Table Of ContentM C
EDIEVAL ASTLES
Titles in the Series
Greenwood Guides to Historic Events of the Medieval World
The Black Death
The Crusades
Eleanor of Aquitaine, Courtly Love, and the Troubadours
Genghis Khan and Mongol Rule
Joan of Arc and the Hundred Years War
Magna Carta
Medieval Castles
Medieval Cathedrals
The Medieval City
Medieval Science and Technology
The Puebloan Society of Chaco Canyon
The Rise of Islam
M C
EDIEVAL ASTLES
Marilyn Stokstad
Greenwood Guides to Historic Events of the Medieval World
Jane Chance, Series Editor
GREENWOOD PRESS
Westport, Connecticut • London
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Stokstad, Marilyn, 1929–
Medieval castles / Marilyn Stokstad.
p. cm. — (Greenwood guides to historic events of the medieval world)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0–313–32525–1 (alk. paper)
1. Castles—Great Britain. 2. Castles—France. I. Title. II. Series.
UG429.G7S76 2005
355.7'094'0902—dc22 2004028450
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available.
Copyright © 2005 by Marilyn Stokstad
All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be
reproduced, by any process or technique, without the
express written consent of the publisher.
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2004028450
ISBN: 0–313–32525–1
First published in 2005
Greenwood Press, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881
An imprint of Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc.
www.greenwood.com
Printed in the United States of America
The paper used in this book complies with the
Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National
Information Standards Organization (Z39.48–1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
C
ONTENTS
Illustrations xi
Series Foreword xiii
Advisory Board xxv
Preface xxvii
Chronology xxxi
Overview: Castles in Context xxxvii
Chapter 1. The Great Tower: Norman and Early
Plantagenet Castles 1
Chapter 2. The Castle as Fortress: The Castle and
Siege Warfare 21
Chapter 3. The Castle as Headquarters: The Political and
Economic Role of the Castle 43
Chapter 4. The Castle as Symbol and Palace 63
Chapter 5. Impact and Consequences: The Afterlife of
the Castle 83
Biographies 95
Authors 95
Anna Comnena 95
vi Contents
The Venerable Bede 96
Jean Froissart 96
Geoffrey of Monmouth 97
Giraldus Cambrensis (Gerald of Wales) 98
Jean, Lord of Joinville 99
Lambert of Ardre 99
Ordericus Vitalis 100
Builders 101
Blanche of Castile 101
Edward I 102
Eleanor of Aquitaine 103
Henry I 103
Henry II Plantagenet 104
James of St. George 105
John of Gaunt 105
Louis VII 106
Louis IX (St. Louis) 107
Philip II Augustus 108
Philip IV the Fair 108
Richard I the Lion Hearted 109
William I the Conqueror 110
Primary Documents 111
1. King Arthur’s Parents 112
2. The Roman Rampart, Built of Earth and Timber 114
Contents vii
3. The Mound and Ditch Castles in Ireland
Continue the Earth and Timber Building
Traditions of the North 114
4. The Irish Win through a Daring Trick;
They Enter the Castle and Kill the Lord 115
5. Gerald Describes His Home, the Castle
of Manorbeer 116
6. The Castle of Ardre, a Huge Timber Castle,
Built after Arnold’s Return from the
First Crusade 117
7. The Masonry Castle at Guines 118
8. Repairs and Improvements—Building a Prison,
a Chapel, Lists between the Walls, and a
Fish Pond 118
9. The Problems of a Medieval Baker when the
Oven Is Badly Located 119
10. Separate Bedrooms but a Convenient Spiral
Staircase in a Thirteenth-Century Castle 120
11. A Crusader’s Sorrow at Leaving Home 120
12. The Mound Is Built 121
13. The Castle and the Master Builder 121
14. The Crew Needed to Build a Castle, and the
Hazards They Faced 123
15. Compulsory Service on Castle Building and
Destruction 123
16. The Burden of Castle Building on the
People, 1066 124
17. The Burden of Castle Building on the
People, 1087 124
viii Contents
18. The Common People Hated the Castles 125
19. A Demand for Wages in the Fourteenth Century 125
20. The Norman Conquest of England 126
21. The Failure of an Attack on Dover Castle 126
22. The Siege of Rochester and the Plague
of Flies, 1088 127
23. The Rapid and Cowardly Departure of a
Castle’s Garrison 128
24. The Burning of a City 129
25. Bohemund’s Siege Engines 129
26. The Battering Ram 130
27. Mining Operations 131
28. The Siege Tower 132
29. The Assault 133
30. Difficulties for Those Conducting a Siege 134
31. The Assault on Jerusalem 135
32. The Massacre of the People of Jerusalem 135
33. The Water Supply Is Cut at Alencon 136
34. The Countess Surrenders the Castles 137
35. The Siege of Brevol; Returning Crusaders Bring
Experience back to Europe 138
36. The Surrender of Rochester Castle, the
Trumpets Sound 138
37. The Ice Torture of Prisoners and the High
Cost of Freedom 139
38. A Successful Defense 139
39. The Siege Tower, Called a Belfry, at the Siege
of Courci 140
Contents ix
40. A Constable Saves His Castle by Pretending
to Have Plenty of Food 141
41. The Escape of the Bishop of Durham from the
Tower of London 142
42. The Virtues of Good Grooming—an Escape 143
43. The Tables Are Turned; an Inept Castellan and
a Clever Governor, the Scots Take a Castle,
and Are Trapped 144
44. Matilda Governs Normandy while William
Conquers England 145
45. A Militant Countess 145
46. Princess Sibylla Defends Tarragona 145
47. The Changing Fortunes of Civil War, and the
Daring Escape of Empress Matilda from Oxford
in 1140 146
48. The Heroic Countess of Montfort Saves Her
Castle and Fights for Brittany 146
49. Countess Alberede Builds a Fine Castle and
Then Has Her Architect Lanfred Beheaded
so that He Cannot Build Another 149
50. Isabel, a Warrior Countess, and Her Rival Stir up
a Civil War 149
51. A Clever Mother, but Was She Wicked Too? 150
52. Juliana, King Henry’s Illegitimate Daughter,
Tries to Shoot Her Father and Escapes by Way
of the Moat 150
53. The Earl of Chester and His Brother Capture
Lincoln Castle with the Help of Their Wives 151
54. The Earl of Pembroke and His Men Find
Shelter in a Fortified House 152
