Castles

Castles By Gus

Castles were fortified homes for lords. They were built to secure possession of territories. They were built to protect the people living inside from attacks. Do you get the picture? Castles took place in the Middle Ages. Castles were built in Europe, the Middle East and Japan. Some of them you can still see today!
 * [[image:Dover_castle.jpg width="271" height="239" align="left" caption="This castle is called the Dover Castle."]] Introduction **

**

Castle Revolution ** In the 11th century people got an idea to make the first castle. The first one ever made was called the Motte and Bailey Castle. It was made out of wood and earth, but when it was under attack the attackers used fire arrows, so the castle burnt down quickly. So then in the early 12th century they started to make Early Stone Castles. These castles were made out of stone and stronger than the Motte and Bailey Castles. The wood was removed and when the earth inside was hardened it was safe to cover it with a wall of stone. In the middle 12th century they made another castle. It was called the Square Keep Castle. The Square Keep Castles were super big and tall. Their walls were much thicker then the other castles before them. They were made of solid rock so they sloped at an angle and could deflect battering rams. In the 13th century they made yet another kind of castle. This one was called the Concentric Castle. This castle was gigantic! It had rows of walls and lots of turrets. They used this type of castle the most.

** The Parts of the Castle **

The castle had many parts. Some parts were big and some were small. And here they are:

The Inner Ward was the central part of the castle. It contained many rooms such as the hall, the chapel, the chamber and the kitchen. The Outer Ward contained the workshops, stables and administrive buildings for tenants. Since there were a lot of people working, bringing in lots of supplies and yelling orders at each other, this was the busiest part of the castle.
 * The Wards **

The Outer Wall was 30 feet high (9 meters). Guards could walk on pathways on top to look out for attackers. If attackers tried to get through by ladder, defenders pushed them away with long poles.
 * Outer Wall **

The Moat was a large ditch that surrounded the castle. It was sometimes filled with water. It frustrated the attackers when they tried to get across.
 * Moat **

There were many Drum Towers around the Outer Wall. They provided defense and also storage for extra supplies such as extra room for food.
 * Drum** **Towers**

The Portcullis was a wood and iron grille. It was a gate and when closed attackers couldn’t get through. Defenders could pour hot sand and boiling water and sometimes boiling oil on attackers through holes called machicolations.
 * [[image:Portcullis.jpg width="157" height="175" align="left" caption="This is a portcullis"]]Portcullis **

Turrets were tall towers that were around the Inner Ward and the Outer Wall. Guards watched out from the top of the turrets for attackers. When the castle was under attack, defenders shot arrows from the turrets.
 * Turrets **

** Building the Castle **

Building the castle was a huge job. It could take years! Here are the things they needed to build the castle, the tools, and the people who helped to make the castle:

The Treadmill Crane was a big crane that looked like a giant hamster wheel. But the workers were the hamsters! When they ran back and forth it made the crane go up and down.
 * Treadmill Crane **

The tools that were used were the carpenter’s brace, the carpenter’s ax, the frame saw, the mason’s ax, stone chisels, the hammer, the compass, and the mason’s mallet. All these tools were used for different jobs.
 * [[image:Frame_saw_diagram.png width="267" height="118" align="left" caption="This is a diagram of a frame saw."]]Tools **

Medieval Mortar ** They made Medieval Mortar out of burned lime which was then soaked in pits, then mixed with sand. It was really strong!

Everyone worked hard so they wanted to get the money that the king or lord owed them. To remember who was owed what, the workers carved their own personal symbols in the parts of the castle that they built.
 * Personal Symbols **

Masons smoothed and shaped stones to fit like a puzzle. They made the shape out of lead and thin timber templates.
 * Stone Shaping **

Ironworkers needed to make hinges, nails and other fittings for certain parts of the castle. They also made the tools for the workers that they needed to make the castle.
 * Ironworkers **

The master worker was an architect, engineer and the site manager. He was pretty important.
 * Master Worker **

Rubble and mortar were poured together to make a solid wall.
 * Solid Walls **

** Conclusion ** I think that I wouldn’t want to live in a castle because I wouldn’t want to be under attack. That’s my opinion, what do you think?

Dixon, Philip, Knights & Castles, Simon & Schuster Publishing, 2007 Hicks, Peter, How Castles Were Built, Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1999 Wales Directory http://www.walesdirectory.co.uk/tourist-attractions/images-attractions/Beaumaris_Castle_and_Moat.jpg London Airport Pickups [|http://www.airport-pickups-london.com/images/Dover_castle.jpg] Uk Student Life [] Dorling Kindersley Books [] Img Radio [] Wikimedia []