of which was used to control the nearby land, and served as a defensive and administrative position for the land it was built around. Castles(although wooden) could also be built as a base of operations for offensive actions in enemy territory. Urban castles were built around important travel routes or near busy roads and were used to control the local populace, while rural castles were often built near fertile lands, water sources or key landmarks. Most castles were originally built from earth and timber and were later replaced by stone. The first castles lacked towers and arrowslits, and relied on natural defenses - however later on these missing features would be added to the castles.

Construction

Many factors had to be taken into consideration when commissioning the construction of a castle, the most important of which was the physical location - because it determined what natural resources could be taken from nearby, and if the needed resources couldn't be obtained locally, they would have to be moved, which, depending on the distance from which they'd have to be imported in, could drastically scale the price of construction. While castles made out of earth and timber could be built by an unskilled workforce and would not be too costly or take more than a month or two, they weren't as durable and resistant to assaults as stone castles, which cost significantly more, required a skilled workforce and most importantly - required a lot more time.

Castle features

Motte

A motte was an earthen mound with a flat top and was often artificial, though it sometimes incorporated a pre-existing feature of the landscape. Although the motte is commonly associated with the bailey to form a motte-and-bailey castle, this was not always the case and there are instances where a motte existed on its own. The excavation of earth to make the mound left a ditch around the motte, called a moat (which could be either wet or dry).

Bailey

A bailey, also called a ward, was a fortified enclosure. It was a common feature of castles, and most had at least one. The keep on top of the motte was the domicile of the lord in charge of the castle and a bastion of last defence, while the bailey was the home of the rest of the lord's household and gave them protection. The barracks for the garrison, stables, workshops, and storage facilities were often found in the bailey. Water was supplied by a well or cistern. Over time the focus of high status accommodation shifted from the keep to the bailey; this resulted in the creation of another bailey that separated the high status buildings – such as the lord's chambers and the chapel – from the everyday structures such as the workshops and barracks.

Keep

A keep was a great tower and usually the most strongly defended point of a castle before the introduction of concentric defense. Although often the strongest part of a castle and a last place of refuge if the outer defenses fell, the keep was not left empty in case of attack but was used as a residence by the lord who owned the castle, or his guests or representatives.

Curtain wall

Curtain walls were defensive walls enclosing a bailey. They had to be high enough to make scaling the walls with ladders difficult and thick enough to withstand bombardment from siege engines. A typical wall could be 3 m (10 ft) thick and 12 m (39 ft) tall, although sizes varied greatly between castles. To protect them from undermining, curtain walls were sometimes given a stone skirt around their bases. Walkways along the tops of the curtain walls allowed defenders to rain missiles on enemies below, and battlements gave them further protection. Curtain walls were studded with towers to allow enfilading fire along the wall

Gatehouse

The entrance was often the weakest part in a circuit of defenses. To overcome this, the gatehouse was developed, allowing those inside the castle to control the flow of traffic. In earth and timber castles, the gateway was usually the first feature to be rebuilt in stone. The front of the gateway was a blind spot and to overcome this, projecting towers were added on each side of the gate in a style similar to that developed by the Romans.[35] The gatehouse contained a series of defences to make a direct assault more difficult than battering down a simple gate. Typically, there were one or more portcullises – a wooden grille reinforced with metal to block a passage – and arrowslits to allow defenders to harry the enemy. The passage through the gatehouse was lengthened to increase the amount of time an assailant had to spend under fire in a confined space and unable to retaliate.

Moat

A moat was a defensive ditch with steep sides, and could be either dry or filled with water. Its purpose was twofold; to stop devices such as siege towers from reaching the curtain wall and to prevent the walls from being undermined. Water moats were found in low-lying areas and were usually crossed by a drawbridge, although these were often replaced by stone bridges. Fortified islands could be added to the moat, adding another layer of defence. Water defences, such as moats or natural lakes, had the benefit of dictating the enemy's approach to the castle.

Battlements

Battlements were most often found surmounting curtain walls and the tops of gatehouses, and comprised several elements: crenellations, hoardings, machicolations, and loopholes. Crenellation is the collective name for alternating crenels and merlons: gaps and solid blocks on top of a wall. Hoardings were wooden constructs that projected beyond the wall, allowing defenders to shoot at, or drop objects on, attackers at the base of the wall without having to lean perilously over the crenellations, thereby exposing themselves to retaliatory fire. Machicolations were stone projections on top of a wall with openings that allowed objects to be dropped on an enemy at the base of the wall in a similar fashion to hoardings