Castles

Castles

Why did people build castles? Rich people built castles so they would have somewhere safe to live. Many castles in Britain were built between the years 1066 and 1400.

Where were castles built? People built most castles on hills or near the sea. It was difficult for enemies to attack up steep hills, or from the water. People built castles where it was easy to defend them. People piled up earth and stones where there were no hills or sea. They dug moats and filled them with water.

Keeping safe You could see a long way from the top of a castle ... but it was windy and cold up there.Look!The enemy! It was safe inside the castle and people liked to shelter there from danger. It got very crowded if the animals went in too. Some castles only had space for soldiers.

The outside walls were often four metres thick. The towers stuck out so soldiers could see to shoot at the enemy at the bottom of the wall. At the top of the walls and towers were battlements. These had crenels which soldiers could shoot through in battles. Swinging wooden shutters in the crenels were useful in battle.

Attack! There were lots of ways of attacking a castle, but it was very difficult to break in. This castle is under attack. It wasn't easy to get into a castle!