Category Archives: Castles

In the earlier Norman castles, the key building was the Keep or Donjon. It was an all-purpose tower with living quarters and defenses built right in, usually with the chapel on the top floor to permit more windows. But as … Continue reading →

Even in castles made mostly of fieldstone, dressed stone had to be used for anything structural. We can see it in the interior connecting doors that often have arches, but they’re even more key in the places where thick stone … Continue reading →

We’ve all seen sketches of long lines of Egyptian slaves pulling huge blocks of stone on rollers, or up ramps, to form the pyramids. For me, and perhaps for many of my readers, that’s the dominant image when I try … Continue reading →

As the European castle evolved from the motte-and-bailey structure, to the bailey-and-keep, to the fully developed castle of the later Middle Ages, certain structure took on a life of their own. Chief among them, the gatehouse. By the late 1200s, … Continue reading →

What did Europe’s Dark Ages-era kings and lords live in? In the Castle series, I make the case that castles—fortified residences—were quintessentially Norman innovations for governing the rebellious newly-conquered English land. There seem to be two kinds of royal houses … Continue reading →