Motte And Bailey Castles In Northern England

Motte and Bailey castles started appearing in England after 1066 when the Normans attacked England. They became very common by 1087. Building the castles became a huge project in England and Wales. When William the Conqueror went to Pevensey, he started to build a castle to protect himself and his men. He was a skilled and fearsome soldier who learned his military skills from Northern France. He learned his castle building skills from the french kings, who built castles to protect themselves from the vikings. Some vikings stayed in northern France and became the Normans. They were impressed with the castles so they made castles of their own. The most popular design was the Motte and Bailey design. In these castles, there was a building …show more content…
There would be a layer of soil capped by a layer of stone, then another layer of soil, and so on. After he became king of England, he allowed the Saxons (nobles) to keep their land. He also built many new castles to reassert his authority. The castles were supposed to be a sign of his power. However, there were many rebellions and the people burned down York Castle. William became furious and laid waste to Northern England. He took away the land from the Saxons and gave it to his own nobles. Every nobleman that received land was supposed to build a castle there to oppose the …show more content…
They were also big and could house more men then a Motte and Bailey Castle. Moats were used, so drawbridges were needed. These drawbridges could be lowered in times of peace and raised to keep out enemies. The inner wall would be the highest wall so that defenders could have a clear view of the attackers. The outer wall had towers to house defenders. Many new designs strengthened the gateway, the weakest part of the castle. The moat and drawbridge was introduced, as well as the death trap and murder holes. There was at least one portcullis, a heavy grilled door that protected the main