Care of Castles

Needs some cleanup.

Care of Castles by Katherine Kerr

Who lives in that castle? Building it is one thing, running it is another by Katharine Kerr

Note: This is the version from Dragon #80. The version in Best of Dragon IV differs slightly.)

In any RPG set in a medieval-style world, no matter how vaguely developed, the castle has an important p l a c e . T h e v e r y s i g h t o f a l o n e l y k e e p , r i s i n g a b o v e t h e m i s t s o n a h i l l t o p , i s o n e t h a t p r o m i s e s a d v e n t u r e . I n GAME s y s t e m s t h a t p r o v i d e f o r PC s t r o n g h o l d s , a c a s t l e i s u s u a l l y t h e f i r s t t h i n g a p l a y e r t h i n k s o f w h e n h i s c h a r a c t e r o b t a i n s t h e m e a n s t o b u i l d a s t r o n g h o l d . A n d i f t h e c a m p a i g n h a s i m p o r t a n t NPCs o f n o b l e b l o o d , t h e GM h a s t o c r e a t e , c a s t l e s f o r t h e m .

A l t h o u g h b y u s i n g h i s t o r i c a l s o u r c e s o r g a m i n g a i d s i t ' s e a s y t o d e s i g n t h e a c t u a l c a s t l e b u i l d i n g s , s t o c k i n g t h e c a s t l e w i t h c h a r a c t e r s r e q u i r e s m o r e t h o u g h t . L i v i n g i n a n d m a i n t a i n i n g a c a s t l e r e q u i r e s m a n y s e r v a n t s a n d o f f i c i a l s , m o s t o f w h o m l i v e i n t h e c a s t l e w i t h i t s l o r d . B y d e s c r i b i n g t h e t y p i c a l m e d i e v a l c a s t l e h o u s e h o l d , t h i s a r t i c l e o f f e r s g u i d e l i n e s f o r p l a y e r s a n d G M ? s a l i k e w h o n e e d t o b u i l d a c a s t l e a n d s e t u p i t s s t a f f.

What is a castle? A g r e a t m a n y d i f f e r e n t b u i l d i n g s a r e l o o s e l y d e s c r i b e d a s c a s t l e s , r a n g i n g f r o m g h a s t l y s t o n e h o u s e s b u i l t b y n o v e a u r i c h e f i l m p e o p l e t o w a l l e d c i t i e s o r m i l i t a r y f o r t s .

P r o p e r l y d e f i n e d , h o w e v e r , a c a s t l e i s t h e p e r s o n a l f o r t i f i c a t i o n o f e i t h e r a k i n g o r a m e m b e r o f t h e n o b i l i t y . T h e t r u e c a s t l e s e r v e s t w o p u r p o s e s : i t i s a d w e l l i n g f o r a n o b l e f a m i l y i n t i m e s o f p e a c e , a n d a f o r t i n t i m e s o f w a r . T h u s , n e i t h e r g a r r i s o n s f o r p r o f e s s i o n a l s o l d i e r s n o r p u b l i c f o r t i f i c a t i o n s s u c h a s w a l l e d t o w n s c a n b e c o u n t e d a s c a s t l e s .

T h e t r u e c a s t l e i s a l w a y s s u p p o r t e d b y t h e p r o f i t s f r o m a m a n o r i a l e s t a t e ( a l s o c a l l e d a m a n o r o r a s e i g n e u r i e ) . A t r o o t , t h e m a n o r i s s i m p l y a h o l d i n g o f a g r i c u l t u r a l l a n d , w o r k e d b y d e p e n d e n t t e n a n t s w h o l i v e u p o n i t , a n d g r a n t e d t o a f i g h t i n g m a n t o f e e d h i m a n d h i s f a m i l y w h i l e h e s e r v e s h i s k i n g o r s o m e o t h e r p o w e r f u l n o b l e . F r o m t h a t r o o t , h o w e v e r , g r e w m a n y v a s t e s t a t e s w h e r e t h e l o r d r u l e d i n h i s o w n n a m e a n d t h o u g h t a b o u t t h e k i n g a s l i t t l e a s p o s s i b l e . A t t h e s a m e t i m e , m a n y m a n o r s w e r e l i t t l e m o r e t h a n l a r g e f a r m s .

T h e l a n d o f a t y p i c a l m a n o r i s d i v i d e d i n t o t h r e e p a r t s .

• T h e f i r s t , t h e l o r d ? s

d e m e s n e , i s t e c h n i c a l l y t h e o n l y p r o p e r t y t h a t h e a c t u a l l y o w n s . A l t h o u g h t h e d e m e s n e i s w o r k e d b y h i s t e n a n t s , a l l p r o d u c e f r o m t h e s e f i e l d s b e l o n g s t o t h e l o r d .

• • T h e s e c o n d d i v i s i o n , t h e h o l d i n g s o f h i s

t e n a n t s , b e l o n g s t o t h e m i n a k i n d o f i n v o l u n t a r y l e a s e -- t h a t i s , t h e y m a y n o t l e a v e t h e l a n d w i t h o u t t h e l o r d ? s p e r m i s s i o n , b u t n e i t h e r m a y h e e x p e l t h e m f r o m t h e i r f a r m s .

• • • T h e r e m a i n i n g l a n d i s c o m m o n

p a s t u r e a n d f o r e s t , t h e o r e t i c a l l y s h a r e d b y l o r d a n d t e n a n t s , b u t i n p r a c t i c e c o n t r o l l e d by the lord.

T h e s i z e o f t h e m a n o r v a r i e s s o w i d e l y t h a t i t ? s i m p o s s i b l e t o g i v e e x a c t f i g u r e s f o r c r e a t i n g t h e m , b u t i n g e n e r a l , t h e m o r e p o w e r f u l t h e l o r d , t h e r i c h e r h i s h o l d i n g s . T h e r i c h n e s s o f t h e m a n o r d e p e n d s a s m u c h o n s o i l f e r t i l i t y a n d c l i m a t e a s i t d o e s o n s i z e . T h o u s a n d s o f a c r e s o f m o o r a n d f e n c a n n o t s u p p o r t a b a r o n a s w e l l a s a m o d e s t h o l d i n g o f g o o d r i v e r - v a l l e y l a n d .

