Castle (book) facts for kids

Castle is an amazing book by David Macaulay that won a Caldecott Honor award in 1977. This book shows you in great detail how a fictional castle, called Aberwyvern, was built. It was supposedly constructed between 1283 and 1288.

Like many of Macaulay's books, Castle uses both written descriptions and detailed pen-and-ink drawings. It explains the entire building process, showing the workers and tools needed to create a medieval castle.

Building a Medieval Castle

The castle in the book, Aberwyvern, is made up, but its story fits into real history. David Macaulay imagined the castle being built in North West Wales. This was between 1283 and 1288. During this time, Edward I of England was actually building many castles in Wales. He did this to help him take control of the land.

Real-Life Inspiration

Macaulay visited these real Welsh castles when he was a kid. He used them as inspiration for Aberwyvern castle's design. It is especially modeled after Conwy Castle, a famous real-life fortress.

Castle Location and Design

Aberwyvern castle is built on a rocky hill that sticks out into a river called the Wyvern. It has a square shape and two main lines of defense.

Outer Defenses

The first line of defense is a huge outer curtain wall. It is 300 feet long on each side and goes all the way around the castle. This wall creates the outer yard, also known as the outer ward. The outer wall also connects to the defensive wall of the nearby town.

The top of the wall has battlements with merlons. These are the solid parts that protect defenders walking along the parapet (the walkway on top of the wall). The castle has two gatehouses. One has a drawbridge and leads to the town. The other leads to a fortified dock. This dock allowed supplies to come in by ship if the castle was under siege.

Inner Defenses

Inside the outer yard is the inner yard, or inner ward. This area is protected by its own strong curtain wall. There is a large tower at each of its four corners. A huge gatehouse faces the town.

The walls of the inner ward are 12 feet thick and much taller than the outer walls. This height allowed defenders to shoot arrows over the outer defenses. The inner gatehouse protects the main entrance. It has a portcullis (a heavy metal gate) and a strong hallway. This hallway is lined with arrow loops (narrow openings for archers) and murder holes (openings to drop things on attackers). Huge doors close off both ends of this hallway.

Buildings Inside the Castle

Within the inner ward, you would find many important buildings. These included apartments for important people, barracks for soldiers, a forge for metalwork, a kitchen, and a very impressive great hall for gatherings.

The Town of Aberwyvern

Macaulay also describes the walled town next to the castle, also called Aberwyvern. He explains how the town's design and buildings supported the castle. The castle also helped protect the town.

The book shows how the town changed over hundreds of years. While the castle eventually became an abandoned ruin, the town kept growing. It became a busy and peaceful community.

From Book to Screen

The book Castle was later made into a TV show in 1983. It was a mix of a documentary and an animated story. David Macaulay himself hosted the show, along with Sarah Bullen.