What was the keep used for in a Motte and Bailey castle?

What was the keep used for in a Motte and Bailey castle? The keep on top of the motte was the castle's primary defensive element. It was surrounded by a protective wall, originally made of wood. Small mottes could only support a simple tower but larger mottes could support more complex structures that often contained multiple rooms.

Who lived in the keep of a castle?

What other rooms were there in a Medieval castle? At the time of Chr tien de Troyes, the rooms where the lord of a castle, his family and his knights lived and ate and slept were in the Keep (called the Donjon), the rectangular tower inside the walls of a castle. This was meant to be the strongest and safest place.

What is a Norman keep?

THE NORMAN KEEP This type is known as a 'shell' keep because its outer walls provided a protective shell for smaller buildings within. The stone Keep was built in the early 12th Century by Robert Consul, Earl of Gloucester, replacing the timber defences of Robert Fitzhamon, Norman Lord of Glamorgan.

What was the purpose of the keep in a castle?

Traditionally keeps were built as a type of fortified tower built by European nobility. Keep's were built within castles during the Middle Ages and they were used as a refuge or last resort should the rest of the castle fall to enemies.

What is the longest lived in castle in the world?

Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world and has been the family home of British kings and queens for almost 1,000 years. It is an official residence of Her Majesty The Queen and is still very much a working royal palace today, home to around 150 people.

Did people live in a castle keep?

At the time of Chr tien de Troyes, the rooms where the lord of a castle, his family and his knights lived and ate and slept were in the Keep (called the Donjon), the rectangular tower inside the walls of a castle. This was meant to be the strongest and safest place.

What is a stone keep?

Stone keep castles The keep (also known as a donjon) was a tower which was surrounded by a stone wall, often three metres thick. Stone keep castles were also known as square keep castles, since they were often square in shape. Their square shape made them easy to construct quickly.

What were the key features of the keep castle?

The stone keepwas a central feature of the castle, a stone tower built on the highest point. It was typically very tall with thick stone walls and is where the owners would have lived. Not all keeps were the same, but there would have typically been: Battlements- on the top of the keep to provide defence.

What is a moat in a castle?

moat, a depression surrounding a castle, city wall, or other fortification, usually but not always filled with water. The existence of a moat was a natural result of early methods of fortification by earthworks, for the ditch produced by the removal of earth to form a rampart made a valuable part of the defense system.

Is the keep the strongest part of a castle?

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. The keep was either a single tower or a larger fortified enclosure.

Why is a keep called a keep?

Since the 16th century, the English word keep has commonly referred to large towers in castles. The word originates from around 1375 to 1376, coming from the Middle English term kype, meaning basket or cask, and was a term applied to the shell keep at Guînes, said to resemble a barrel.

What are fun facts about castles?

What was the weakest point of a castle?

The entrance to the castle was always its weakest point. Drawbridges could be pulled up, preventing access across moats. Tall gate towers meant that defenders could shoot down in safety at attacks below. The main gate or door to the castle was usually a thick, iron-studded wooden door, that was hard to break through.

Was it cold in castles?

Without electricity and just wood for heat, castles were often dark and cold in Medieval times, Bachrach said.