A t t h e b o t t o m o f t h e s c a l e i s t h e s m a l l f i e f o f a s i n g l e k n i g h t . A s a r o u g h e s t i m a t e , i t t a k e s t h e l a b o r o f f i f t e e n t o t h i r t y p e a s a n t f a m i l i e s , w o r k i n g a h o l d i n g o f f o r t y t o o n e h u n d r e d h e c t a r e s , t o s u p p o r t o n e k n i g h t , h i s f a m i l y , a n d h i s w a r h o r s e . ( A h e c t a r e i s 1 0 , 0 0 0 s q u a r e k i l o m e t e r s , o r a b o u t 2 ½ a c r e s . ) O n s u c h a s m a l l m a n o r , t h e k n i g h t l i v e s l i t t l e b e t t e r t h a n h i s p e a s a n t s . R i c h m a n o r s , h o w e v e r , c o v e r t h o u s a n d s o f h e c t a r e s a n d a r e w o r k e d b y s e v e r a l t h o u s a n d t e n a n t s . I n m e d i e v a l F r a n c e , f o r e x a m p l e , t h e a v e r a g e m a n o r o f a l o r d o f t h e b a r o n i a l c l a s s w a s a b o u t t h r e e h u n d r e d s q u a r e m i l e s . A b o u t o n e t h i r d o f t h i s e s t a t e w a s u n d e r t h e p e r s o n a l c o n t r o l o f t h e b a r o n o r c o u n t , w h i l e t h e r e s t w a s p a r c e l e d o u t t o h i s k n i g h t s i n s m a l l f i e f s o f v a r y i n g s i z e . ( T h i s p r o c e s s o f g i v i n g o u t p i e c e s o f a m a n o r i s c a l l e d s u b e n f e o f f m e n t . )

W h e n s e t t i n g u p a m a n o r t o s u p p o r t t h e c a s t l e f o r e i t h e r a P C o r a n N P C , t h e G M m u s t r e m e m b e r t h a t l a r g e t r a c t s o f g o o d l a n d a r e n e c e s s a r y t o s u p p o r t a l o r d i n a n y k i n d o f s t y l e . M e d i e v a l - l e v e l a g r i c u l t u r e i s e x t r e m e l y l a b o r - i n t e n s i v e a n d i n e f f i c i e n t ; t h u s t h e s u r p l u s , w h i c h g o e s t o t h e l o r d , i s g o i n g t o b e s m a l l .

Kinds of castles

Possessing the revenue from a large tract of land is also necessary to build the castle in the first place. Building a large stone fortification is expensive, even when much of the labor comes from unpaid peasantry. Let's look at the cost of some English castles in the 12th century. At that time, the English pound was divided into 240 silver pennies, and 30 of those pennies would buy a healthy ox or a warhorse. To build the small castle of Scarbourough cost the king 656 pounds; to expand Wark on Tweed from a small castle to a medium-sized one cost 383 pounds; to build the elaborate castle at Orford cost 1,222 pounds -- the equivalent of 9,776 warhorses!

Thus, not every petty knight living on a manor of 50 hectares is going to have a castle, even though possessing a proper castle is the ardent desire of every nobleman. Poor knights or PC?s beginning to build a stronghold are more likely to have either a fortified manor house or a fortalice.

The fortified manor can take many forms, but its distinguishing characteristic is the use of wooden defenses instead of stone. The most common type is the motte-and-bailey. A wooden house sits at the top of the motte (a mound of earth heaped up, or a small natural hill). At the base of the motte, a palisade of heavy logs encloses the bailey (an open space useful for sheltering peasants in case of attack). Although the palisade is vulnerable to fire, a well-defended motteand-bailey manor can withstand siege for several days, long enough for some ally or overlord to come to the rescue. Building and supporting a fortified manor house requires 40-60 hectares of land; a motteand-bailey, about 100 hectares. The fortalice is a step up for the wealthier noble. Such a fortification has a simple curtain wall of stone, enclosing a large ward, and perhaps has a fortified gatehouse. Inside the wall is a simple keep ? usually a tall donjon tower, either round or square ? that both houses the noble family and serves as a last-ditch defense if the wall is breached. A holding of around 150 hectares of land is necessary to build and support a fortalice. The fortalice grades into the small castle proper. Although the small castle may have a separate dwelling house beside the donjon, most lords prefer to put the extra money into its defenses, adding ramparting

a n d a b a r b i c a n t o w e r . i t w i l l t a k e a t l e a s t 2 0 0 h e c t a r e s o f l a n d t o m a i n t a i n a s m a l l c a s t l e . T h e t r u e c a s t l e , w i t h i t s r i n g s o f w a l l s , m u l t i p l e t o w e r s , a n d s t o n e d w e l l i n g - h o u s e s , r e q u i r e s a m a n o r o f a t l e a s t 5 0 0 h e c t a r e s a n d i s t h u s u s u a l l y t h e p r o p e r t y o f a l o r d o f t h e b a r o n i a l c l a s s . I t m a y a l s o b e l o n g t o a k i n g , w h o c a n s u p p o r t m o r e c a s t l e s t h a n h e c a n l i v e i n b y t a x e s f r o m t h e r o y a l d e m e s n e a s w e l l a s f r o m t h e m a n o r a t t a c h e d t o e a c h c a s t l e . S u c h r o y a l c a s t l e s h a v e a m i l i t a r y p u r p o s e , l i k e g u a r d i n g a n i m p o r t a n t b r i d g e , a n d w i l l h o u s e a c a s t e l l a n a n d h i s f a m i l y ? a n o b l e m a n s w o r n p e r s o n a l l y t o t h e k i n g

b u t h o l d i n g h i s p o s i t i o n b y h e r e d i t a r y r i g h t.

