Week 9 Essay

          This week I learned about many things, including castles, cathedrals, knighthood, feudalism and manorialism. In this essay I will be writing about castles. I will talk about why they were built, the structure of castles, and what they are used for and thought of today.

          The English people were very stubborn, and did not want an outsider ruling the kingdom instead of an English king. When the Normans conquered and took over England, they became frightened that the English would invade and conquer them, so they built castles and towers all through England for the nobles to live in.

          These nobles would rule over certain areas of land for the king, in contrast for protection. This was so that the king did not have to keep track of so much land. So, castles were previously built for protection.

          A castle was built out of many parts. First there was the keep. This was the main part of the castle which everything else surrounded. It was also where the family that owned the castle lived.

          The bailey was next. It was a wall of buildings that surrounded and half protected the castle. There were some other buildings in the bailey too.

          Then there was a curtain wall, which surrounded the bailey and the keep. This was for protection and war use. Knights could shoot down from the curtain wall on the invaders. Along the curtain wall was a gatehouse; an opening in the wall so that soldiers and other people could get in and out of.

          Finally was the mote. The mote was a deep ditch, most of the time filled by water. It surrounded the entire castle and it was used to prevent invaders from digging under the wall. A drawbridge on the side of the castle could be lowered for people to walk across.

          Over time, castles were known as places for living purposes. Everyone knew that only people with high authority could live in the castles and they were to be respected. Today, castles are used for tours for people to see how kings and other important people lived in those days. Castles are also used for movies (sometimes), also living purposes for royalty, they store precious items such as famous and important jewelry, and much more.

          This week I did not learn about any specific people, but I enjoyed learning about castles. I learned about the previous purpose of them, the structure of castles, and what they are used for today. I can not wait to learn about something new next week.