1.

Introduction to castles

1.1. Why Castles? Britain is strewn with ruins

of castles, rubble from the centuries of her existence.
Castles are tangible relics of a remarkable past, a
lengthy heritage etched in stone, as well as with the
blood and sweat of those who built, labored, fought,
and died in their shadow.
Ruins stir up in us a profound awareness of those past
lives. Castles have a timelessness that is awe-inspiring.
That they have endured centuries of warfare and the
effects of weather is a testimony to the creativity and
power of their medieval owners. How many of us will
have such long-lasting success?
As with gardens castles have had innumerable books written about them quoting
design, styles, ages and so on. I think that one or two notes are helpful in
distinguishing the various types and the logical development.
The castles that we use as our standard are those built between the 11th and 16th
centuries in Great Britain and Northern Europe. The English castle whose design was
imported from Normandy following the Norman invasion of 1066 was essentially
defensive. The Normans had to hold down a belligerent conquered people and their way
was to build a network of castles. William the Conqueror has a ring established around
London, including Rochester, Windsor and Berkampstead. These in conjunction with
the Tower of London - the White Tower then - acted as a screen around the capital.
As it was said these castles were essentially defensive, designed to protect the Norman
families who were granted the land by William. They originally consisted of a mound
of earth thrown up with a tower or 'keep' on top, possibly surrounded by a palisade
around the bottom and in turn frequently surrounded by a moat. The palisade
contained the bailey. The keep was not living quarters normally but a last line of
defense in case of attack and the main living area was the bailey where the Lord had

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a comfortable hall and where there were houses for his soldiers and retainers and their
families, stables for the animals as well as the various necessary service buildings,
blacksmith, farrier, armourer, etc.
In the case of sustained attack the whole countryside include villagers and their beasts
could be taken into the bailey for protection and in dire necessity the whole would be
withdrawn into the keep.
Originally because of the urgency needed to get them erected these structures were of
wood but, as they were vulnerable to fire, quite soon the King insisted that they be
built of stone. One of the first of these was the White Tower in the center of the
Tower of London. Thus castle building became a never ending program of updating to
create defensive protection. England became more settled and by the middle of the
fifteenth century in Southern and Middle England except for the King and
powerful barons the smaller landowner had found that a more peaceful country
made the castle unnecessary. He had had found the castle cold and uncomfortable and
created 'fortified manor house'. This still had strong walls for defense but also had
larger windows and more doors while the interior was of wood, rather than stone, to
make the whole warmer and a less confrontational design. From then on we get the
development of the 'stately home' and palace without any defensive capabilities and
from these in turn produced the great Tudor mansions of which Hatfield House and
Penshurst Place are typical and in which defense has no part. Peace was now assumed
and the history of English castle building reached its end.
In the north of England it was not so easy and until the reign of Henry VIII there were
still border attacks. The castles remained strong and well defended until well into the
sixteenth century. Thus for hundreds of years the Duke of Northumberland remained
influential as much because of the soldiers he could muster as his personality.
1.2. Religion. Christianity was carried to England by the Romans and spread
throughout Britain, until the 5th century when it waned through the departure of the
Romans and the invasion by Saxons. In 597 Pope Gregory sent Augustine as a
missionary from Rome to Canterbury where a church was established and run initially by
secular canons, then Benedictine monks from the late Saxon period until 1540. An
important aspect in the practice of medieval Christianity was the veneration of saints, and

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the associated pilgrimages to places where particular saint's relics were interred and their
tradition honoured. The possession of the relics of a popular saint was a source of funds
to the individual church as the faithful made donations and benefices in the hope that they
might receive spiritual aid, a blessing or a healing from the presence of the physical
remains of the holy person. The Medieval Church played a far greater role in Medieval
England than the Church does today, Church dominated everybody's life. . With it's own
laws, lands and taxes The Catholic church was a very powerful institution which had its
own laws and lands. The Catholic Church also imposed taxes. In addition to collecting
taxes, the Church also accepted gifts of all kinds from individuals who wanted special
favors or wanted to be certain of a place in heaven. The power of the Catholic Church
grew with its wealth. The Catholic Church was then able to influence the kings and rulers
of Europe. Opposition to the Catholic Church would result in excommunication. This
meant that the person who was excommunicated could not attend any church services,
receive the sacraments and would go straight to hell when they died. All Medieval people
believed that God, Heaven and Hell all existed. From the very earliest of ages, the people
were taught that the only way they could get to Heaven was if the Roman Catholic
Church let them. The control the Church had over the people was total. The two largest
religions in medieval England were Roman Catholic and Protestant. The importance of
religion in Medieval life is illustrated with the incorporation of a Chapel within the castle.
1.3. Stained glass. Stained glass windows as we know them, seemed to arise
when substantial church building began. By the 10th century, depictions of Christ and
biblical scenes were found in French and German churches and decorative designs found
in England. The Gothic age produced the great cathedrals of Europe and brought a full
flowering of stained glass windows. Stained glass windows are often viewed as
translucent pictures. Gothic stained glass windows are a complex mosaic of bits of
colored glass joined with lead into an intricate pattern illustrating biblical stories and
saints lives. Viewed from the ground, they appear not as a picture but as a network of
black lines and colored light. Medieval man experienced a window more than he read it.
It made the church that special, sacred dwelling place of an all powerful God.