The noble inhabitants Castellans, however, are the rarest sort of castle inhabitants. Most will be lords from the baronial class, which includes any noble above the simple status of knight ? barons, counts, dukes, margraves, and so on. During the actual Middle Ages, these various noble titles were considered equal in rank, rather than being graded into the strict hierarchy of later times. What truly determined a noble?s status was the size of his manor and the strength of his holdings.

The lord and his immediate family live inside the donjon in a small castle, or in a palais (a separate dwelling-house) in a rich one. Besides his wife and children, the lord?s family includes any younger brothers or sisters still dependent on him and probably his widowed mother, the dowager. Since noblemen lived short lives, on the whole, usually the eldest son inherited the manor before his siblings were grown. He was then responsible for raising them and either making good marriages for the sisters or finding land and a position for the brothers. (How well selfish lords fulfilled these duties is another question.)

Although the lord?s primary duty in life is war, in peacetime few lords live idle lives. They are, after all, the administrators for vast estates with power over many lives, and the typical lord actively takes a hand in

r u n n i n g h i s l a n d . O n a n y g i v e n d a y , h e i s j u s t a s l i k e l y t o b e f o u n d d i s c u s s i n g b u s i n e s s w i t h h i s b a i l i f f a n d p r o v o s t s a s h e i s t r a i n i n g w i t h a r m s o r h u n t i n g . S i n c e t h e l o r d o f t h e b a r o n i a l c l a s s u s u a l l y h a s t h e r i g h t o f h i g h j u s t i c e o v e r h i s t e n a n t s a n d d e p e n d e n t s , h e a l s o s p e n d s m u c h t i m e a c t i n g a s j u d g e a n d j u r y f o r e v e r y l e g a l d i s p u t e , c r i m e , o r p e t t y s q u a b b l e o n h i s l a n d , r i g h t d o w n t o a r g u m e n t s a m o n g p e a s a n t s o v e r a c h i c k e n o r hog.

   A word must be said about the typical

noble lady of a castle. Although under medieval law a woman had few rights and was barred from most activities -- she could neither own property nor bear arms, for instance -- in practice such legal cavils were ignored. Usually the lady also takes an active part in running the estate; many important officials report directly to her, and she is responsible for all the daily accounts and doings of the servants. She is also her lord's hostess, which is a very important job in a world where a lord's reputation depends on his generosity.

Furthermore, the noble lady is also trained to hold her castle against siege while her husband is gone on campaign. During such crises, the men-at-arms and household knights obey her without question. Some ladies have even been known to take the field of battle, armed like men, to rescue their husbands from imprisonment. Thus, rather than the fragile flower depicted in modern romances, the feudal lady is a person with an air of command. If her husband is the commander of their domain,

 then she is his most trusted general, with

true power over the household.

Retainers and officials Any good-sized castle shelters a surprisingly large number of servants of varying degrees of rank. Since generosity is one of the marks of true nobility, supporting a large household brings status to the lord of the household. The lord will maintain as many people as he can feed, far more than necessary to do the actual work. A wealthy

b a r o n , f o r e x a m p l e , m i g h t h a v e t h r e e h u n d r e d p e o p l e l i v i n g b e h i n d h i s w a l l s .

T h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t m e m b e r o f t h i s c r o w d a r e t h e r e t a i n e r s a n d o f f i c i a l s o f n o b l e r a n k . I n m e d i e v a l s o c i e t y , t h e r e w a s a b s o l u t e l y n o s h a m e a t t a c h e d t o p e r f o r m i n g t h e m o s t m e n i a l s e r v i c e s f o r a p e r s o n o f h i g h e r r a n k -- t o t h e c o n t r a r y , i t w a s a n h o n o r t o b e c h o s e n f o r t h e t a s k . L i k e w i s e , h a v i n g r e t a i n e r s o f n o b l e b l o o d i n c r e a s e s t h e s t a t u s o f t h e c a s t l e ' s l o r d . I t i s t h e g o a l o f p o w e r f u l l o r d s t o h a v e a s m a n y n o b l e r e t a i n e r s a s p o s s i b l e , e v e n f o r s u c h m u n d a n e j o b s a s f a l c o n m a s t e r . E x a c t l y h o w m a n y c a s t l e o f f i c i a l s w i l l b e n o b l e - b o r n d e p e n d s , o f c o u r s e , o n t h e c a s t l e - h o l d e r ' s w e a l t h a n d r e p u t a t i o n .

E v e n t h e p o o r e s t l o r d h a s a t l e a s t o n e n o b l e r e t a i n e r , h i s s q u i r e . ( W e a l t h y l o r d s h a v e t h r e e o r f o u r s q u i r e s , f o r s t a t u s . ) T h e s q u i r e i s a b o y o f n o b l e b l o o d w h o a t a g e t w e l v e o r t h i r t e e n c o m e s t o l i v e i n a n o t h e r l o r d ? s f a m i l y t o r e c e i v e h i s f i n a l t r a i n i n g i n a r m s a n d c o u r t e s y . C o m m o n o p i n i o n h o l d s t h a t n o m a n c a n t r a i n h i s o w n s o n p r o p e r l y , b e c a u s e h e w o u l d g o e a s y o n t h e b o y , r a t h e r t h a n b e i n g a s h a r s h a s a w a r r i o r ' s t r a i n i n g d e m a n d s . W h i l e l i v i n g w i t h h i s l o r d , t h e s q u i r e a c t s a s b o t h v a l e t a n d c o m p a n i o n . H e h e l p s h i s l o r d d r e s s i n t h e m o r n i n g , w a i t s o n h i m a t t a b l e , t e n d s h i s p e r s o n a l h o r s e s , a n d r u n s w h a t e v e r e r r a n d s t h e l o r d n e e d s t o h a v e r u n .

