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What are castles?
Castles are a type of home that was built to protect the people inside. People who lived in the castle included lords, who were in charge, as well as soldiers to defend it from enemy invaders, and even cooks and cleaners to keep everyone fed and tidy up. They could be very crowded places to live.
The first castles in England were built by the Normans. Different types of castles developed over the centuries that got stronger and easier to defend; at the same time, different weapons were designed to try to break into the castles and overtake them more quickly. There are loads of castles all over Britain that you can walk around to see exactly what it would have been like to live there, whether you were trying to defend the castle or trying to attack it.
Top 10 facts
- Everything about a castle was built to keep the people inside safe. It is made up of many different parts, not just one building.
- The main building inside the castle is the keep, which was protected by walls and towers.
- The first castles were built by the Normans and were called motte and bailey castles .
- Some of the first castles were made from wood before they were built from stone. Stone is a longer-lasting material, and more difficult for attackers to break down.
- The Normans built castles to help them defend the land they’d just conquered. They were built on hills so enemies could be seen coming from far away.
- William the Conqueror had some of England’s most famous castles built: these include Windsor Castle and the White Tower at the Tower of London.
- Castles weren’t very warm inside – they could be really damp and drafty.
- Castles were only as good as their defences – these included ramparts, bastions and arrow loops.
- It wasn’t easy to attack a castle, but people tried anyway, using trebuchets, siege towers and battering rams.
- Edward I had concentric castles built in England – he added more than one curtain wall around the castle so the enemy would have a harder time breaking through. These castle designs were expensive to build though.
- 1067 Chepstow Castle started to be built
- 1100 Castles started to be built using stone
- 1642-51 The English Civil War took place, and many castles were used by the royalists (supporters of King Charles) to defend themselves against the roundheads (supporters of Parliament). Castles captured by the roundheads were partly destroyed (called ‘slighting’) so they couldn’t be used again, and some castles were never repaired
- 1930 The construction of Castle Drogo, the last castle to be built in England, ended
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Did you know?
The first castles in England were built by William the Conqueror and the Normans when they invaded in England in 1066. They needed a quick, easy and sure way to defend all the land they’d just won, and castles helped them to this.
The castles the Normans built were called motte and bailey . Windsor Castle was originally built like this.
Mottes were large hills that were made by piling dirt into a high mound. A home was built on top for the lord (who was in charge of the castle) to live in with his family. This was called the keep, and a fence was built around it for extra protection. Because the keep was built so high, he could see far into the distance and was able to tell if enemies were coming.
At the base of the motte was the bailey, which was like a little village – people who worked for the lord lived there, including tradespeople like blacksmiths. A high fence was also built around the bailey.
The motte and bailey were protected by deep ditch full of water all the way around it called a moat. You could only get into the bailey by crossing over the moat, so they built a bridge that could be lowered and raised depending on whether friends or enemies were trying to get in. This was called a drawbridge.
Motte and bailey castles were first built with wood, and then replaced with stone keeps and walls because stone is a stronger material. It doesn’t burn like wood does, and it is more difficult to knock down a stone wall than a wooden wall.
Many people lived at the castle, not just kings and nobles. Castles also had constables who looked after all the things that needed to be done to keep the castle running smoothly, like cooking all the meals, caring for the horses and cleaning up after everyone. The constable was like a manager, and he became in charge of the castle when the lord was away.
One of the worst jobs at the castle was to be a gong farmer. Toilets, called garderobes, were built along the inside of the castle walls – everything just dropped down into the castle moat or into ditches called cesspits. Gong farmers had to clean out the cesspits.
Dungeons were in the basements of castles, where prisoners were kept.
When you look at a castle, you’ll see tiny windows that look like slits. These "arrow loops" were made so archers could fire arrows through them to defend the castle. They are narrow so that it was hard for the attacking archers to fire arrows back through them.
Life at the castle wasn’t all about fighting battles. The lords and ladies held banquets in the Great Hall of the castle, and invited jesters and singers to perform for everyone.
Castles weren’t very comfortable places to live. They could be very damp and cold, especially in the winter.
