Have you ever seen a castle in real life? If so, you know how magnificent they are and how intricate the brickwork/stonework is. If not then don't worry, in this piece we will talk about how building materials affect the lifespan of castles and how they were built as well as some techniques for building these marvels.

Castles can be made from many different materials depending on accessibility, money, and use of the castle. For example, Ghelbur says “Most castles were built with stone, but some of the earlier ones were built with wood and mud mixtures; however these materials can rot and burn so they didn't last very long” (2). He adds “However they were cheaper than stone and didn't take long to build so they were often used for homes of lords in the earlier times or if stone was not accessible“ (Ghelbur 2). Because of the material’s durability and cost, many of these original castles are no longer around. 

Maintenance of castles was also costly and time consuming usually because of the unseasoned or untreated timber that was used but there are some castles that were kept operational for 400-500 years with proper maintenance. Another example from Ghelbur says, “Wood Castles could be built in less than 2 years while stone castles could take anywhere from 5 to 25 years depending on location and size” (2). They also used tools like a long rope with knots placed every meter to measure wood beams and layout pieces. Wooden right angles and calipers were used for measurements, and they used a wooden triangle with a line and plumb bob suspended from one angle as a level when placing stones (Freudenrich). While the wood castles were predominant from the 9th to 12th century, stone castles were becoming more popular. 

Bricks were also another method of building castles and could be constructed with a less experienced workforce which meant it was cheaper. One example of the brick castles used were from King Edward I.  Ghelbur says, “So, from the summer of 1283, when the works commenced, King Edward I spent a total of £10 000 on Harlech castle, £15 000 on Conway and £27 000 on Caernarfon castle” (2). These brick castles are still around and functioning today. 

Later Stone/brick castles used mortar. Freudenrich says “Mortar is usually made on site with limestone soil and water and would put it between each stone to hold them in place” (1). The bricks used were bigger stone bricks not like the ones today this means that they needed more mortar than usual to seal the bricks together. This meant they had to make the mortar on site.

In conclusion castles take a long time to build and were revolutionary as well as being magnificent. They were one of the most important man made structures ever built and are truly inspiring.

Works Cited

Freudenrich, Craig. “How Castles Work.” History | HowStuffWorks, 2023, 

history.howstuffworks.com/historical-figures/castle.htm. Accessed 14 March 2023.

“Medieval Castles.” The National Archives, 

nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/medieval-castles/. 

Accessed 14 March 2

 Mihail. Ghelbur,“About Castles.” Castle Tourist,

castletourist.com/about-mihail-ghelbur/. 

Accessed 14 March 2023.