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 English Gardens. The earliest English gardens that we know of were planted by
the Roman conquerors of Britain in the 1st century . The Roman gardens that we know
the most about are those of the large villas and palaces. The best example of the latter is
probably Fishbourne Roman Palace in Sussex, where an early garden has been partly
reconstructed. Fishbourne shows a carefully symmetrical formal planting of low box
hedges split by graveled walks. The hedges are punctuated by small niches which
probably held ornaments like statues, urns, or garden seats. The formal garden near the
house gave way to a landscaped green space leading down to the waterside below. There
is also a small kitchen garden which is planted with fruits and vegetables common in
Roman Britain. We know very little about the gardens of Anglo-Saxon England, which is
another way of
saying that the
warlike Anglo-
Saxons did not
hold gardening to
be important. It
was not until the
Middle Ages that
gardens once
more became
important in
British life. Monasteries had both kitchen gardens and herb gardens to provide the
practicalities of food and medicine. The monastery cloister provided an open green space
surrounded by covered walks, generally with a well, or fountain at the centre. Castles
sometimes made room for small courtyard gardens, with paths through raised flower
beds. Other common features of medieval castle gardens include turf seats and high
mounds, or mounts, which provided a view over the castle walls. As castles gave way to
fortified manor houses in the later medieval period, the garden became a simple green
space surrounded by hedges or fences.

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 2. Medieval siege.
There are many myths and legends surrounding castle sieges. Knights in
shining armor riding up to the castle, doing hand to hand combat. Or maybe hundreds of
guards streaming out of the castles to meet their enemy. None of this is true, except in
fairy tales and movies.
Most of the time, the attacking force would send a messenger to the lord of the castle and
give notice of their intentions to attack. This notice allowed the castle to surrender.
Sometimes the lord surrendered, but most often the castle was restocked and made ready
for the siege. They would restock themselves with food, supplies and drink, and add men
to the garrison.
There were three ways to take a castle. The first is not to attack the castle at all - just
avoid the castle altogether and seize the lands around it. The second is direct assault, or
laying siege to the castle. The last is besieging.
Here is an account of a siege. Stone throwing mangonels attack the towers and walls
every day. The walls of the castles would hopefully be
breached, and towers damaged. The enemy erects wooden towers called belfries, taller
than the castle towers, to conceal and enable bow men to shoot arrows down into the
castle. While this is going on, miners would be tunneling under the walls and towers of
the castle in preparation to collapse them.
The barbican is next assaulted and taken, with a loss of men on both sides. Then the
bailey is attacked, and more men killed. Animals and some supplies would be captured.
The auxiliary buildings containing hay and grain for the castle are burned. By now,
miners have succeeded in collapsing a wall of the castle. The attackers have broken
through and seized the inner bailey. More men on both sides would be lost in this phase
of the attack.
By this time, the castle defenders would have retreated to the keep. Miners would now be
setting fire to the mine tunnel under the keep. The
keep. Smoke and fire are rising into the keep, and cracks appearing in the thick walls.
The defenders of the castle are forced to surrender as the castle falls to the enemy . The
third method, called besieging, would require the enemy to wait and starve the castle
garrison into surrender. This method was preferred by an attacking side. Some sieges of

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this type would last from six months to a year. Sometimes, the enemy would hurl dead
animals into the castle grounds in hopes of spreading diseases. And, sometimes the lord
of the castle would toss dead animals outside his castle, to convince the enemy they had
enough supplies to carry on a siege for months.