J u s t a s t h e l o r d h a s h i s s q u i r e s , t h e l a d y h a s h e r w a i t i n g w o m e n , g i r l s o f g o o d f a m i l y w h o a r e u s u a l l y f r i e n d s m o r e t h a n m a i d s . T h e w a i t i n g w o m e n d r e s s t h e i r l a d y , t a k e c a r e o f h e r c l o t h e s , h e l p w i t h t h e c h i l d r e n , a n d j o i n h e r i n t h e e n d l e s s s e w i n g o f c l o t h e s t h a t ? s s u c h a l a r g e p a r t o f l i f e f o r m e d i e v a l w o m e n . S i n c e a l o r d g a i n s s t a t u s b y s u p p o r t i n g m a n y w a i t i n g w o m e n f o r h i s w i f e ,

t h e u s u a l l a d y h a s a r e t i n u e o f m a n y g i r l s a r o u n d h e r a t a l l t i m e s . M o s t o f t h e s e w i l l e v e n t u a l l y m a r r y , b u t s o m e w a i t i n g - w o m e n p r e f e r t o r e m a i n w i t h t h e i r l a d y t o a v o i d a n u n w e l c o m e m a r r i a g e . S u c h a w o m a n w i l l b e t h e l a d y ? s c h i e f c o n f i d a n t e a n d t h u s a p e r s o n o f p o w e r w i t h i n t h e c a s t l e . O t h e r n o b l e - b o r n r e t a i n e r s a c t a s o f f i c i a l s , c o m i n g b e t w e e n t h e l o r d a n d t h e a c t u a l s e r v a n t s . T h e e x a c t n u m b e r and positions of these officials will of course vary, depending on the wealth and size of the castle. A poor knight will only have one man to scurry around and do whatever he has time to do, while a rich baron will have the full staff listed below.

The chief officer in a large castle is the seneschal, who has many varied duties. He is the lord?s right-hand man, the overseer of the fief as a whole, the lord?s companion in battle, and his trusted political councilor. He disburses monies or food to the other officials, keeps an eye on their accounts, and solves whatever disputes are beneath the notice of the lord. In wartime, he is the second-in-command of the men-at-arms and vassals in the lord?s army. If only one official in a household is noble-born, that one will be the seneschal.

The steward, overseeing the butler, cellarer, and cooks, is responsible for feeding the castle household ? no easy job with three hundred people at table! He oversees the provision and storage of food from the actual farmland, sets the menus with the lady of the castle, gives orders to the cooks, and organizes any feasts or festivities. At mealtimes, he becomes a head waiter, coordinating the servants who are bringing in the food.

The chamberlain is responsible for the household work exclusive of food prepara- tion. He supervises what little cleaning gets done, the hiring of common-born servants, the purchase and care of furniture and hangings, and the dispensing of any gifts the lord and lady care to make. He also has the important task of tending to the comfort of any guests. Both the steward and the chamberlain report directly to the lady. The marshal; or equerry, is in charge of the stables, which are the core of the lord?s military power in a cavalry-dominated world. The marshal supervises the stable boys and the groom, buys or trades horses as necessary, and assigns the horses owned by the lord to whomever needs to use them. Since most noble lords spend a lot of time discussing their beloved horses, the marshal usually has personal influence over the lord and thus great personal power.

Another person of great influence is the lord?s chaplain, the priest who lives in the castle and performs religious services for all its inhabitants, noble or common. Beyond his religious duties, the priest knows the common law and is expected to advise the lord when he is dispensing justice. He also acts as the castle?s almoner, dispensing charity to the poor who show up at the gates. In a fantasy world with pagan societies, this priest will not be a Christian father, of course, but most lords will keep a priest of their favorite god close at hand. A wealthy lord also maintains as many men-at-arms as he can afford to keep in his barracks. Particularly if this force contains archers and pikemen, the men-at-arms are likely to be from the yeoman (free middle) class, but at their head will be at least one household knight of noble birth. In areas where there is constant warfare or danger from bandits and suchlike, the lord will maintain as many household knights as he

c a n a f f o r d , b u t i n p e a c e f u l r e g i o n s , h e w i l l e n f e o f f h i s k n i g h t s o n p a r t o f h i s m a n o r . T h e a v e r a g e h o u s e h o l d k n i g h t i s a p o o r n o b l e , u s u a l l y a y o u n g e r s o n w i t h n o c h a n c e a t a n i n h e r i t a n c e , w h o s p e n d s h i s w h o l e l i f e i n t h e l o r d ? s c a s t l e f o r w h a t a m o u n t s t o r o o m a n d b o a r d ? a n d t h e a l l - i m p o r t a n t c h a n c e t o p r o v e h i m s e l f i n b a t t l e . S o m e k n i g h t s , h o w e v e r , a r e v a g r a n t a d v e n t u r e r s ? noble-born, of course, but kicked out by t h e i r f a m i l i e s f o r o n e s h a m e f u l r e a s o n o r a n o t h e r . T h e s e l e s s e r k n i g h t s o w n t h e i r o w n h o r s e s a n d e q u i p m e n t , r a t h e r t h a n r e c e i v i n g t h e m f r o m t h e l o r d , a n d t h u s a r e p a i d a s m a l l f e e i n a d d i t i o n t o t h e i r m a i n t e n a n c e . I n t h e c a s t l e h i e r a r c h y , t h e s e k n i g h t s - e r r a n t , a s t h e y a r e c a l l e d , c o m e n e a r t h e b o t t o m a s n e c e s s a r y e v i l s , n o t t o b e t r u s t e d u n l e s s u n d e r t h e f i r m c o n t r o l o f t h e s e n e s c h a l . I n f a n t a s y - w o r l d c a s t l e s , g r e a t l o r d s a l s o h a v e a p e r s o n a l w i z a r d o r s o r c e r e r l i v i n g w i t h t h e m . S u c h a m a g i c i a n i s e x p e c t e d t o u s e h i s s k i l l s i n h i s l o r d ? s d e f e n s e d u r i n g w a r a n d t o i n f l u e n c e p o l i t i c a l e v e n t s d u r i n g p e a c e . H e a l s o g i v e s t h e l o r d c o u n s e l f r o m h i s a r c a n e l o r e a n d i n t e r p r e t s o m e n s t h a t a r e b e y o n d t h e r a n g e o f t h e p r i e s t . K i n g s a n d p a r t i c u l a r l y p o w e r f u l n o b l e s w i l l h a v e a p e r s o n a l a l c h e m i s t i n t h e i r c a s t l e a s w e l l .

