In Europe’s Middle Ages, castles dominated
not just warfare, but society itself. Strongholds are as old as war, but the medieval
castle was unique – a refuge and a projection of military force… a lordly residence and
symbol of power… a centre of justice and government. Today, castle ruins are found from the Atlantic
coast to the hills of Syria: dramatic and poignant reminders of a lost feudal world. There was no single blueprint for the castle:
every one was unique. But by analysing key trends over four centuries,
Epic History TV is proud to present its guide to building ‘the perfect castle’. The medieval castle was the product of a feudal
world… A world we’ll explore with help from our
video sponsor, Crusader Kings 3. Using the in-game map, we can zoom in on 9th
century France, the birthplace of feudalism. This was a time when royal authority was in
crisis, as Frankish kings – the heirs of Charlemagne - struggled to control unruly
nobles, and fight off Viking armies. Increasingly, the king would grant a piece
of land, known as a fief, and the promise of protection, to a lord. The lord became the king’s vassal, swearing
an oath of loyalty, or fealty, and providing military service when required. These feudal lords began to build fortified
bases across the land: in which to live, and from which to impose their authority on their
new domains. These were the first medieval castles. If you’d like to experience the challenge
of feudal lordship for yourself, we can recommend Crusader Kings 3, a new game from Paradox,
and our video sponsor. It’s set in a richly-detailed medieval world,
in which your task is to guide your chosen dynasty to power, wealth and glory. How you do this is entirely up to you: rule
with an iron fist and terrorise your vassals into obedience; build alliances by marrying
off relatives; or rid yourself of a troublesome priest by having him murdered, ideally without
getting caught. Every character in Crusader Kings 3 has a
unique personality, moulded by nature and their own history: all have strengths and
weaknesses that a wise ruler can exploit. Each game spans centuries, allowing you to
forge your own epic tale of dynastic triumph, or disaster. Crusader Kings 3 is out now – click the
link in our video description to find out more. When building a new castle, the first and
most important consideration is location. A castle should dominate the landscape, with
good views in all directions, so hills are ideal. Steep slopes and river bends can be used to
limit approach routes, making the site easier to defend. And for building work, a local source of stone,
wood and soil is essential, as transporting these materials over medieval roads is more
expensive than the materials themselves. There must also be a secure, local source
of fresh water and food to sustain the castle’s occupants. A reliable starter castle is the motte-and-bailey,
popular with the Normans, who built hundreds across England and Wales during the Norman
Conquest. The motte is a mound, either natural or built
by hand, as seen here in the Bayeaux Tapestry. It’s not just a pile of mud though: these
coloured bands are thought to represent alternating layers of stone and clay, which will increase
stability. Sometimes they even used stone or timber foundations. A typical motte is 8 metres high, and up to
50 metres across. Its top can be defended by a simple wooden
palisade, and a tower: living quarters for the lord and his entourage, and last refuge
in case of attack. An earth ditch and palisade should enclose
the bailey, to protect important buildings, such as a hall, stables, kitchen, stores and
a forge. Timber palisades are vulnerable to fire and
rot, so will ideally be replaced by an enclosing stone wall, known as a curtain wall, as soon
as possible. This creates the ‘enceinte’, or main defensive
enclosure. A curtain wall should have crenellations,
to protect soldiers of the garrison during an attack, as they shoot their bows or crossbows
at the enemy. A concealed postern gate, or sally port, can
be used during a siege to smuggle messages in and out of the castle, or to launch surprise
attacks on the enemy. In parts of France, such as Anjou and Poitou,
castle-builders ignored the motte-and-bailey approach, and constructed strong stone towers
… In French it’s called a donjon - the origin
of the word dungeon. In England, it’s known as the keep. A keep offers better security and accommodation
than a wooden tower. But if you try to build one on top of a motte,
its weight will cause it to collapse. Some opt for a compromise: a ‘shell-keep’,
which keeps the motte, and replaces its wooden palisade with a circular stone wall. But a truly imposing keep will have to be
built from scratch on carefully prepared foundations. A typical early stone keep is rectangular,
between two and four stories high, with walls up to 6 metres thick. Construction might take up to ten years, and
cost a fortune, so large keeps are only built by monarchs and powerful nobles. The biggest keeps have towers at each corner. Within, there might be a hall for meals and
entertainment, private apartments, a chapel and storerooms. A forebuilding creates an impressive and well-guarded
entrance, which should be at first-floor level, accessed by a wooden staircase which can be
removed in case of attack. If the keep has a cellar, this is an ideal
space to store extra provisions, not for chaining up prisoners, in the dungeons of popular imagination. Early keeps are square or rectangular, but
later come in many shapes and sizes King Philip Augustus of France was particularly
fond of circular keeps. Perhaps the most eye-catching of all is Castel
del Monte in Southern Italy, built by Emperor Frederick the Second. Its elaborate polygonal structure reminds
us that the perfect castle must be elegant as well as formidable. The curtain wall should be strengthened by