Castle gallery:
- A concentric castle (Beaumaris Castle in Wales)
- A picture of a siege tower rolled up next to the castle walls
- A stone keep (White Tower at the Tower of London)
- Arrow loop (from the inside)
- A trebuchet
- Eilean Donan Castle in the Scottish Highlands
- Beaumaris Castle
- Motte and bailey castle (Cardiff Castle in Wales)
- Can you spot the catapult on the castle walls?
- Alnwick Castle
- Windsor Castle
- Chepstow Castle
- Dunluce Castle in Northern Ireland
Castles took a lot of planning to build. Special stones would be cut from quarries and shaped for certain parts of the castle. The stones were put together using mortar as a kind of glue. Mortar was made from water, sand and lime, and was smeared in layers and cracks between stones – when the mortar dried, the stones would be kept firmly in place.
Castle walls weren’t just a single layer of stone blocks – they had two outer layers of stone blocks with an inner filling of smaller stones and mortar. The outer layers could be plastered over to give a nicer looking finish.
At first, all towers were first square, with corners. Later people realised that round towers were actually harder for weapons like trebuchets to destroy – the impact didn’t have as much of an effect on a circle as it did on a square.
Even though castles were homes, their main purpose was to defend. After William the Conqueror and the Normans invaded England, they immediately set to work building motte and bailey castles – these gave everyone who lived inside a good way to defend themselves against enemy attackers, and they were built close enough together so people in one castle could warn people in another one quickly if they saw the enemy coming. Mottes (hills) gave the castle lord a way to see far off into the distance from the security of his keep, so he could see exactly what the enemy was up to without having to leave the safety of the castle.
Over the next few centuries after the Normans castle designs developed and became so better and better at defending their inhabitants. New features were added such as round towers, layers of walls, and lots of places for soldiers to hide and surprise the enemy when they attacked.
Castles began to be less secure with the development of cannons powerful enough to damage castle walls in the 15th century. When an enemy could destroy the castle walls by continually firing cannons at them, they could no longer protect their inhabitants. Most castle building had stopped by the 16th century. Many castles fell into disuse and became ruins.
When an enemy army set up to attack a castle, this was called a siege – they’d use different offensive tactics to try to break down the castles defences, and because the people in the castle couldn’t really go anywhere the enemy army could take as long as they wanted. Sometimes, they’d make life hard for the people inside the castle just by being there and not letting them go outside to get food and supplies; if the castle residents weren’t prepared, they could even starve.
These are some of the features that helped defend castles against enemy attacks:
- Very high walls with walkways along the top for soldiers to sit along, using battlements to fire weapons from and hide behind to protect themselves
- Towers along the walls (first all built square, then round) that soldiers could use to store spare weapons in and protect themselves if the enemy started coming in along the wall in siege towers. The towers stuck out from the castle walls so that archers could see anyone who got too close to the walls and shoot them.
- Holes in ceilings or in between layers of walls that soldiers could pour hot oil or tar through if the enemy tried to come in
- Archer loops , which were narrow slits in the tower and along the wall that were just big enough for archers to shoot arrows from
- A deep moat of water around the castle, which meant the enemy had to swim in order to reach the castle walls; it also meant they couldn’t just tunnel under the wall
- A strong gatehouse at the castle entrance, with more towers for soldiers to use and a drawbridge that could be lifted so the enemy couldn’t come in.
- A portcullis that could be lowered in front of the castle doors to make it harder for the enemy to ram through.