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 3. Castles with ghosts
What story would be complete without a haunted castle. Here is some of the
castles that are reportedly haunted in England.
3.1. Windsor Castle, is without doubt one of the most spectacular castles in
Britain. Since it was built, the Castle has been embroiled in legends of suicide, and
ghosts. The youngest daughter of Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I, haunts the Royal
Library. Her high heels are
heard on bare floorboards and
go across the library and into
an inner room. Her spectre has
also been seen at a window in
Dean's Cloister where she
always wears a black gown
with a black shawl over her
shoulders. Elizabeth is not
buried at Windsor but at
Westminster Abbey.
3.2.Berry Pomeroy Castle is said to be haunted by the White Lady. She haunts
the dungeons, and rises from St. Margaret's Tower to the castle ramparts. Those who
report seeing this figure associate it with feelings of depression, fear and malevolence.
She has been identified as the ghost of Lady Margaret Pomeroy who was imprisoned in
the dungeons by her sister, Lady Eleanor.Eleanor was insanely jealous of her younger
and prettier sister, and is said to have
incarcerated her because of a love
rivalry, after Lord Pomeroy left to go
on a crusade and left Eleanor in
charge. Margaret was imprisoned in
the castle dungeons for nearly two
decades, before Eleanor allowed her a
slow and painful death through
starvation.

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 3.3.Featherstone Castle. One well-known ghost story which is attributed to this
fine old Castle concerns Abigail Featherstonehaugh who lived in the late 17th century.
The story goes that she was in love with a boy from the local Ridley family but that she
was due to marry the son of a neighbouring Baron in a sort of arranged marriage which
was probably at the behest of her father Baron Featherstonehaugh. Apparently as was the
tradition, the wedding party, all with the exception of Baron Featherstonehaugh who
would oversee the banqueting arrangements, left for a hunt following the wedding.
Legend has it that as the bridal party was riding through the estate there was an ambush
possibly set by the spurned lover from the Ridley family. Although the new bridegroom
fought gallantly, all the wedding party were killed in the affray. As midnight passed, the
Baron, sitting alone, heard the sound of horses hooves arriving outside the castle and it is
said that the door opened following which the ghosts of Abigail and the rest of the
wedding party entered making no
sound and passing straight through
solid objects. It is said that the ghostly
wedding party is seen again each year
on the 17th of January on the
anniversary of the tragedy.
3.4.Lowther Castle, in
Westmoreland, was once home to the first Earl of Lonsdale, sir James Lowther. This man
became better known as 'wicked Jimmy', for he was both cruel and miserly. One day,
Lowther's young lover became gravely ill and medics broke the news that she would soon
die. When she finally passed away, the Earl could not bring himself to accept her death,
and kept her rotting body in his castle, treating it as if it still had life within it. After many
weeks, he reluctantly accepted the fact that this lifeless corpse should be cremated. The
Earl was so furious that death had got the
better of him that when he himself died, his
spirit leapt from its coffin and attempted to
strangle the funeral congregation. Wicked
Jimmy's ghost has been seen driving a coach
and horses through the countryside. He has a

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frenzied manner about him as he whips the phantom horses, urging them to gallop faster
and faster.
3.5.Tower of London. There are reports that the headless ghost of Anne Boleyn
meander the eerie corridors of the White Tower. She was one of two wives that were
ordered for execution by husband, Henry VIII; the other being Catherine Howard. Anne
is also spotted in the Chapel of Saint Peter ad Vincula where she watches over her own
grave under the altar. Catherine on the other hand can be heard screaming behind the
door of the room she was kept in before her execution.

4.

Conclusion
In conclusion, after many researches on the internet, and not only, I have
discovered that scientists have difficulty understanding how certain people could possibly
believe that the world could have been created in 7 days. Most of the people I have ever

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talk to about this topic, claim to believe in is the existence of ghosts. According to the
Dictionary a “ghost” is a spirit of a dead person. Ghosts are often depicted as inhabiting
haunted houses, especially houses where murders have occurred. The only explanation as
to why people like to believe in ghosts is because they like to think that there is an after
life, so when they die it isn’t the end, and for this is largely blamed the Church because it
induced the idea of life after death.

5. Bibliography

 Coulson, Charles. "The Castles of the Anarchy" in King, Edmund (1994), The
Anarchy of King Stephen's Reign

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 Dirk Meyhofer (2009). Set in stone, Rethinking a Timeless Material. Braun .
 Fletcher, Banister (2001). A History of Architecture on the Comparative method.
Elsevier Science & Technology
 Harvey, John (1961). English Cathedrals and Castles. Batsford.
 Kaufmann, J. E. and Kaufmann, H. W. (2004). The Medieval Fortress: Castles, Forts
and Walled Cities of the Middle Ages.
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval_religion_in_England

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