Servitors and servants Among the ranks of common-born serv a n t s i n t h e c a s t l e t h e r e i s a f u r t h e r d i s t i n c t i o n -- between servitors, who have a certain amount of respect and position, and

the crowd of peasant servants who do the actual daily labor. The servitors have a craft to offer, such as blacksmithing, cookery, or hunting technique. These skilled laborers hold their positions by hereditary right, passing the job down to their sons or daughters as long as they have heirs. Servitors are generally proud of their position and very loyal to their lord if he?s any kind of a decent man at all.

The servants, recruited from the peasantry on the manor, are treated like valuable farm animals. Kicks and curses are their daily lot from those above them in the hierarchy. They sleep wherever they can find a spot, usually on the floor or on a table in the lord?s hall, or out in the stables. For wages, they receive food, one suit of clothes a year, and a few small coins at Christmas. Yet, odd though it seems to modern minds, being a servant in a castle is a sought-after job. Since status demands that the lord have more servants than are necessary for the work, no single servant works more than three or four hours a day ? a much better lot than breaking one?s back on the farm. Servants are also assured of getting enough to eat, which is not the case for other peasants. A great castle will have close to a hun- dred servitors, counting their wives, and another hundred or so servants. Following are descriptions of some of the most important servitors, who will be found in any castle of decent size.

Working under the seneschal are those responsible for the security of the castle, the chief porter and the watchmen. Although the watchmen are recruited nightly from the men-at-arms, the chief porter has a hereditary job. Usually he and his family live in a gate-house, which is either just inside the gates or built into the wall over them. He is responsible for greeting ? and scrutinizing ? every person who comes to the gates and for deciding whether or not to admit them. If the visitor is noble, the porter must greet him with the ritual courtesy due his rank. If the visitor is judged undesirable, the porter must turn him out ? by force if necessary. Thus, porters are trained in the use of weapons. A lord who dispenses justice has an important servitor in the person of the sworn executioner. Although not the most popular man in the castle, the executioner is treated with respect. He?s responsible for hanging or otherwise dispatching criminals, ?persuading? suspected criminals to reveal evidence, and putting minor infractors in the stocks or flogging them. Oddly enough, the executioner also serves as a doctor for broken bones and wounds. Since he?s trained to break bodies, he knows a good bit about repairing them as well. Another person who serves as a doctor from time to time is the barber, sometimes known as a barber-surgeon. Although he shaves the noblemen of the household and cuts their hair like a modern barber, he also

k n o w s m u c h p r i m i t i v e m e d i c i n e a n d c a n d i s p e n s e h e r b a l p o t i o n s f o r v a r i o u s a i l m e n t s . H i s m o s t c o m m o n t r e a t m e n t , h o w e v e r , i s b l e e d i n g t h e s i c k , e i t h e r b y o p e n i n g a s m a l l v e i n o r b y a p p l y i n g r i v e r l e e c h e s t o s u c k o u t t h e ? b a d b l o o d . ? S i n c e t h e h u n t i s a v e r y i m p o r t a n t p a r t o f c a s t l e l i f e , p r o v i d i n g n o t o n l y a m u s e m e n t b u t m u c h - n e e d e d m e a t , e v e r y c a s t l e h a s a s t a f f o f s e r v i t o r s d e v o t e d t o h u n t i n g . T h e k e n n e l m a n c a r e s f o r a n d t r a i n s t h e l o r d ? s h o u n d s ; d u r i n g t h e h u n t , h e s u p e r v i s e s t h e p a c k . T h e f a l c o n e r t e n d s t h e f a l c o n s a n d h a w k s ; h e a l s o h a s t h e u n e n v i a b l e j o b o f r a i d i n g n e s t s t o s t e a l y o u n g b i r d s . T h e a v e r a g e f a l c o n e r w i l l h a v e m a n y s c a r s o n h i s f a c e . T h e m a s t e r h u n t s m a n t e n d s a n d r e p a i r s t h e s p e c i a l h u n t i n g w e a p o n s , t r a i n s t h e b e a t e r s a n d n e t m e n , a n d t r a c k s g a m e w h e n t h e h u n t i s u p . A n o t h e r c r u c i a l p a r t o f t h e c a s t l e ? s f o o d s u p p l y i s t h e g a r d e n , t e n d e d b y t h e c h i e f g a r d e n e r a n d a c r e w o f p e a s a n t s e r v a n t s . T h i s g a r d e n s u p p l i e s v e g e t a b l e s , p o t h e r b s , a n d m e d i c i n a l h e r b s a s w e l l a s f l o w e r s . T h e f l o w e r s , h o w e v e r , a r e c o n s i d e r e d a ? n e c e s s a r y l u x u r y , ? b e c a u s e t h e y a r e a b r i g h t s p o t o f c o l o r i n a n o t h e r w i s e d r a b l i f e . E v e n t h e m o s t b a t t l e - h a r d e n e d l o r d w i l l w e a r f l o w e r s i n h i s h a i r f o r s p e c i a l e v e n t s l i k e w e d d i n g s . E v e n i f a c a s t l e i s n e a r a t o w n , t h e l o r d p r e f e r s t o k e e p h i s o w n c r a f t s m e n w i t h i n h i s w a l l s . A f t e r a l l , o n e c a n ? t s e n d t o t o w n f o r s u p p l i e s d u r i n g a s i e g e ! E v e r y c a s t l e w i l l h a v e a c a r p e n t e r , a t i n k e r , a p o t t e r , a n d a s t o n e - m a s o n , b u t t h e m o s t i m p o r t a n t o f t h e s e s e r v i t o r s i s t h e b l a c k s m i t h . I n f a c t , a l a r g e c a s t l e i s l i k e l y t o h a v e t w o s m i t h s , w h o , b e s i d e s s h o e i n g t h e s m a l l h e r d o f h o r s e s w i t h i n t h e c a s t l e , a l s o p r o d u c e n a i l s , b o l t s , a r r o w h e a d s , l a n c e h e a d s , s h i e l d b o s s e s , a n d e v e n c h a i n m a i l . T h e s m i t h s a l s o r e p a i r b r o k e n w e a p o n s a n d h o r s e - g e a r .