To try to take over a castle, the enemy would use some of these tactics and weapons:
- Trebuchet and catapults that could be used to fire rocks, hot tar and fireballs at or over the castle walls
- A battering ram on wheels that could be shoved back and forth against the castle door to try to break it down
- Climbing over the castle walls by propping long ladders up against the sides
- Tunnelling under the castle wall, catching the soldiers by surprise
- Rolling a siege tower up to the castle wall, offering an easy way to jump out onto the wall without having to climb up the side or tunnel underneath
Words to know:
Barbican – a structure attached to the front of the castle walls that provided extra defence; it was sometimes part of the gatehouse Bailey – a large courtyard inside the castle walls (also called a ward) Bastion – a small tower at the end of a curtain wall; in a concentric castle, it’s built along the middle of the outside wall Battering ram – a large, strong beam on wheels that was hit repeatedly against castle doors in order to break them down Battlement – a narrow wall built along the outside edge of the wall walk, with merlons and embrasures on top that soldiers could use to defend the castle Cannon – a weapon that used gunpowder to fire a ball of rock or metal at castle walls to destroy them. Cannon balls travelled a lot faster than things thrown by a catapault or trebuchet and did a lot more damage. Catapult – a machine that could throw things at castle walls to destroy them Concentric castle – a castle that was built with two or more curtain walls around it, giving many levels of defence to the castle Curtain wall – a chain of walls, connected by towers, that were built around the keep and the castle courtyard Drawbridge – the bridge over the castle moat that could be raised or lowered, helping to keep enemies out Dungeon – where prisoners were kept, usually located in the cellar of one of the towers Embrasure – the name for the empty space in between merlons along a castle wall, in between battlements; someone could fire a weapon from an embrasure, then hide behind the merlon Garderobe – the name for a toilet in the castle Gatehouse – structures built to defend entrances to the castle, such as towers and bridges Great Hall – a large room in the keep or another part of the castle where the lord had meetings and held banquets and celebrations Keep – the main tower and stronghold inside the castle walls, where the lord lived Loophole – a narrow slit in the castle walls that were used as windows, ventilation, or to shoot arrows through when defending the castle Merlon – higher parts of the castle wall, in between battlements, that could be used to hide behind for protection when defending the castle; the spaces between merlons are called embrasures Moat – a deep ditch filled with water that went all the way around the castle walls Mortar – a mixture usually made from water, sand and lime that was used to build castle walls; it hardened in between the rocks to form a smooth barrier without any holes. Motte – a large hill that the keep would be built on Murder holes – holes in the ceilings of the castle entrance that rocks or hot oil could be poured through if invaders had entered Portcullis – a gate that could slide up and down in front of the castle doors Ramparts – steep defensive barriers or walls around castles Siege tower – wooden towers on wheels that were built at the castle by the attackers so they’d be the same height as the castle walls; they gave the attackers an easy way to cross over the walls, and sometimes had battering rams in them so the doors could be knocked down at the same time. Tower – towers were built into castle walls, or around the outside of the keep; they were first built square, but then people found that round towers were actually harder to destroy because they didn’t have corners Trebuchet – a big slingshot that could throw rocks, or even fireballs over the castle walls; it could shoot things farther than a catapult could Turret – a small tower on top of one of the main towers of the castle, which provided a good lookout point for people to see any approaching enemies Wall walk – a passageway along the top of the castle walls
Related Videos
Just for fun...
- Download literacy and STEM castle education resources for KS2
- Explore some virtual reality castles
- Find out about about medieval castles, including castle design, how to defend and attack a castle and what your perfect castle job would be, in an English Heritage kids' magazine about castles
- Print off and colour in these castle pictures
- Build your own medieval castle out of cardboard
- Create your own coat of arms
- Try your hand at archery, dodge burning oil and become a knight in Windsor Castle
- Dress an online knight in his armour , ready for a joust!
- Colour in pictures, play spot the difference and more in Skipton Castle
- Make a cardboard sword , a cardboard shield , a cardboard helmet and design your own heraldric coat of arms with English Heritage's guides
- Make your own medieval castle model (and the right accessories to go with it, a medieval hat and coat of arms ) with step-by-step instructions and a video tutorial from Hobbycraft
- Construct a Minecraft castle with video tutorials and guides from English Heritage
- Complete some BBC History activities about castles
- Take a castles quiz to show off how much you know
- Cook a delicious pie with a crust shaped like castle battlements !
