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Welcome to Read Listen Draw!

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Raise the drawbridge for Twenty-Five Facts
About Castles.

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1.

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A medieval castle was both a strongly
defended building and a home for a
powerful ruler or noble family.

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2.

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Castles also displayed wealth and
authority, so their appearance mattered as
much as their defences.

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3.

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Builders often chose strategic places,
such as hills, river crossings, harbours
and important roads, where people and
movement could be watched.

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4.

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Many early castles in England and Wales
were built from earth and timber because
those materials could be gathered and
shaped quickly.

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5.

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In a motte-and-bailey castle, the motte
was a steep mound topped by a tower or
strong enclosure.

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6.

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The bailey was a defended courtyard
containing useful buildings such as a
hall, stables, workshops and stores.

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7.

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Wealthy castle owners gradually replaced
many timber defences with stone, which
resisted fire and weather better but took
far longer to build.

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8.

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A keep, also called a great tower, was a
castle’s main strongpoint and could also
contain impressive rooms.

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9.

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The high stone wall enclosing a courtyard
was called a curtain wall.

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Masons made some walls several metres
thick.

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10.

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The main entrance was often the castle’s
weakest point, so later gatehouses became
powerful mini-fortresses with towers of
their own.

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11.

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A portcullis was a heavy lattice gate that
slid vertically in grooves and could close
the entrance passage.

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12.

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Gatehouses could also have thick doors,
arrow loops and openings in the ceiling
through which defenders could attack
intruders below.

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13.

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A moat was a broad defensive ditch, and it
did not always contain water.

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14.

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Battlements had raised sections called
merlons for shelter and open gaps called
crenels for looking or shooting through.

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15.

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Towers that projected beyond a wall gave
defenders a wider view along its outside
face.

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16.

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Concentric castles had two or more rings
of walls, forcing attackers to overcome
one defended line after another.

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17.

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Castles were busy communities, not empty
stone shells.

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Families, guards, cooks, craftspeople,
clerks and many servants could live or
work inside.

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18.

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The great hall was the social heart of
many castles, used for meals, meetings,
ceremonies and entertainment.

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19.

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Castle kitchens could be hot and noisy,
with large hearths, roasting spits, ovens
and cauldrons preparing food for a large
household.

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20.

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A reliable well or stored water was vital,
especially when a castle was surrounded
during a siege.

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21.

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Many castles had chapels, fireplaces and
private chambers, while colourful plaster,
paint and woven hangings made important
rooms brighter and warmer.

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22.

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Castle toilets were called latrines or
garderobes.

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Waste often dropped through a chute into a
pit, ditch or outside the wall.

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23.

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During a siege, attackers might use stone-
throwing machines, ladders, siege towers,
battering rams or tunnels dug beneath
walls.

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24.

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Cannon became more important in the later
Middle Ages, leading builders to add
gunports and rethink tall castle defences.

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25.

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Today, archaeologists, historians and
conservators study and protect surviving
castles and ruins, helping their stories
last.

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Which castle fact will you draw?