Castles 2
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Castles
Motte and Bailey Castles
Image by Kind Permission of the Friends of Stafford Castle
A few castles existed in England before 1066. Those that did exist had been built along the Welsh Marches in the time of Edward the Confessor. The word castellum is a Norman word.
Throughout England William's followers were given land by him, this land had once belonged to the English earls. William could not secure the land properly. The new large land owners also needed to parcel out smaller areas of his land to his followers. To provide a base for soldiers and to make a statement of ownership to the locals, these knights built castles. Time was of the essence, Norman soldiers were prone to attack when in the open, in Northumbria in 1069 the new Earl was massacred in the open. The English would not find it so easy if the Normans were protected.
The motte was the earthen mound on which was built a wooden keep or tower. The bailey was a kind of yard below the mound surrounded by a wooden stockade and a ditch or moat. The bailey would have the homes of the people who serviced the castle. There was lots of local labour available, using subjugated peasants served a dual purpose; free workers and also it also showed these local peasants that there was no point in resisting the Norman invaders. The forests of England were abundant and widespread at this time and so there was a plentiful supply of wood to build these castles. There was no time to cut stone, as the Normans needed to complete the castle as quickly as possible.
The earliest date to which we can assign a castle which lies one and a half miles from Stafford occurs in 1102.
Link to activity : Attacking a Motte and Bailey Castle||||
Image : Artist's interpretation. © Stafford Castle Visitors Centre. By kind permission.
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