A Successful Medieval Castle

A medieval castle would not only provide the necessities and luxuries of life but, would also be a killing field. A successful medieval castle would include a location suitable for the Lord and townspeople, layers of defense from attackers, resources and facilities for building and maintenance of a town and community and, amenities that made life easier and more fulfilling.

A good location was needed to help protect and provide for the townspeople. High ground was a great place to build a castle for the view of the surrounding area. That way someone could spot attackers and prepare for defense (Wheeler). Building the castle near a river was a good place to build the castle. The townspeople could eat the fish for food and get water to drink.
It also created a layer of defense which is hard for the attackers to get past (Wheeler). Having woods was also a good environment tool to have nearby. The wood could be used to make houses, heat food and scare wild animals, as well as being the handles for weapons such as an axe (Wheeler). A field was a great resource to have near the castle. The field was needed to grow crops for the townspeople to eat. The field could have been used to hunt food during religious holidays when people were not allowed to eat fish, from the river (Wheeler). A good location was critical for a medieval castle to survive.

One of the only ways for a medieval castle to be successful is if it had great defense.
(Need to put things in order from outside in when done)
(2) A moat was a large ditch or trench that surrounded the outer castle wall. It could be filled with water or could be a dry with spikes coming out of it. The moat normally had a drawbridge that come up when under attack (Freudenrich). This would be hard for the attackers to get across without expending a lot of energy.
(6) Stairwells inside the castle also were defense mechanisms. The stairwells were curved narrowly and in a clockwise position. Attackers running up the stairs found it difficult to swing the swords with their right hand, which everyone was trained to be (Will Kalif).
(3) The main gate of the castle created a layer of defense as well. The main gate opened into as courtyard with another gate beyond that. If the main gate was broken into, iron portcullises, with spikes, would fall, killing some attackers and trapping the others (Will
Kalif).
(5) Crenellations were rectangular blocks alternating with openings across the top of a wall or tower. Soldiers would hide behind blocks and shoot through the openings. Expert archers were stationed on the roof of the castle and would shoot arrows that could pierce armor of attackers (Beck 367). (4) Arrow loops were narrow slits in walls which archers and crossbowmen could fire arrows through. Most arrow loops were wider on the inside then on the outside which, gave the shooter a better field view (Freudenrich).
(1) Centric circles of defense was an extremely effective way to defend a castle. It was a series of obstacles that started in the outside of the castle and got harder as they got closer to the castle. The normal development was a cleared field, an outer wall, moat, inner wall, keep then the towers. Attackers would have to clear each obstacle one at a time which, would take a lot of time and energy to do.
For a medieval castle to be successful, it needed a lot of forms of defense.

Providing for the town and townspeople was a big part of a unified community. Having a chapel in the community played a big part in a unified community (Macdonald 12). Religion was a huge part of medieval society because it was the only place that provided a place of security and safety. A river provided water for the townspeople. Having a river provided the townspeople with food and water without them having too walk miles away (Wheeler). The woods near the castle gave the townspeople homes to live in. The forest gave the townspeople wood to build houses of. The wood could also have been used to build a fire, which would cook food and keep them warm during cold times, as well as scare away wild animals (Wheeler). The field near the town gave the townspeople away to grow crops and vegetables. The field gave them a place to hunt for food when the townspeople could not have fish for both religious and personal reasons (Wheeler). Providing for the townspeople was a big part of medieval society.

The amenities made life easier and more fulfilling.
A grand hall was a large room with high ceilings which had large fireplaces. The grand hall could have been used to host large parties or gatherings or to eat and sleep in (Freudenrich). Another amenity was the kitchen. A kitchen’s size depended on how big the castle was and the importance of the castle. Kitchens were once in a separate building because of threat of fire. Once brick was more available, kitchens were moved into the main castle (Morris). The kitchen being in the main building of the castle was an amenity because then it was easier to get food from one place to another, especially during a party or social gathering. The chapel was an amenity for the reason that religion was such a big part of medieval society (Morris). People thought that if a priest was harmed, it was the biggest act of cruelty anyone could commit. The chapel gave the town a purpose to live there. Towers were amenities because they were originally used for decoration. They also created so that archers could see and shoot down attackers. The towers were originally built with a square base but attackers started digging under one corner of the tower and the entire tower would collapse. To prevent this, towers started being made with a circular base, with no corners to dig under (Morris). Stables were a huge amenity in medieval society. Horses were an essential part of transportation, communication and were needed in battle. A Lord was not
considered powerful unless he had war horses in a stable. Amenities made life easier and more fulfilling during medieval society.
In conclusion, when building a medieval castle, one had to consider the many purposes the castle must serve. The design must have provided facilities, structures and location to have provided the royals and townspeople safety and security, natural resources for the construction and maintenance of the castle and town, and the feeding of its people. Of course, the castle must have been designed to keep invaders out and if they broke through the castle walls, to ensure that none of them left the castle alive.