flanking towers at regular intervals. These project forward from the wall, so archers
can shoot at attacking enemies with enfilade fire – or put another way, attackers will
come under fire from the wall ahead of them, as well as from towers to the right and left. Square towers offer large amounts of extra
space for living quarters and storage. But their corners are a weak point that can
be targeted by enemy stone-throwing artillery, such as a trebuchet. So round towers may be a better option. The choice is often one of taste, fashion
and / or cost. Square towers… round towers… and D-shaped
towers… were all common across Europe, and many castles feature a mix of types. In some places, it was possible to cut costs
by re-using old Roman fortifications, as at Pevensey, and Portchester, on England’s
south coast. Here the Normans simply built a stone keep
within the walls of an old Roman shore fort, saving time, labour and money. Loopholes, or arrow slits, are important additions
for any tower or wall section. The earliest versions are simple vertical
slits, but from the 14th century, more decorative cross-shapes are common. In the event of a siege, wooden hoardings,
sometimes called ‘brattice work’, can be built out over the walls, to allow the
garrison to rain boiling water and rocks onto the attacking enemy. The obvious focus for an attack is the castle’s
main gate. So its defences – known as the gatehouse
- must be especially strong. The ideal solution is to add towers on each
side of the gateway… to add an outer and inner gate… and at least one, if not several,
portcullises. These metal, lattice gates can be dropped
vertically, to trap attackers in a kill zone. The garrison can then use ‘murder-holes’
in the ceiling and walls to finish off the intruders. The main gate can be further protected by
a drawbridge over the outer moat or ditch, which can be raised by chains as an enemy
approaches. Through the middle ages, gatehouses became
increasingly powerful, with multiple drawbridges, gates, and portcullises… the approach covered
by looming towers… and every wall and ceiling studded with loopholes… and murder-holes. Some of the most formidable gatehouses are
found in the castles built by Edward the First to subdue Wales in the late 13th century. Such imposing wall-defences began to make
a massive keep seem superfluous, so many of these castles were built without a keep at
all. Our castle is now an imposing fortress, able
to withstand a siege of several months, if properly provisioned. But to be considered truly epic, a castle
should have a second curtain wall, enclosing an outer bailey, with its own towers and gatehouse. Gatehouses should be positioned at angles
to the approach route, so any attacker has to twist and turn, rather than make a direct
rush at the gate. Towers and walls should now feature stone
machicolations, for dropping rocks on the enemy – far more sophisticated than temporary
wooden hoardings. The new outer bailey, or ward, allows more
buildings to be brought within the castle’s defences – not forgetting that a medieval
castle is as much a residence as fortification: perhaps a new, grander hall for entertaining
your household and important guests, kitchen gardens, and extra living quarters. The outer ditch, or moat, can be flooded with
water to create an extra layer of defence. A water moat also has decorative value, and
can be a source of fresh fish. A final flourish – a barbican, an outlying
fortification that adds yet another layer of defence to the main entrance. This is now a fine and formidable example
of a ‘concentric castle’. Its design will force any attacker to overcome
successive layers of strong defence to reach the final refuge, the keep. If properly garrisoned and supplied, a castle
like this was virtually impregnable until the age of gunpowder. As we have seen, there was no single blueprint
for the medieval castle. Each was built to take advantage of the landscape,
to incorporate the latest military thinking, and reflect regional styles and personal taste. The most awe-inspiring examples from the castle’s
golden age include… Krak des Chevaliers, the supposedly impregnable
crusader fortress of the Knights Hospitaller… Dover Castle, known as ‘the key to England’… And Malbork Castle, the gigantic brick-built
headquarters of the Teutonic Knights. By the 15th century, the castle’s role was
in steep decline – in part due to the rise of gunpowder weapons, such as cannon… but more fundamentally, because the feudal
world that gave rise to the castle had fallen away… to be replaced by professionalised
armies, and centralised, royal authority. As the age of powerful feudal lords ended,
so too did the age of the castle. Most would ultimately slide into ruin… Their military role replaced by artillery
forts. Their residential role taken over by palaces
and stately homes… as the age of the castle gave way to the age of the château. Thanks again to our video sponsor Crusader
Kings 3. Use the link in the video description to check
out this new medieval strategy game of unrivalled depth and sophistication. What we love about this game is the chance
to rewrite history: Epic History TV is currently playing as William
the Conqueror – we were hoping for a quick win over Harold Godwinson at Hastings, but
instead it took an alliance with the Viking king Harald Hardrada, and a gruelling 5-year
campaign, to subdue the English. Now our vassals are restless and our grasping
liege lord the King of France is after our territories in Normandy… Thank you also to all our Patreon supporters
for making Epic History TV possible. Visit our Patreon page to find out how you
can support the channel, get ad-free early access and help choose future topics. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram
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