Medieval castles were typically constructed to serve as military fortifications for notable nobles and the royal personnel in Europe. A castle often doubled as the private residence of the owner as well. Such a dual role often dictated the overall design and construction of a castle.
The exterior of a medieval castle was typically set up with numerous defenses such as curtain walls, watch towers, moats, and gatehouses. The key part of the interior comprised the local lord’s residence and was fairly large in size.
Castles were usually enormous, often comprising of a military garrison, private quarters, stables, and living quarters of the workers and employees. The King of a castle usually lived in an inner stronghold called a Castle Keep.
Keep
In the early medieval period, Normans specialized in the art of castle-building. Normans were descendants of Vikings and undertook extensive campaigns of conquest from the 9th to 12th centuries.
During this period, they came to dominate England, Normandy, southern Italy as well as Sicily, and some other regions.
Normans cemented their hold in regions such as England by building wooden motte-and-bailey castles Motte and Bailey Castles were fairly basic types of castles, that could be quickly built and proved vital in helping the Normans permanently establish their control of England and other lands.
In time, these castles evolved into more durable stone castles with keeps. In time, Gothic architecture led to the construction of more lavish castles with well-lighted interiors and high ceilings. The use of materials also evolved from wood to stone to eventually a combination of different materials.
Warwick Castle
The primary purpose of the medieval castle was to serve as a military fortification for the local lord or reigning king. This vital purpose dictated the evolution of castles until the late medieval period. It led to a race of increasingly sophisticated and complex castle defenses over the course of the medieval ages.
By the late medieval period, English kings were constructing immense concentric castles with exceptionally formidable defenses which were virtually impenetrable.
However, towards the end of the medieval period, the invention of gunpowder rendered most castle defenses inadequate. This led to the evolution of the castle along with more residential, rather than military, lines.
A medieval castle was typically a fairly huge structure that included many elements. The castle would comprise the residential quarters for the lord, his family, and his guests. This was the main household section where staff such as the steward, chamberlain, and the master of the wardrobe were employed commonly the Castle Keep.
Another important part of the castle was the vast kitchen where a number of servants were employed under a head cook. The Great Hall of the castle was the place where meals were served and feasts were held.
The stables housed the horses used by the household while a portion was often dedicated to hunting equipment and the falcons used in hunting.
On the exterior, a boundary curtain wall was one of the most vital defence against an attack from the outside. The wall was often augmented by building towers all along it which were manned by military personnel.
A moat was also frequently used outside the castle walls to act as an additional barrier for any potential attackers.
Castle Moat