The Normans brought castles to England. The age of the castle began after their victory in 1066. Many early castles were made of wood.
One kind was a motte and bailey castle. The motte was a mound of earth. A wooden tower stood on it. Next to it was a courtyard called the bailey.
You may think castles were only for fighting. That is not the whole story. People lived and worked in the bailey.
Later, castles were built of stone, which made them stronger. A keep was the strong inner tower of a castle. It was also called a great tower.
Knights wore armour to protect their bodies. Early knights wore mail. Mail was armour made of thousands of linked metal rings.
A page was a child from a wealthy family. Pages learned good manners by working in a lord's household.
Castle toilets had no flush. A toilet was a seat of wood or stone. It had a hole in it.
So a castle was more than a fort. It was a place where people lived and worked.
Words to know
- motte: earth mound
- bailey: castle courtyard
- keep: inner tower
- mail: linked-ring armour
