Motte and Bailey castle

[Vickitoria]

Please can you tell me about motte and bailey castles, how they were built, and why they were built? Please make it long, and reply quickly, as it is my homework, which is due in on Friday.

[incitatus]

There is a length limit on replies! Motte and bailey castles were built shortly after the norman conquest (1066) and lasted as a design for around 100 years. They were built of wood originally but many were later rebuilt in stone, which resisted fire attacks. The bailey was a large enclosure (think of an oval field) surrounded by a ditch and palisade fence. Inside the bailey would be stables, a smithy and some craftsmens premises but it was largely kept empty. The motte was a round artificial mound.....

[incitatus]

....on which a large building, or keep (as it was later called) was built. The motte was usually inside the bailey, though some were outside and linked by a bridge. The Bailey was an area in which the local villagers could find safety in times of attack. The motte was used as the defensive and administrative centre for the Lord and his family.

[incitatus]

There is evidence that the keeps at least may have been prefabricated. Pictures in the Bayeux Tapestry show castles being brought over on the ships William used for his invasion. A good example of a motte is at Nether Stowey in Somerset, where the stone foundations of the keep can be seen. Many later castles incorporated such features into their walls. Windsor is a good example.

[Erin-Rose-x]

I Built one [a model] and it had a keep] originally it was made out of wood, made in norman times, and thats all i can remember!