Castles were built to protect the lords who owned them and their land. That job shaped every part of a castle. Let's see how. The first choice was the place. Sites such as cliffs, marshes and high ground were chosen. These places gave a castle natural protection. Many early castles were made of wood.

Castles had very thick walls to help defend them. Some also had a moat of water around them, as an extra line of defence. People often entered a castle by crossing a bridge or drawbridge over a ditch or moat. The entrance was a castle's weakest point. So a gatehouse was built to guard it.

Across the entrance hung a portcullis. It was a grille. It was heavy and made of wood or iron. Defenders shot arrows through openings in castle walls called arrowloops or loopholes. Some castles had two rings of walls, one inside the other. This was called a concentric castle. The inner wall was higher, so archers could shoot over the heads of soldiers on the outer wall.

Later, castles were built of stone, which made them stronger. Not every castle was one tall tower, though. A motte and bailey castle had a mound of earth, the motte, with a wooden tower on it. Next to it was a courtyard called the bailey. Sometimes the wooden fence around a motte was rebuilt in stone. This is called a shell keep.

When gunpowder and cannon came, castle defences could be damaged more easily. So castles mattered less. Yet a castle was never only a fort. The great hall was the big room where a castle's household and guests gathered for feasts. At castle feasts, musicians, jugglers and acrobats entertained the guests. Feeding everyone was a big job for the cooks, and castle bread ovens were huge. Castles were places where people lived and worked.

Words to know

• portcullis: heavy grille
• gatehouse: gate guard
• arrowloops: wall openings
• concentric: rings inside rings
• bailey: castle courtyard

The short version

Castles were built to protect the lords who owned them and their land. Builders chose cliffs, marshes and high ground, and added thick walls, a gatehouse, a portcullis and sometimes a moat. Castles were also places where people lived and worked, not only forts.

Quick facts

• Castles had very thick walls to help defend them.
• A gatehouse was built to guard the entrance, which was a castle's weakest point.
• A concentric castle had two rings of walls, one inside the other.
• When gunpowder and cannon came, castle defences could be damaged more easily, so castles mattered less.