What makes a castle strong?

Build thick walls and battlements The castle also has high 'curtain walls' which protect the castle's inner and outer 'wards' or 'baileys'. These are the courtyard areas inside the walls where important buildings like the keep, or perhaps stables and storehouses would have been built.



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Stone castles were the mightiest, strongest form of castle design.

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Some castles were surrounded by deep ditches called moats to stop attackers getting in. Some moats were filled with water, like Caerlaverock Castle near Dumfries (above). Attackers would have to swim or row across the moats to get to the castle.

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What other rooms were there in a Medieval castle? At the time of Chr tien de Troyes, the rooms where the lord of a castle, his family and his knights lived and ate and slept were in the Keep (called the Donjon), the rectangular tower inside the walls of a castle. This was meant to be the strongest and safest place.

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The entrance to the castle was always its weakest point. Drawbridges could be pulled up, preventing access across moats. Tall gate towers meant that defenders could shoot down in safety at attacks below. The main gate or door to the castle was usually a thick, iron-studded wooden door, that was hard to break through.

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The drawbridge is one of the most important parts of a castle and one you've probably heard of before! A drawbridge was a type of bridge between the gatehouse and the opposite side of the moat. During raids, the drawbridge would be raised to keep invaders out.

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When it comes to horrible jobs in a castle, gong farmer has to win the prize. Gong farmers, also known as nightmen, were responsible for cleaning out human excrement from the cesspits within the castle walls.

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Over the centuries around 23 different siege attempts were made on Edinburgh Castle – making it the most besieged place in Europe.

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Castle Types Four primary castle designs mark the period; Motte and Bailey, Shell keep, Stone keep, and Concentric; however, sub-types, such as Square Stone keep and Round Stone keep emerged over the years.

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Most domestic servants would have slept in shared chambers in either the cellars or attics of the castle buildings. There might also be simple buildings outside the castle for herdsmen, mill workers, wood-cutters, and craftspeople such as rope-makers, candle-makers, potters, basket-weavers, and spinners.

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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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