What should a castle have?

What should a castle have? A typical European castle was like a little village inside, with kitchens, workshops, gardens, stables, and a chapel. This castle is built of stone, but many early castles were wooden.

What was the most important thing for a castle to have?

One of the most important features in a castle was its walls. Whether made of wood, stone or brick, they provided a barrier to enemy attackers. They typically included wall walks, which were used by the defenders to resist attempts to scale the walls or to shoot missiles at the besiegers.

What makes a castle a keep?

keep, English term corresponding to the French donjon for the strongest portion of the fortification of a castle, the place of last resort in case of siege or attack.

What makes a castle a real castle?

And now the Oxford English Dictionary defines a castle as 'a large building, typically of the medieval period, fortified against attack with thick walls, battlements, towers, and often a moat'. So here's our first answer: a castle can be defined as being architecturally prepared for battle.

What are the most important parts of a castle?

The keep was the most essential part of a castle and could be defended even after castle walls had been breached. Keeps were originally called donjons, the French term for stronghold. The basement was sometimes used as a prison or dungeon, which became too easily confused with donjon, so the term keep was adopted.

What are the features of a good castle?

What is the strongest point in a castle?

Particularly large towers are often the strongest point of the castle: the keep or the bergfried. As the gate is always a vulnerable point of a castle, towers may be built near it to strengthen the defences at this point.

What is a small castle called?

A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade.

What are important rooms in a castle?

The most important room in a castle was the Great Hall. This is where all the members of the household sat down to eat at tables set up for every meal. It was where feasts were held for special days, or when there were guests. King Arthur's Pentecost Feast takes place in such a Hall.

What makes a castle a castle and not a house?

However, it's universally accepted that a real castle had to fulfil two major functions: it had to be a splendid home for the lord or the king, and it had to have defences to withstand an attack and protect a garrison in times of war.