W o r k i n g c l o t h i s a n o t h e r i m p o r t a n t c a s t l e i n d u s t r y , b e c a u s e e v e r y p i e c e o f c l o t h i n g o r b l a n k e t u s e d b y t h o s e w h o l i v e t h e r e i s p r o d u c e d b y t h e h o u s e h o l d . T h e c a s t l e ? s l a d y s u p e r v i s e s a l a r g e s t a f f o f w o m e n w h o s p i n w o o l f r o m t h e l o r d ? s s h e e p , w e a v e i t i n t o c l o t h , d y e i t w i t h h e r b a l d y e s , a n d t h e n s e w i t i n t o c l o t h e s t o b e d i s p e n s e d a s w a g e s o r g i f t s . T h e l a d y h e r s e l f w i l l s e w h e r l o r d ? s c l o t h i n g , p e r h a p s a d d i n g a t o u c h o f f a n c y n e e d l e w o r k i f s h e h a s t h e t i m e . Head cook, baker, head groom, dairym a n , p o u l t r y m a n ? a l l a r e i m p o r t a n t s e r v i t o r s , a n d a l l w i l l h a v e l e s s e r s e r v a n t s t o h e l p t h e m a t t h e i r w o r k . T h e b a i l e y a n d w a r d o f a l a r g e c a s t l e a r e a c t u a l l y a v i l l a g e , f i l l e d w i t h w o o d e n s h a c k s a n d w o r k s h o p s , h o u s i n g t h e p e o p l e w h o t u r n t h e p r o d u c e f r o m t h e l a n d i n t o t h e n e c e s s i t i e s a n d s o m e t i m e s t h e l u x u r i e s o f l i f e .

Who pays for all of this? W h e t h e r b u s h e l s o f w h e a t o r s i l v e r c o i n s , d i s p o s a b l e w e a l t h h a s t o c o m e f r o m s o m e w h e r e , a n d t h e " s o m e w h e r e " o f t h e m a n o r i a l e c o n o m y i s t h e l a b o r o f t h e t e n a n t p e a s a n t s , o r s e r f s , a s t h e y a r e c o m m o n l y k n o w n . A l t h o u g h m a n y l o r d s h a v e s u b s i d i a r y i n c o m e s f r o m b r i d g e t o l l s , r i v e r r i g h t s ,

o r t o w n t a x e s , t h e b u l k o f t h e i r w e a l t h c o m e s f r o m t h e l a n d .

A s m e n t i o n e d a b o v e , a b o u t o n e - t h i r d o f a m a n o r i s t h e l o r d ? s o w n l a n d , t h e d e m e s n e . A l l p r o d u c e f r o m t h e d e m e s n e b e l o n g s d i r e c t l y t o t h e l o r d . T h e t e n a n t s h o l d i n g t h e r e s t o f t h e m a n o r a l s o w o r k o n t h e l o r d ' s d e m e s n e , u s u a l l y f o r t h r e e d a y s a w e e k . T h i s s e r v i c e , c a l l e d t h e corvee, is paid only by the head of each tenant family, but it is strictly enforced.

The other members of the family are then technically free to work their own land for their own profit, but in practice, the lord skims off a large share of their labor. For starters, each peasant has to pay an annual head tax, the chevage. If the lord has justice rights over the peasants (and most do), each family pays a further annual tax, the taille. Whenever the head of a family dies, his son must pay the lord a further tax to inherit the land.

Most onerous of all, however, are the banalites, duties and fees that must be paid constantly in order to live daily life. Peasants must grind their grain in the lord?s mill, bake their bread in his ovens, use only his bull and stallion to stud their cows and mares, cross only his bridge at the stream ? on and on, and all for a fee. These charges are enforced by physical violence, such as floggings or even maiming.

The French historian George Duby has estimated that the total charges upon a peasant amounted to 50% of his family?s total output, and this is over and above the corvee. (And you think the IRS is bad?) The average peasant family, therefore, lives close to starvation. Their clothes are torn and filthy; their hut is tumbledown and drafty; their children die with heart-breaking regularity from malnutrition and small fevers. Most peasants also live in a state of sullen resentment that at times breaks out into open rebellion, but the lord?s armed justice is swift to torture, maim, or kill any protestor. At its most basic level, the mano

rial system resembles nothing so much as that well-known gangster ploy, the protection racket. To keep the peasants in line and to extort all these fees, the lord requires a number of manorial officials, sometimes noble-born but more usually middle-class servitors, again holding their positions by hereditary right. At the top of the hierarchy is the bailiff, who might live in the castle, but who more likely lives in a farmhouse on the estate. The bailiff is the working overseer of the estate, making his daily rounds on horseback to collect work-gangs for the corvee, make decisions about plowing and planting, and supervise the collection of taxes and fees. Since they must make detailed annual reports to the lord and the seneschal, most bailiffs can read and write. To help him, the bailiff has a varying number of assistants, the provosts. (Some lords dispense with a bailiff and have the provosts report directly to them.) The provosts directly supervise the corvee, and some do actual physical work as well, such as loading the taxes onto carts or tending the lord?s horses when they are brought outside to graze.

