How did castles dispose of waste?

The toilets of a castle were usually built into the walls so that they projected out on corbels and any waste fell below and into the castle moat. Even better, waste went directly into a river as is the case of the latrines of one of the large stone halls at Chepstow Castle in Wales, built from the 11th century CE.



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In the medieval period luxury castles were built with indoor toilets known as 'garderobes', and the waste dropped into a pit below. It was the job of the 'Gongfarmer' to remove it – one of the smelliest jobs in history?

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In the Middle Ages, people would make use of sticks, moss and other plants. Archaeological findings from cesspits of monasteries in Ireland and Norway included small pieces of cloth that were used like toilet paper.

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The bathing itself consisted of washing the body with sweet smelling oils, or if they could afford it, tallow soap. If they had lots of money, or say, were a Lord or Lady in a castle, they'd 'top and tail' at least twice a day.

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Yes, there were toilets. In photographs of castles, you can often see a tower at the corner that sticks out like a bay window. That's a toilet. It had a seat with a hole in it, and everything dropped in the moat.

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Water cisterns to collect rainwater were also built within the castle walls; in the case of Dover Castle, these cisterns were in a building attached to and in front of the keep. Pipes carried rainwater from the roof into the cisterns, and it was also possible to get water from a well by using a bucket on a chain.

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With an average of 75 crocodiles per square mile, the Tárcoles River in Costa Rica is the perfect setting for the world's highest concentration of crocodiles. This river is a popular tourist destination because of its crocodiles, believe it or not.

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Olifants River, South Africa and Mozambique The river has notoriously made it to the news on one too many occasions for crocodile attacks.

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