YOUR ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO BRITISH CASTLES
Despite their defensive function, castles in the Middle Ages were also homes and hubs for local enterprise. The size and importance of a castle reflected the scale of its domestic life. They functioned as engines for the feudal economy, with their owners presiding over the management of local rural affairs. During peacetime, they were home to small garrisons of knights, men at arms and archers. But there were also grooms, watchmen, porters, cooks and blacksmiths. The castle's combatant populationmeant that it was regularly supllied with knights by local barons.
