Castles became important in western Europe in the late A.D. 900's and the 1000's. They played a central role in the political and military system called feudalism. In the Middle Ages, which lasted from the A.D. 400's to 1500, Europe was divided into many small states, and local conflicts were common. Under feudalism, kings in western Europe often granted land to nobles called vassals in exchange for military and other services. A castle helped the king or vassal defend the land where the castle stood. It also provided a home for the monarch or noble's family and servants. In addition, a castle served as a barracks, prison, storehouse, armory, treasure house, and center of local government.
The word castle comes from a Latin word meaning fortress. European castles developed from fortified camps built by the ancient Romans and from fenced villages of prehistoric Europeans. People in the Middle East and Japan also built castles.
Before the 1100's, most castles were made of timber and earth. A majority of them had a natural or artificially created hill called a motte. A tower called a keep or donjon often stood on the flat top of the motte. The keep, typically made of wood, was the castle's best-protected building and served as its last defense. In some cases, the castle holder's family and guards lived in the keep. A palisade (wooden wall) enclosed the top of the motte. In most cases, one or more baileys (fortified courtyards) lay at the foot of the motte. Deep ditches called moats surrounded the motte and each bailey. Earth dug from a bailey's moat was piled up to form a barrier just inside the moat. In many cases, a palisade topped each barrier. Enemies attacking a castle had to break through the defenses of one or more baileys before they could reach the motte's defenses.
In the 1100's, Europeans began to build more and more castles out of stone. Stone castles provided better protection from enemy attacks, fires, and weather. In the late 1200's, strong stone walls and towers began to replace the keep as the castle's main defenses. Some stone castles had an inner courtyard called the inner bailey or inner ward. This courtyard was surrounded by high stone walls, which, in turn, were protected by additional encircling walls. The areas between the walls also were known as baileys or wards.
