A Successful Medieval Castle

A medieval castle would not only provide the necessities and luxuries of life but, would also be a killing field. A successful medieval castle would include a location suitable for the Lord and townspeople, layers of defense from attackers, resources and facilities for building and maintenance of a town and community and, amenities that made life easier and more fulfilling.

A good location was needed to help protect and provide for the townspeople. High ground was a great place to build a castle for the view of the surrounding area. That way someone could spot attackers and prepare for defense (Wheeler). Building the castle near a river was a good place to build the castle. The townspeople could eat the fish for food and get water to drink.
(Need to put things in order from outside in when done)
(2) A moat was a large ditch or trench that surrounded the outer castle wall. It could be filled with water or could be a dry with spikes coming out of it. The moat normally had a drawbridge that come up when under attack (Freudenrich). This would be hard for the attackers to get across without expending a lot of energy.
(6) Stairwells inside the castle also were defense mechanisms. The stairwells were curved narrowly and in a clockwise position. Attackers running up the stairs found it difficult to swing the swords with their right hand, which everyone was trained to be (Will Kalif).
(3) The main gate of the castle created a layer of defense as well. The main gate opened into as courtyard with another gate beyond that. If the main gate was broken into, iron portcullises, with spikes, would fall, killing some attackers and trapping the others (Will
A grand hall was a large room with high ceilings which had large fireplaces. The grand hall could have been used to host large parties or gatherings or to eat and sleep in (Freudenrich). Another amenity was the kitchen. A kitchen’s size depended on how big the castle was and the importance of the castle. Kitchens were once in a separate building because of threat of fire. Once brick was more available, kitchens were moved into the main castle (Morris). The kitchen being in the main building of the castle was an amenity because then it was easier to get food from one place to another, especially during a party or social gathering. The chapel was an amenity for the reason that religion was such a big part of medieval society (Morris). People thought that if a priest was harmed, it was the biggest act of cruelty anyone could commit. The chapel gave the town a purpose to live there. Towers were amenities because they were originally used for decoration. They also created so that archers could see and shoot down attackers. The towers were originally built with a square base but attackers started digging under one corner of the tower and the entire tower would collapse. To prevent this, towers started being made with a circular base, with no corners to dig under (Morris). Stables were a huge amenity in medieval society. Horses were an essential part of transportation, communication and were needed in battle. A Lord was not