Two other important estate officials are the forester and the game warden. The forester keeps track of all firewood cut from the lord?s forest and of course imposes a fee upon the peasant for cutting it. The game warden?s primary duty is to make sure that no one poaches any wild game from the estate. All deer, rabbits, and boars are the lord?s property; any peasant who kills so much as a rabbit, even to protect his crops, will be summarily hanged.

The player character?s castle Now that the GM understands the requirements of a working castle, he is in a better position to supervise any players who wish to have their characters build strongholds, a process far more complex than the modern procedure of buying a piece of real

e s t a t e a n d h i r i n g a c o n t r a c t o r . A t a l l s t a g e s , t h e G M s h o u l d r e t a i n f i r m c o n t r o l o f t h e p r o c e s s a n d p u t p l e n t y of realistic obstacles in the character?s way. In a sense, the GM will be role-playing the entire medieval environment and property system.

The first problem is acquiring enough land -- not merely for the actual castle itself, but also for the manor to support it. Most players will protest that their characters don't need a manor, because they plan to support their castle with the coin from adventuring. Unfortunately, all the coin in the world can't buy food that isn't there to buy. Medieval agriculture is so inefficient that it's highly unlikely that the neighborhood peasants will have any food to sell after fulfilling their obligations to their lord. Besides, their lord will probably outright forbid any sale of food to the adventurer in the neighborhood because any new castle is a rival for power. Even free farmers will sell only what food they can spare, leaving the character's castle vulnerable to bad harvests. Thus, the PC?s castle requires a manor to feed it.

Buying land outright for coin is unheard of in a medieval-style world. At the most, a PC could obtain a small amount of land on a perpetual lease by paying a money rent, but it is far more likely that any manorial estate will come enfeoffed or entailed in one way or another. There are two kinds of land available for new manors: virgin territory, or farmland from a great lord?s already existing manor.

Any virgin territory within a kingdom is considered the property of the king; squatters will have a war on their hands. Legally settling virgin territory requires a royal charter granting and establishing the new manor. In the case of manorial land, the lord who has rights to it must be persuaded to subenfeoff it to the PC. In both cases, the granter of the manor will wangle as many obligations as he can from the PC. To obtain a manor from an overlord, whether king or baron, the PC has to acquire the lord?s favor and convince him that he will be a loyal vassal in the future. Here?s where all those coins and jewels can come in handy. Besides giving lavish presents to the overlord, the PC will have to bribe his important officials to get them on his side and perhaps even to get an audience with the overlord. Once the grant of land is offered, the PC has to swear homage to his new overlord, or suzerain, as it was often called.

In homage, the PC promises to become the overlord?s vassal for the rest of his life (the PC?s life, that is) and to perform certain services in return for the land. The minor ones can be widely varied, but the most common small obligations are to visit the overlord?s court once a year, to entertain him sumptuously whenever he appears at the vassal?s castle, and to help him with the expense of wedding or knightings of the lord?s children when they come of age. The major obligation, of course, is military service. The vassal must provide a

specified number of soldiers and their provisions for forty to sixty days a year. Whenever summoned, the vassal must personally fight at his lord?s side. In some cases, it?s possible to get out of this service by paying scutage, a money payment sufficient to hire and supply as many men as the vassal is failing to provide. The GM should decide whether the overlord in question will accept scutage. In a real emergency, the overlord will not.

If the PC has received a grant of manorial land that?s already being farmed, he can proceed to building the castle. In the case of virgin territory, however, the PC will have to find farmers to work on the new manor. Peasants on an existing manor are usually willing to become colonists if they receive a better deal than they?re already getting ? an easy enough matter, considering their lot. It was common for colonizing lords to allow ? reluctantly, of course ? their colonists to lease the new land with rents due instead of full feudal service. Since serfs are legally free men, not slaves, buying them out of serfdom is a ticklish business. While trying to keep up appearances, their former lord will try to get as much coin as possible per head. Lords will never risk underpopulating their own lands, of course, and thus will probably only allow 10-15% of their serfs to leave at any given time.

Once the farmlands are settled, the PC will also have to acquire servitors from the

middle classes and whatever noble officials or henchmen he can attract. To build the actual castle requires skilled, well-paid craftsmen brought out from towns. Most fantasy-game systems have prices in their rules for the actual cost of building. Craftsmen will demand to be paid in coin, not produce, but they will take part of the wages in living expenses while actually working.

The process of settling a manor and building a castle should take game-years, not months. The PC isn?t slapping up a modern condominium of lath and sheetrock, but building in stone for the ages. The GM will probably have to rule that the PC doesn?t have the resources to build his dream castle all at once but must either adventure again or wait until the land begins producing enough revenue to finish the work.

Most PC?s, in fact, will have to start a stronghold as a fortified manor or fortalice. Although players will gripe about this, the GM should hold firm. After all, a recurring problem in long-running campaigns is the rich and incredibly powerful PC who unbalances the game by his very presence. First building, then maintaining a castle is an excellent way to drain off not only wealthy but playing time from such a PC. First of all, the PC will have to spend playing time fulfilling his obligations to his overlord. The military service will always come due in summer ? prime adventuring

