Medieval Castles & Castle Life

By Santiago Bocanegra

Provided shelter and living space for the lord and his family, and for servants living within it.

Provided security, comfort, and freedom for people to do as they pleased without fear.

Most importantly, built for defense, but it still posses offensive qualities.

Kept unwanted people out, such as other armies from invading.

Castles were made of several basic parts:

Moat: A body of water, that’s about 5 -15 ft deep, that surrounds the outermost wall of a castle.

Drawbridge: A wooden bridge in front of the main gate.

Portcullis: A metal or wooden grate that was dropped vertically for defense just inside the main gate of the castle

http://medievalcastles.stormthecastle.com/parts-of-a-medieval-castle.html

Bailey: A courtyard inside of the castle, that is surrounded by the castle’s walls (a castle could have had more than one).

Keep: The main tower that is the tallest and strongest part of a castle.

Battlements: structures on tops of the walls surrounding a castle.

Rampart: A wall that was built as a walkway so archers can get up on to the battlements.

http://medievalcastles.stormthecastle.com/parts-of-a-medieval-castle.html

Barbican: A stoned structure, similar to a gatehouse, that protected the gate of a castle.

Buttress: An masonry projection used as an extra support for castle walls.

Arrow Loops: Different shaped slots that archers used to shoot arrows through.http://medievalcastles.stormthecastle.com/parts-of-a-medieval-castle.html

http://www.palos118.org/south/curriculum/team6c/midages/castlelife/index.html

Basic Inside Parts of a Basic Inside Parts of a CastleCastle

The HallThe Hall: : A large one-room A large one-room structure with a loft ceiling, that structure with a loft ceiling, that was aisled similar to a church, was aisled similar to a church, that was the one basic element that was the one basic element of a castle’s living quarters. A of a castle’s living quarters. A hall could be on a ground floor hall could be on a ground floor or on an upper story. If the hall or on an upper story. If the hall was on a ground floor then the was on a ground floor then the floor was beaten earth, stone, floor was beaten earth, stone, or plaster;or plaster; however, if it was on however, if it was on an upper story then it was an upper story then it was almost always made of timber almost always made of timber was available in abundance and promised quick and cheap construction.

The KitchenThe Kitchen:: was often made was often made of timber, and it either had a of timber, and it either had a central hearth, or many central hearth, or many fireplaces; where meat was fireplaces; where meat was cooked in a cauldron. The food cooked in a cauldron. The food and spices were usually found and spices were usually found all around the castle such as in all around the castle such as in the bailey’s garden, or a fish the bailey’s garden, or a fish pond, etc. pond, etc.

The ChapelThe Chapel: : A chapel was A chapel was where the lord and his family, where the lord and his family, and others would go to mass, and others would go to mass, which taught by the castle which taught by the castle chaplainchaplain. . The lord and his The lord and his family would sit in an upper family would sit in an upper part of the Chapel, while the part of the Chapel, while the servants occupied all of the servants occupied all of the lower part. One of the towers lower part. One of the towers in the inner part of a castle in the inner part of a castle was just reserved for the was just reserved for the chapel. It was unique to all of chapel. It was unique to all of the other towers, because it the other towers, because it was an one room castle that was an one room castle that was up to about two stories was up to about two stories high. high.

http://www.castlewales.com/life.html

Basic Inside Parts of a Basic Inside Parts of a CastleCastle

AccommodationsAccommodations: : Rooms opened Rooms opened into each other, or were joined into each other, or were joined together by spiral staircases which together by spiral staircases which required minimal space. Sleeping required minimal space. Sleeping quarters were often only separated quarters were often only separated by just a curtain or a screen. Lords by just a curtain or a screen. Lords and the lady often slept in a great and the lady often slept in a great chamber or in a huge upper part of chamber or in a huge upper part of the hall. In the second-floor the hall. In the second-floor chambers was where, the eldest son chambers was where, the eldest son and his family, and the guests, and and his family, and the guests, and the castle steward would sleep. the castle steward would sleep. Personal servants to the lord maybe Personal servants to the lord maybe would have slept in the lord's would have slept in the lord's chamber on a pallet, or trundle bed, chamber on a pallet, or trundle bed, or on a bench. Servants, the military, or on a bench. Servants, the military, and administrative personnel slept in and administrative personnel slept in the towers or in the basements, or in the towers or in the basements, or in the hall, or even in lean-to the hall, or even in lean-to structures. Knights, who were on structures. Knights, who were on guard duty, slept near their assigned guard duty, slept near their assigned posts. posts.

