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Why were Motte and Bailey Castles Important?
1066–1500
For more detailed instructions, see the Getting Started presentation.
This icon indicates the slide contains activities created in Flash. These activities are not editable.www.historytl.com
This presentation covers:
1. What a motte and bailey castle is.
2. Why they were built.
3. What they looked like.
4. What their advantages and disadvantages were.
Learning objectives
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The Normans built the first proper castles in England. They needed bases from which to control the countryside, and strongholds to protect them from Saxon attack.
The castles had to be built in a hurry, so they were originally built of timber on an earth mound (a motte).The bailey was the living area for the soldiers.
The motte and bailey castle
Remember, William’s troops were an invading force and not exactly secure in all parts of the country.
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Especially as the English did not have many castles before the Normans came
along!
Why castles?
When William invaded England he quickly set about building castles.The reason was simple – he knew he had nowhere near enough men to run England.
So William built castles at important places – hills, rivers, towns – so that if the English tried to control the country they’d be forced to attack a castle – a bad move!
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Keep – the safest place in the castle
Motte – defensive mound of earth
Moat – this made it harder to reach the walls
Palisade – these were made of wood and formed a fence
Bailey – large walled area where the soldiers and animals lived
Bridge – from the motte to the bailey
Early castles
Drawbridge – to the entrance to the bailey
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KeepMotte
MoatPalisade Bailey
Bridge
Drawbridge
The surrounding area would be cleared of any cover. This area would be called the killing ground.
It was unlikely that a motte and bailey would be built near a forest – why do you think this is?
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How much do you remember?
Which do you think are the weakest parts of the castle? Why?
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What would you do in William’s position?
Why the motte and bailey?
So why did William build motte and bailey castles? To answer this question you have to think about William’s problems – get inside his mind to understand what he needed.
A stone castle may be better for his soldiers but will it take time to build?
What is better, a wooden castle that is quick to build, or a stone castle that will take years?
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Castles
Learning Objectives
To understand the advantages and disadvantages of castles
To understand what the main defensive features were
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Castles
• Put the title Castles.
• Then put a side heading Motte and Bailey Castles
• Write a sentence to explain why William and later kings wanted to build castles.
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Castles
• Now think about the advantages and the disadvantages of these Motte and Bailey castles.
• Write down 2 of each.
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Advantages of the motte and bailey castle
1. The castles were quick to build. A motte and bailey castle could be up in a few weeks! This was a huge difference compared to the years it would take to build a stone castle.
2. They protected the soldiers that William used to control the country and were easy to defend. Small numbers of Norman soldiers could hold off rebellions or attacks by being in a castle.
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Disadvantages of the motte and bailey castle
1. The biggest weakness was the material they were made of – wood. Like the story of the Three Little Pigs, wooden buildings can be burnt down by fire. They can also be affected by rot.
2. Because the castles were not built to last, they were only a temporary solution.
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Motte and bailey: multiple-choice questions
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The motte and bailey castle design that William first used was good as a start but not as effective in the long term.
Defending a castle
This is because castles needed to be strong enough to survive an attack by any means.
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Castle defence keywords
Barbican
Portcullis
Murder holes
The extra gatehouse at the front of the castle.
The strong oak and metal gate at the front of the castle (one pence coins carry an image of them).
Holes that soldiers could pour hot sand, water and lime through to kill and wound an enemy.
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Harlech Castle
Location, location, location
The first defence a castle had was its location.
Harlech Castle was almost impossible to surround – why?
Other castles were built on hills, such as Guildford and Conisbrough. This meant they could easily observe any enemy force approaching!www.historytl.co
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The castle entrance
The castle entrance often had a barbican attached. This extra gatehouse protected the weakest part of the castle. There would be extra soldiers, and several heavy oak doors and portcullises to get past.
Barbican
Gatehouse
Three entrance gates
(portcullis) to get through
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The castle entrance
The castle entrance often had a barbican attached. This extra gatehouse protected the weakest part of the castle. There would be extra soldiers, and several heavy oak doors and portcullises to get past.
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Defences before and at the main entrance
Why do you think the main entrance had so much defence?
Click on the murder holes, portcullis and drawbridge.
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Castles were often built near rivers.
Why do you think this was?www.historytl.com
Learning Objectives
To understand how castles defenses were used
To identify the different types of defense
To be able to describe how castles were defended
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The castle battlements jutted out from the top of the wall so that soldiers could drop heavy stones and pour boiling tar onto the enemy below.
At the bottom of the curtain wall the walls were angled so that when stones were dropped they would bounce off the bottom and hit the attackers.
Castle defences
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There were a number of features which could be added to the castle to make it stronger. Most castles had round towers in their walls. This was so soldiers could fire in all directions along the front walls.
The strongest building was the keep. It had numerous defensive features including very thick walls, narrow staircases, big cellars for sieges. Even the entrance was raised and had drawbridges to stop an attack.
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Correct version
Keep The strongest building with thick walls and a drawbridge
Murder holes Holes that hot sand, water and lime could be poured through
Battlements Jutted away from the castle wall so soldiers could drop boiling tar on the enemies below
Curtain Wall Angled wall to allow dropped stones to hit the attackers.
