The Importance Of Medieval Castles

Medieval castles were built in the middle ages in europe and the Middle East as a structure to provide protection. Castles shouldn't be confused with the “Palaces” that we are familiar with today, Medieval castles weren't made for comfort although they were great for protection. Castles were drafty, gloomy and damp. The fireplaces typically smoked up the rooms. The only light besides was from flickering torches. The floors were either bare stone or covered with animal furs. What furniture they had was also typically damp. Still, in those days, it was better to be gloomy than defenseless. Glass was very expensive so most medieval castles had no windows and any gaps in the wall had to be small so wind and elements won't blow in. The defensive …show more content…
The remaining ten months of the year their castles would remain vacant (apart from minimal security) for Mother Nature to naturally cleanse the building. When the royals were in residence, however, thick tapestries were hung on the walls and floors. These made the place feel much warmer and absorbed a lot of the dampness from the air. With roaring fires and many people milling about, for a few short weeks, castles could be reasonably comfortable places to live. The interior of a castle contained staircases, bedrooms, hallways, priveys (kinda like an outhouse built inside the castle), women's rooms (small areas used for chatting and embroidery) and possibly a laundry room. Other rooms that may be included in medieval castles is, The Keep ( a storage space for food in case of siege, also the last line of defense in the Castle), Barracks (which were the homes of the Knights and soldiers of the Noble), The Great Hall ( a place to feast and meet the noble during formal occasions) The Chapel (a place to hold religious services), Gatehouses (which were secure places that guarded the …show more content…
So they were usually located on top of a hill or at the ford of a river, or entrance to a bay or harbor. But the preferred location was at the highest point around, so if there was a hill the castle went on top. This meant that the guards could easily spot attackers coming from far away. You could also throw things down at any attacker. Some castles were surrounded by a moat which was a deep ditch filled with water. A small bridge was built to lower and raise as needed over the moat. The first medieval castles were made of mud and wood but could easily be burned down which did not serve much protection. In 1100 C.E. people began building with stone. It was by conquering a castle that land was taken by another ruler They were built so strongly that most times the most historically accurate way to take a castle was by starving them out. Medieval Castles also was used to show wealth and power to oppress the