TowersTowers:: were all around were all around the castle. The towers on the castle. The towers on the outer part of a castle the outer part of a castle were usually used for were usually used for defense purposes; while the defense purposes; while the inner ones were used for inner ones were used for other purposes. In each other purposes. In each tower, there were four main tower, there were four main floors, including a fifth floor floors, including a fifth floor on the top that served as a on the top that served as a lookout. The rooms in the lookout. The rooms in the towers could serve as many towers could serve as many purposes: as sleeping purposes: as sleeping quarters, chapels, defensive quarters, chapels, defensive purposes such as lookouts, purposes such as lookouts, and even prisons.and even prisons.

http://www.castlewales.com/life.html

http://library.thinkquest.org/10949/fief/medtower.html

Consisted of many hardships. Even the wealthiest people endured many hardships.

For hygiene baths, were taken transportable wooden tubs, so when it was summer, the sun could warm the water and the bather. In addition, the tub could be moved inside when the weather was unpleasant. les were noisy and smelled.

Lords and his family had heavy blankets, feather mattresses, fur covers; while servants had to rely on lighter bedclothes and human bodies for warmth.

The little central heating that there was, was saved for the lord and his family. Servants had to make due with tiny lamps for warmth.

The days began at sunrise, when one of the guards sounded a trumpet for the start of the day.

Servants were one of the first ones to wake up, so they can make daily preparations for the lord and his family such as the making of breakfast (which consisted of a small bread and drink )

A lord’s main responsibilities were concerning political, judicial, fiscal issues, and also included the policing of his territory. When the Lord was absent, his main representative was the steward, also called the seneschal.

http://www.palos118.org/south/curriculum/team6c/midages/castlelife/index.htmlhttp://www.castles-of-britain.com/castle33.html

The lady of the castle was served by ladies-in-waiting and chambermaids. She spent much of the day overseeing her ladies-in-waiting work, as well as supervising the activities in the kitchen staff.

A boy’s dream was to achieve knighthood, which he could achieve at the age of 21, after many years of being trained by a knight.

All around the castle, people would be busy performing their different special tasks and duties. Such as blacksmiths worked with iron in the forges, soldiers practiced their skills, cobblers made shoes, and armorers made armor, etc.

http://www.palos118.org/south/curriculum/team6c/midages/castlelife/index.htmlhttp://www.castles-of-britain.com/castle33.html

Key Facts• The word castle evolved

from the Latin word castrum meaning a closed fort or stronghold.

• Two kind of castles:– Baronial Castle: belonged

to a lord or baron of a fief (a land not privately owned but taken cared by a lord or vassal for another greater lord in exchange for military service).

– Royal Castle: belonged to a king.

• The term bed clothes may have derived from medieval times because when it was extremely cold, people would wear blankets while they worked so it was called bed clothes.

• Castles’ first predecessors were mottes and baileys, which was a large mound of dirt with a wooden fortification, which was the shape of a timber fence that formed a circle like a crown, at the top of the mound. The mound part was the motte, and the timber fence and the space it enclosed is the Bailey.

Smith, Beth. Castles. United States of America: Copyright, 1988. Print.

http://medievalcastles.stormthecastle.com/parts-of-a-medieval-castle.html

http://sabreteam.free.fr/Moyen/Motte_and_bailey.jpg

Cairns, Conrad. Medieval Castles. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987. Print.

"Castles." Gale Encyclopedia of World History: War. Ed. Anne Marie Hacht and Dwayne D. Hayes. Detroit: Gale, 2008. Student Resource Center - Gold. Gale. Colony High School. 6 Dec. 2009 <http://find.galegroup.com/srcx/infomark.do?&contentSet=GSRC&type=retrieve&tabID=T001&prodId=SRC-1&docId=EJ3048700097&source=gale&srcprod=SRCG&userGroupName=onta38245&version=1.0>.

http://www.castles-of-britain.com/castle33.html N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2009.

http://medievalcastles.stormthecastle.com/parts-of-a-medieval-castle.html Kalif Publishing , 2007. Web. 6 Dec. 2009.

Smith, Beth. Castles. United States of America: Copyright, 1988. Print.

Thomas, Jeffrey L. http://www.castlewales.com/life.html Copyright, 2009. Web. 6 Dec. 2009.