More on the Assault of a Shell Keep

Beneath the motte of the shell keep rests the bailey of the castle as you could see in part one's photo). Here there would be the main gate of the castle, sundry common buildings like a church, homes, graineries and stables. Notice that the walls of the baily are lower than those of the main castle. They are also constructed of less substancial material. In this case timer with stone membranes. Like the castle walls there is a single gate and a rampart. The bailey walls are nothing more than an extended gate defense for the shell keep's single main gate and the plank covered road that leads to it. To capture the bailey meant that the siege would have to begin all over with as the assault on the baley and it capture meant that the besiegers would have to repeat all their efforts all over again.

Here you can look from the main keep down into the baily. Should the bailey be captured it would become a zone of death for the assault parties attempting to storm the shell keep's main gate. Inside the bailey anyone who was unwise enough to stand therir would be an ideal target from the castle walls. Today we call an area of ground which you can fire down on as "beaten ground". Burning buildings in the bailey would provide a cover of smoke for a brief time. The assaulting forces had to be fast or hang back an wait the defenders out.

In the center fore ground of the photo sits the actual keep, the last place of defense and the strongest. This is designed after a Scilian keep (the Norman lord's residence). To the left if the keep is a hall. Hall's eventually grew to equal importance replacing the keep as a residence. To the right of the keep is a cook house and storage building.

Notice the typical Norman brightly painted and detailed gate. There are two gates to go through entering the shell keep. The rampart of the shell keep in this case has a double staircase. You can see the bailey and its buildings far below the walls of the shell keep.