Best books about castles for children
Find out more
- Find out more about life inside a castle in a BBC Bitesize guide
- Learn to identify a Norman motte and bailey castle
- A children's guide to motte and bailey castles
- See BBC video clips of Barnaby Bear visiting a castle and going to Edinburgh Castle
- Life in a medieval castle
- See a diagram of the three main castle types : motte and bailey, stone keep, concentric
- A list of important castle terminology
- Norman stone castles
- How castle designs changed through history
- Lots of information about castle toilets
- Could you build a medieval castle from scratch ? Guédelon is the world’s biggest experimental archaeological site, where 21st century people use tools and techniques of the 13th century to understand more about medieval construction
- Understand how castles were besieged and how trebuchets were built
- Find out more about the worst jobs children had to do in castles
- Learn about Norman castles in a BBC Castles Workbook
- Information about how lords and ladies, archers and engineers, cooks and carpenters lived their lives behind the walls of a castle
- Look at an illustrated castle diagram and hear a drawbridge raising
See for yourself
There are lots of amazing castles to visit in the United Kingdom. Consult Historic UK’s interactive map of castles in England , castles in Scotland and castles in Wales to find out where your nearest castle might be!
- The Tower of London
- Windsor Castle in England
- Warwick Castle in England – you can also take a 360 degree tour of the castle online!
- Dover Castle in England
- Caerphilly Castle in Wales
- Chepstow Castle in Wales
- Edinburgh Castle in Scotland
- Eilean Donan Castle in Scotland
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Home » History » Castles
History of castles. Homework help with types of castles and how they are made.
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Castle facts
Castles of Britain: Castle Learning Center What is a castle? When were they built? How are they built and everything else.
Motte and Bailey Castles
Quizlet: Motte and Bailey Castles The advantages and disadvantages of a Motte and Bailey Castle.
History Learning Site: Castles Why the Normans built castles and about Motte and Bailey Castles.
Medieval Castles
DK Find Out: Castles View what makes up a castle.
DK Medieval Life: Castles See what life was like in castles and life in medieval times.
Ducksters: The Middle Ages Find out why Castles were made.
Playground Equipment: Castles of the Middle Ages The history of castles, features and famous castles.
Primary Homework Help: Castles Answers to all things on Castles.
EHow: Draw a medieval castle floor plan Step by step instructions on how to create a Castle floor plan.
The Helpful Art Teacher: Parts of a Medieval Castle See how a Castle is put together and what rooms make a Castle.
Exploring Castles: Life in a Medieval Castle See what life was like in a Castle and who lives in them.
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Castle Topic Homework Grid
Subject: History
Age range: 5-7
Resource type: Worksheet/Activity
Last updated
25 February 2019
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16 options for homework relevant to the Castles topic. Suitable for KS1 or lower KS2. Includes english, science, history, art and design.
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Castles Topic year 2
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Castles: homes in the past
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Please note: this article pre-dates the 2014 National Curriculum and some content may be outdated.
The key stage 1 classes were looking at castles in terms of homes in the distant past. This was the second lesson- in the first we debated and decided the best place to build a castle.
I wanted to build the children's thinking skills, fostering enquiry skills, information- processing, reasoning, and evaluation.
These were complemented by the key skills of communication, working with others, and problem-solving.
In this lesson the class investigated what a castle was like in terms of the different parts and rooms within the walls.
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| | | | | | | | | ! British History Timeline Inventions since the 1930s | Timeline from the end of the war | Old Money Life in 1948 | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s World History A closer look at History Houses and Homes through History
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The first castles were built by the Normans. The great age of castles began almost 1,000 years ago and lasted for nearly 500 years. The Normans introduced the first proper castles, starting with the wooden Motte and Bailey castles, to England following their victory at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. They needed to protect their new kingdom, so ...
A castles is a large strong building, built in the past by a ruler or important person to protect the people inside from attack. They were both a home and a fortress. Why were Castles built? They were built to provide safety and protection from attack and to display the owner's rank and wealth.
The Moat. A deep, wide ditch surrounding the whole Castle complex. Castles were built near a water supply such as a river, stream, lake or spring. Some castle moats were up to 30 feet deep and usually measured at least 12 feet in width.
Castle Activities. 1 min. Updated: 18th January 2023. Draw or paint a picture of a castle. Build a castle out of cardboard boxes. Bake your own castle. Use ice cream cones and marshmallows to make easy turrets and battlements. Write a newspaper article about a siege on a castle.
Interesting information, facts, timeline, did-you-knows, images and videos about castles to support primary school history topic work.
The Normans (1066 - 1215) built the first castles in the style of Motte and bailey and later stone castles for better protection. The Normans. The Normans invaded England in 1066 and after killing England's King, they set about taking over the whole country. In order to do this, they needed to build defences to protect themselves while they ...
