Parts of a medieval castle

Inner Ward

The inner ward was the inside of the castle, it was also called a baily.

Buildings in the inner ward

• Great Hall - The great hall was a building that was used as a dining area and a meeting place.
• Kitchen - The kitchen was where the food was prepared, it was usually built in the inner ward to reduce the risk of fire.

"Sometimes kitchens were built in the bailey. Several men worked in the kitchens preparing food. Food was obtained from the surrounding country side but in a siege people had to survive on animals living within the bailey or on salted or dried food." (Adams p. 13)

• Keep - The keep was where the lord and his family lived. It was the strong point of the castle.
• Kennels - The kennels were where the hunting dogs lived.
• Some of the other buildings in the inner ward were: stables, apartments for the lord and his family, and a blacksmith shop.

Top

Walls

The walls protected the castle

• In a concentric castle - The space in between the two walls was called the outer ward. The inner curtain encloses the inner ward.
• The high parts of the wall were called merlons they contained an arrow loop and were topped by three spikes called finials.
• The low parts of the wall were called embrasures. These were created openings through which missiles could be dropped.
• A town wall projects from the outer curtain wall to protect the town. The town wall (the wall surrounding the town), could be 20 feet high, 5.5 feet thick.
• "Both curtain walls and towers were perfectly vertical, except along the bottom of the outer face, where it spread out at a sharp angle. The sloping base, called a batter, had two main functions. First, it strengthened the structure and, second, it created a surface off which stones and other missiles dropped from the tops of the walls would bounce toward the enemy."(Macaulay, p.13)
• The walls were the inner and outer curtain walls; they could be up to 20 feet thick, and up to 50 feet high. The inner curtain wall could be 30 feet high, 12 feet thick, the outer curtain wall could be 20 feet high, 8 feet thick.

Top

Towers

The towers also protected the castle.

• The chapel tower had one room, it was two stories high The dungeon was located in a tower below the basement.
• The chapel tower had one room, it was two stories high The dungeon was located in a tower below the basement.
• In castles the ground floor was considered the basement. The only way to get to the dungeon was through a trap door in the basement.

Top

Moat

The moat was protection for the castle.

• The moat was a ditch filled with water, surrounding the castle.
• The moat was originally a dry ditch.

Top

Home Page Back Forward