1. Medieval Life in a Castle
1st Yr

2. Motte and bailey The earliest castles
Lords and rich noblemen or knights lived in them
Made from wood

3. Motte and bailey (2) 2 parts Lowest part – bailey
A round yard surrounded by a moat
Wooden fence around it
Contained servant’s houses and other buildings

4. Motte and bailey (3) Motte was higher up On a man-made mound (hill)
Wooden tower surrounded by fence
Tower was a lookout post

5. Disadvantages of Motte and bailey
Wood rattled over time
Small and cramped
Could be burned in attack by flaming arrows
So, stone castles were built by the Normans

6. Stone castles Moat Drawbridge Portcullis Gatehouse
Barbican – extra strong towers by entrance
Turrets
Bawn
Ramparts
Keep

8. The Bawn The courtyard contained: Stables Kitchen Well Forge
Veg. gardens

9. Attacking a castle Siege towers Siege ladders Giant catapults
Giant crossbow
Battering rams
Dug tunnels

10. Ballista

11. Catapult

12. Laying a siege Sometimes an enemy just surrounded the castle
Tried to starve the lord and army
But veg. gardens and well inside
The lords family could survive months

13. Gunpowder In 1400’s gunpowder and the cannon invented
Easier to capture castles
So people stopped building them

14. Lord of a castle (1) Owned the castle and all the land
Serfs worked the land for him
Servants in the keep
Had foot soldiers and knights to fight for him
The lord must be loyal to the king

15. Lord of castle (2) Did daily business in the great hall
Huge fires at either end
Lord gave orders, collected rent
Criminals brought before him here
Was the judge of the town
Punished people brought before

16. Food 2 meals a day Lunch at noon, supper at 4pm Huge feasts
Lots of meat – duck, rabbit, hare, lamb, boar
Sat at top table
Food served on wooden plates
Or big slices of bread called Trenchers
Ate with fingers
Drank wine or ale

17. Entertainment Hawking Watched tournaments between knights
Minstrels sang at banquets
Had a court jester

18. The keep Family lived here Narrow winding stairs
Always circled to the right
Advantage for fighting

19. Rooms in keep Solarium – big windows, sun room Chapel
Great Hall – private apartments
Latrines or garderobes
Storerooms
Dungeons

20. Lady in castle Her role? To be a good mother and obedient wife
Arranged marriages
Brought a dowry
In return, husband supported her for life
No divorce

21. Lady (2) Couldn’t read or write
Learned spinning and weaving, needlework
Embroidered tapestries to hang on wall
Spent much time in solar room…
..doing these embroidery tasks
The tapestries made rooms seem warmer

22. Lady’s duties Ran the whole household Ordered the servants
Kept accounts of the stock in storeroom
Learned how to use herbs in medicine
When lord was away…
…The lady was in charge of the castle
Could have to defend castle from attack!

23. H/w – essay Write an essay about life in a castle for a lady
Hint : when writing an essay about the lady, don’t forget to mention stuff from lord i.e. same food, entertainment, rooms in keep.

24. Knights Medieval horse soldiers Worked for lord in army
In return, given land
Were important landowners – members of nobility

25. Becoming a knight 3 stages of training Son of a nobleman fostered
At 7 years old
Called a Page
Lived with that family
Served at table, carried messages
Personal assistant to lord and lady

26. Squire (stage 2) 14 years became a squire
Learned how to ride a horse in battle
Used weapons
Accompanied lord to battle

27. Knight (Stage 3) 21 Special dubbing ceremony
Spent night before fasting and praying
Confession and mass
Priest blesses sword
Kneels and is tapped on shoulders with sword

28. Chivalry The knight promises to obey the code of chivalry
1. Be loyal to his lord
2. Be brave
3. Be polite to women
4. Be kind to poor

29. Knight’s job Here the horse soldiers in the lords army Rode steeds
Wore protective chain mail
Later knights wore suits of plate armour
Very heavy
Wore metal helmets with visors

30. Knight’s weapons Swords, battleaxes Metal clubs called Maces
Long wooden lances
Carried shields
Their lords coat of arms painted on shield

31. Knightly entertainment
Took part in mock battles with blunt swords
Called tournaments – very dangerous
Also jousting
2 knights charged with lances…
…and tried to knock the other off horse
Hawking – special trained hawk
..hunted other birds

32. Jousting

33. Revision Qs (1) Lady – Write down 6 jobs the lady had.
Keep – Name 5 rooms in the keep
Say what happened there
Attacking castles - Name 3 things done when attacking castles.
Explain a ‘siege’.

34. Revision Qs (2)
Knights - Write about the 3 stages to becoming a knight.
Identify 6 things the knight uses
Castle - Name 9 parts to a castle.
Explain what they are.

35. Vocab – explain these words
Dowry
Page
Mace
Dubbing ceremony
Jousting
Trenchers
Garderobe
Lances Moat
Bawn Keep
Barbican Portcullis