What are castles? Castles were built for important and wealthy people to live in. As so many wealthy people lived in castles, there were usually lots of lovely things that people wanted to steal. Sometimes enemies wanted the whole castle! Because of this, it was very important that castles were protected against enemies.
Castles - History GCSE Revision Buddy History homework help. Videos, quizzes and downloads types of castles and how they are made.
Castle Topic Homework Grid. Subject: History. Age range: 5-7. Resource type: Worksheet/Activity. File previews. docx, 15.4 KB. 16 options for homework relevant to the Castles topic. Suitable for KS1 or lower KS2. Includes english, science, history, art and design.
A timeline of the development of castles. Castles were primarily built to defend and protect, but over time comfortable homes evolved within the fortified walls. The first castle of stone consisted of rectangular towers surrounded by high stone walls. Bodiam castle (pictured below) is a moated, curtain-walled castle which was built in 1385.
The key stage 1 classes were looking at castles in terms of homes in the distant past. This was the second lesson- in the first we debated and decided the best place to build a castle.I wanted to build the children's thinking skills, fostering enquiry skills, information- processing, reasoning, and evaluation. These were complemented by the key skills of communication, working with others, and ...
You can present your work however you wish as long as you include the key headings from the grid above. Please feel free to add any other information that you find. You may wish to use the grid to plan your work or even use it as a template for you final piece - it is your choice. Try not to focus on Sandhill Castle as we are going to be looking into this more over the next few week.
Windsor Castle - the first motte and Bailey castle. There were motte and bailey castles all over England and along the frontier of Wales. Many of England's existing castles began as motte and bailey castles. Windsor Castle in Berkshire, started life as a motte and bailey castle. Windsor castle is one of the many homes of our present day Queen.
The Chapel. Most castles had a small private chapel near to the lords chambers. The walls were often painted and the windows made from stained glass. It was the castle's most beautiful room. An indication of how important religion was to the owner. The lord and lady began each day by attending a short service.
This lesson plan ideas and resource pack is a brilliant tool for supporting your castles topic for KS1. There are plenty of activities for your students to complete and learn all about castles and everything medieval! These are just some of the resources we've included in this pack: Castles and Knights Page Borders Design a Coat of Arms Worksheet Princess and the Pea Story Castle Photo ...
A castle is a type of home that was built to protect the rich people inside. Who lived in a castle? A long time ago, Kings and Lords lived in castles with their families. They were rich people who had lots of money. Why were castles built? Castles were built to protect the rich people inside. Where were castles built?
Stone castles replaced the motte and bailey castles but the stone castles also changed over time. Shortly after the Normans invaded England, they began building rectangular stone keeps. The White Tower at the Tower of London was started in 1070. The first castles of stone consisted of rectangular towers surrounded by high stone walls.
Concentric Castles can be described as "a Castle within a Castle". They had two or three walls around the keep. (N.B. some concentric castles didn't have a keep. Instead, inside the outer wall, there was another wall connecting a series of towers.) The inside walls were built higher than the outside walls. This meant that defenders could fire ...
Questions about Castles. Why did stone castles replace the motte and bailey castles? Timber, one of the two materials from which motte and bailey castles were built (the other being earth), was perishable (rots) and, more importantly, vulnerable to fire. A more durable and resistant medium was required and that was provided by stone.
Life inside a Castle. Life in the early castles was far from comfortable. The wind whistled through the wooden shutters in the windows and most people slept on benches or on rough mattresses in the great hall. By 1200s, castles had well furnished bed chambers and living rooms, heated by large open fires and lit by candles.
Castle Defences A castle was built to withstand attack from enemy. Castle builders added many defensive features to make their castles difficult to attack. Many castles were built on high ground with clear views of the surrounding land.
Primaryhomeworkhelp is the new website for Woodlands Junior homework resources. Hundreds of pages of easy to read information and facts on many homework topics including tudors, victorians, romans, rivers and mountains. Projectbritain.com and London Topic also contain Woodlands Resources. I have added a search page so you can locate the ...
Woodlands History homework help brings history alive with easy to read information and photographs on many homework topics including Tudors, Victorians, Romans.