Knights and Castles

Knights were the most heavily armoured soldiers of the Middle Ages. Clad in metal, they rode to battle on horseback. Their base was the castle, a strong fortress. There were castles all over Europe, the middle East and India, and as far east as Japan. A castle was also home to a lord and his family.

The earliest medieval castles were earth mounds with wooden stockades on top. Castles like these were built by the Norman invaders of England in 1066, often on the site of earlier Saxon and Roman forts. These early castles were soon enlarged and strengthened, using water-filled ditches, called moats, stone walls protected by towers, and a massive central stronghold called a keep. Castles were often built on hilltops for good visibility, or to guard harbours, rivers and vital roads.

Castles were private fortresses for the lords who owned them. A castle was also a family home. Early castles were cold and draughty, with no glass in the windows and dry reeds on the stone floor. The lord and his followers feasted in the great hall. Food was brought by servants from the kitchen. At night, everyone slept on the floor around the central fire, except the lord and his lady, who retired to a private room called the solar. Before about 1300, people rarely took baths, and lavatories emptied straight into the moat. The castle was defended by foot soldiers and mounted knights. When a castle was attacked, the defenders needed enough food and water to withstand a siege lasting weeks or even months. Castle walls had to be thick enough to withstand catapults, tunnels and battering rams. In due course, cannons and barrels of gunpowder placed in tunnels proved so effective at blasting down walls that castle building came to an end.