What was the stone keep made out of?

What was the stone keep made out of? What does a stone keep castle consist of? 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.

What are the 3 types of castles?

The three main types of castles are the motte and bailey castle, the stone keep castle, and the concentric castle.

How did they keep castles warm?

Castles weren't always cold and dark places to live. But, in reality, the great hall of castle had a large open hearth to provide heat and light (at least until the late 12th century) and later it had wall fireplace. The hall would also have had tapestries which would have insulated the room against too much cold.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of a stone keep castle?

Stone keep castles were a lot bigger than motte and bailey castles and were able to hold more soldiers. Because of their vast size they were much harder to attack. However, they had two main weaknesses - there was nothing to be done if the enemy surrounded except remain in the castle.

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.

Why did castles have water around them?

The purpose of a moat was primarily to protect the castle from attack. As a defense mechanism, moats were very effective. Although they're usually depicted as wide, deep bodies of water, moats were often simply dry ditches.

Were medieval castles smelly damp and dark?

The first stone castles built were cold, dark, smelly and damp. Inside the castle walls, floor coverings consisted of straw rushes and, later, sweet smelling herbs to mask the smell of animal excrement, grease, rotting food and beer.

What did medieval castles smell like?

Castles and manor houses often smelled damp and musty. To counteract this, herbs and rushes were strewn across the floors.

How thick were stone keep castle walls?

The height of walls varied widely by castle, but were often 2.5–6 m (8.2–19.7 ft) thick. They were usually topped with crenellation or parapets that offered protection to defenders.