Motte and Bailey Castles
As can be seen, the Windsor Castle consisted of not one but two Baileys, in the top left and bottom, as well as a Motte, in the top middle. Click this photo for a video about the history of the Windsor Castle.
The year was 1066. The Normans had just won the Battle of Hastings, and William the Conqueror was ruler of England. But for all the things that happened to England, something good did come out: the Motte and Bailey castle. In a textbook example of cultural diffusion, the Normans introduced the castle, which they themselves had been making since around 990, to England. Despite French origins, the Motte and Bailey is best remembered as a British castle, mainly because of the number they built, as well as one very famous one: The Windsor Castle. Despite being one of the first built, it is one of the only ones remaining today, and is used as a royal residence. They may have been flawed, but Motte and Baileys paved the road for future castles, and without them, the castles we know and see today may have been very different.
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This is a sketch of what a normal Motte and Bailey castle would look like. In the bottom is the Bailey, complete with ditch, fence and houses, and in the top is the Motte, noticably higher than the Bailey.
You may be wondering what a Motte and Bailey castle is. Well, it’s a castle with two parts: a Motte and a Bailey. The motte was a higher piece of land such as a mound that provided defense for the castle’s inhabitants, as well as lookout for oncoming enemies. The Motte was very steep, and usually surrounded by a round ditch. Due to this, the only way to get to the Motte was an elevated bridge at the Bailey. The Bailey was a flat piece of land where the basic functions of a castle were carried out, and provided living quarters for the lord's followers. The Bailey made up most of the castle, while the Motte was relatively small. The Bailey too was surrounded by ditch, as well as a fence. These components made up your usual Motte and Bailey castle.
This definitely isn't the best looking castle, and its unusually low Motte probably led for poor defense and lookout. It may be historic, but this would probably be one of the more flawed Motte and Bailey castles.
So why use a Motte and Bailey castle? Well, for starters, they were very cheap to build, and could be constructed in as little as 2 weeks. They were originally made out of timber, which was plentiful and easy to use. The motte made for a good defense system, and the flatness of the Bailey made for easy navigation around the castle. When construction switched to stone, the castles got the benefit of being much more resistant to attack, especially fire. Despite all this, Motte and Bailey castles were not without their flaws. The ground on which one was built had to have many attributes. For example, the castle had to encompass a hill for the Motte, which in of itself was not that easy to get to. This also meant that the hill had to be alone, which wasn’t very common. When made out of timber, the castles could be easily destroyed by fire, which is the reason there aren’t that many today. The switch to stone made the castles safer, although it took longer to build and required more money. So Motte and Baileys were far from perfect. But they were instrumental in helping to build the castle we see today.
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This is a concentric castle. As can be seen, it has the same general "castle within a castle" idea, although it probably does it better. Consider the Motte and Bailey the invention and the concentric the innovator. Click this photo for further information about Motte and Bailey castles.
You may have heard of concentric castles before. If not, here’s a quick summary: a inner castle is protected by an outer wall, leading to safe castles. If that sounds at all familiar, it’s probably because their main concept was inspired by the motte and bailey. The Motte and bailey originated the “castle within a castle” idea, with the motte lying safely within the Bailey. Concentric castles picked up this idea to protect themselves with a wall. Also, the Motte and Bailey was among the first castles to be made of stone, which is what most castles we see today are made of. Many concentric castles would have an inner field, similar to the Bailey. Also, many concentric castles inner castle was higher than the outer wall, similar to how a Motte would tower over a Bailey. They may have been flawed, and simply weird in terms of architecture, but the later castles of the middle ages owe a lot to the Motte and Bailey. Without them, who knows what castles would be like.
Works Cited
"Aerial image of Carisbrooke Castle, a historic motte-and-bailey castle, Carisbrooke, near Newport, Isle of Wight, England, United Kingdom, Europe." Britannica Image Quest. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://quest.eb.com/images/151_2515954?subjectId=0&collectionId=0&keyword=motte+and+bailey+castle&localizeMetaData=false>.
"Aerial view of Castle Acre, remains of a motte and bailey castle with extensive earthworks, Castle Acre, Norfolk, England, United Kingdom, Europe." Britannica Image Quest. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Apr. 2013. <http://quest.eb.com/images/>.
Barrow, Mandy. "Motte and Bailey Castles." Project Britain Castles. Woodlands Junior School, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2013. <http://www.chiddingstone.kent.sch.uk/homework/castles/motteandbailey.htm>.
"The Motte and Bailey Castle." Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 19 Apr. 2013. <http://school.eb.com/all/eb/article-57596?query=motte%20and%20bailey%20castle&ct=null>.
"Motte and Bailey Castle." Middle Ages. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2013. <http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/motte-and-bailey-castle.htm>.
"Motte and Bailey castle atop raised earth mound." Britannica Image Quest. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://quest.eb.com/images/118_839819?subjectId=0&collectionId=0&keyword=motte+and+bailey+castles&localizeMetaData=false>.
"Motte and Bailey Castles & Ringworks." Castles of Wales. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2013. <http://www.castlewales.com/motte.html>.
"Windsor Castle." Britannica Image Quest. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2013. <http://quest.eb.com/images/115_885989?subjectId=0&collectionId=0&keyword=windsor+castle&localizeMetaData=false>.