Barbican The extra gatehouse at the front of the castle
Portcullis The strong oak and metal gate at the front of the castle
Round towers Allowed soldiers to fire in all directionswww.historytl.com
Key Words• Merlons – raised stones , often on the top
of a tower.
• Embrasures – arrow slits
• Round towers – harder to undermine as they had no corners
Copy these terms into your book
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As castles were frequently under attack, they had to be as strong as possible.
Why did castles develop?
As the attackers improved their methods of attack, so the castle builders had to improve the castle’s ability to defend.
How do you think a battering ram
was used to attack a castle?
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Castle attack
In this picture the attackers are tunnelling. They would mine underneath the castle hoping to collapse it!
What are the advantages of this method of attack?
How would this catapult have worked?
Do you think it would have been very effective? Why?
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These siege towers had a drawbridge at the top. The soldiers would climb up the tower and rush across the drawbridge onto the castle hoarding (the bit jutting out at the top of the castle). They were often covered in animal skins to provide further protection from arrows.
What do you think were the main disadvantages with this method of attack?
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Attacking the castle
• Describe what each of these was used for and give it the correct name.
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Which of the methods of attack do you think would have been the most effective? Why?
Can you suggest any other methods attackers might have used?
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Pick one of the attack weapons we have looked at
today and write a short paragraph explaining its
advantages and disadvantages
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Learning Objectives
To understand how castles defended themselves from attack
To understand how castles were attacked
To write a successful defence/attack plan
You are going to watch a clip from the film Braveheart, you should concentrate on how the men attack the castle and what they use to do
this.
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Castles were sometimes so strong that the only method of attack was to wait. This was called laying siege. It was basically staying out of arrow range and surrounding the castle until it was starved into submission.
Sieges could take a very long time to work. Many castles had wells in the keep and large storerooms always prepared in case of a siege. The best time to attack would be spring as all the winter food would be used up by then and the defenders would have little supplies to last on.
Siege
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Sometimes attacking a castle involved more gruesome methods. In the fourteenth century one castle was subjected to an attack by having plague victims catapulted over the walls to spread the disease.
Other attacks included throwing over rotten animal bodies to spread disease and also the heads of executed prisoners!
Biological warfare
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Attacking a castle
• From the information we have just read pick out 3 other things that were used in an attack.
• Explain how they were used and decide which one you think was the most effective.
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Task
• Choose to be either an attacker or a defender of a castle.
• Write a set of instructions for your knights telling them how your castle is going to be attacked or defended.
• You must use the correct terms and describe the castle structure as well as the weapons that will be used.
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Attack and Defence: multiple-choice questions
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On your scrap bits of paper you have 2 minutes to draw a typical castle!!! GO!!!
Now turn over. You now have 2 minutes to draw how you would design your own castle!
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Learning Objectives
To understand what the inside of a castle would have looked like?
To identify the purpose of different rooms
To identify what rooms you would include in your own castle
What was it like living inside a castle?
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Look at your diagrams of the inside of a castle. On the sheet describe in your own words the PURPOSE of each room.
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Which room do you think is the most important?
Why?
Which room do you think is the least important?
Why?
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If you were building your own castle what would it be like on the
inside?
Write a paragraph which discusses your choices
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How did Castles develop over time?
Learning Objectives
•To understand how Castles in England developed
•To assess how strong castles were
•To assess how comfortable they were to live in
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Read through the information about Chepstow castle and complete the table of results:
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Students to answer questions:
•What does the story of Chepstow Castle tell us about the power struggles of noblemen and Kings? (Think about how the castle was used as a reward for loyalty; how the castle was meant to help increase the power of the Normans; and how its owners used the castle as a sign of wealth and power)
•What does the castle’s story tell you about medieval minds? (Think about the hopes and fears of knights and noblemen)
What is the most important thing to consider when
building a castle and why?www.historytl.com
Lesson Objectives
• To reflect on what we learned from the visit to Newcastle and Warkworth
• To compare the 2 styles of castle
• To begin to focus on designing a castle.
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Warkworth Newcastle Keep
Compare Warkworth and Newcastle Keep using the Double Bubble Tool
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Your Task
• You have been asked by a Norman Baron to design a new castle which is going to be built in Northumberland.
• The King is worried about marauding peoples from the north and he wants to put a strong baron in Northumberland to keep control.
• You have to take into account that the baron has a wife and family and so the castle will also be their home.
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Your Task
• You need to decide the Location; where in Northumberland will you build this castle ?
• You need to give reasons for this decision.• Then you have to decide what your castle will
look like; you need to draw a floor plan, showing what rooms are included and what they are used for.
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Your Task
• Then you have to consider the security of the castle; how will you make sure it can resist an attack ?
• You must describe (or draw) the defensive features and explain what makes your castle strong and safe from attack.
• Include an explanation of what building materials you use and why you chose them.
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Your Task
• You can present your design in the form of a powerpoint presentation, or a set of plans with notes, or a model.
• Your design must have an explanation for everything you include.
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Your Task
• Your design has to be completed by Tuesday 13th July.
• You will then present it to the whole class.
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