The castle in the campaign S i n c e b u i l d i n g a n d m a i n t a i n i n g a c a s t l e i s s u c h a d i f f i c u l t p r o p o s i t i o n , c a s t l e s a r e n ? t g o i n g t o e x i s t i n e v e r y h e x o f t h e c a m p a i g n m a p . T h e c o m m o n p a t t e r n , i n f a c t , w i l l b e o n e p o w e r f u l c a s t l e f o r e v e r y , t w o o r t h r e e h u n d r e d s q u a r e m i l e s , s u r r o u n d e d a t i n t e r v a l s b y t h e f o r t a l i c e s o f t h e r i c h l o r d ? s v a s s a l s . R o y a l c a s t l e s w i l l b e e v e n r a r e r . I n a k i n g d o m w i t h a w e a k c e n t r a l g o v e r n m e n t , t h e r e m a y b e n o r o y a l c a s t l e s a t a l l e x c e p t f o r t h e k i n g ? s p e r s o n a l d w e l l i n g . B e c a u s e o f t h e l a r g e n u m b e r o f s e r v a n t s , s e r v i t o r s , a n d r e t a i n e r s w h o l i v e i n a c a s t l e , d r a w i n g u p a c a s t l e m i n u t e l y f o r a n N P C i s a s m u c h w o r k a s c r e a t i n g a s m a l l t o w n . F o r t u n a t e l y , u n l e s s t h e N P C h a s a c r u c i a l c e n t r a l r o l e i n t h e c a m p a i g n , o r t h e G M w i s h e s t o r u n a s e r i e s o f s c e n a r i o s i n a p a r t i c u l a r c a s t l e , t h e r e i s n o n e e d t o c r e a t e e v e r y s i n g l e i n h a b i t a n t a n d g i v e t h e m f u l l s t a t s . A f t e r a l l , u n l e s s t h e p l a y e r p a r t y i s a bunch of murderous brigands, they are u n l i k e l y t o e n g a g e i n c o m b a t w i t h t h e b l a c k s m i t h ? s w i f e o r t h e p i g - b o y s . A s a s t a r t i n g p o i n t , t h e G M s h o u l d w r i t e a d e s c r i p t i v e p a r a g r a p h f o r e a c h t r u l y i m p o r t a n t i n h a b i t a n t i n t h e c a s t l e , s u c h a s t h e l o r d a n d h i s f a m i l y , t h e n o b l e o f f i c i a l s , t h e c h i e f h o u s e h o l d k n i g h t , a n d s u c h s e r v i t o r s a s t h e p l a y e r p a r t y i s l i k e l y t o m e e t , s u c h a s t h e c h i e f p o r t e r . H e r e ? s a n e x a m p l e

o f s u c h a s k e t c h : ? S i r G e r v a s e , t h e s e n e s c h a l , i s a s t r o n g m i d d l e - a g e d m a n w i t h g r e a t s k i l l w i t h w e a p o n s . H e u s e s h i s q u i c k w i t s a n d c o n s i d e r a b l e w o r l d l y w i s d o m l o y a l l y i n t h e s e r v i c e o f h i s l o r d . ? T h e n , i f s t a t s a r e n e c e s s a r y a t s o m e l a t e r t i m e , t h e G M c a n e i t h e r r o l l t h e m u p o r s i m p l y d e c i d e t h e m w i t h i n t h e p a r a m e t e r s o f t h e s k e t c h . L e s s e r s e r v i t o r s a n d s e r v a n t s c a n b e m e r e l y l i s t e d a n d n o t e d , f o r i n s t a n c e : ? t w e l v e s e r v i n g w e n c h e s , t w o v e r y p r e t t y , ? o r ? H u b e r t t h e b l a c k s m i t h ; l i v e s i n t h e b a i l e y ; s t r o n g a r m w i t h w a r h a m m e r . ? W h e n i t c o m e s t o r u n n i n g t h e c a s t l e , i m p r e s s i o n i s t i c s t o r y - t e l l i n g w i l l f i l l a l o t o f g a p s . F o r e x a m p l e , l e t ? s s u p p o s e a p l a y e r p a r t y i s e n t e r i n g a c a s t l e f o r t h e f i r s t t i m e . A f t e r a n a c t u a l e n c o u n t e r w i t h t h e c h i e f porter, they go through the gates. The GM c a n s a y s o m e t h i n g l i k e t h i s : ? O u t i n t h e b a i l e y , y o u s e e a l a r g e n u m b e r o f w o o d e n s h e d s a n d h u t s . S e r v a n t s h u r r y a r o u n d c a r r y i n g f o o d a n d f i r e w o o d ; a c o u p l e o f g r o o m s a r e c u r r y i n g h o r s e s b y t h e m a i n w e l l ; y o u h e a r t h e c l a n g o f a b l a c k s m i t h ? s h a m m e r o v e r t h e g e n e r a l d i n . ? S u c h a s c e n e - s e t t i n g g i v e s t h e f e e l o f c a s t l e l i f e w i t h o u t s t a t s a n d c o n t i n u a l d i c e r o l l s . W h e n m a p p i n g o u t t h e m a n o r f o r a n i m p o r t a n t c a s t l e , l i k e w i s e , t h e G M s h o u l d i n d i c a t e w h e r e t h e p e a s a n t v i l l a g e s a r e a n d h o w m a n y f a m i l i e s l i v e i n t h e m , b u t i t ? s u n n e c e s s a r y t o m a k e a d e t a i l e d p l a c e m e n t o f e v e r y h u t a n d f i e l d . T h e m a p c a n i n d i c a t e t h e l o r d ? s f o r e s t , m a j o r s t r e a m s , a n d o t h e r s u c h n a t u r a l f e a t u r e s o n a s i m p l e h e x b y - h e x b a s i s . I f t h e p l a y e r p a r t y i s t h e s o r t t h a t ? s l i k e l y t o g e t i n t o t r o u b l e , b y p o a c h i n g o n t h e l o r d ? s f o r e s t p r e s e r v e o r r o b b i n g s o m e o n e , t h e n t h e G M c a n s e t u p t h e d a i l y r o u t e o f t h e b a i l i f f , p r o v o s t s , a n d g a m e k e e p e r a n d g i v e t h e m s o m e c o m b a t s t a t s .

T h e t i m e s p e n t w o r k i n g u p a r e a l i s t i c a l l y p o p u l a t e d c a s t l e w i l l p a y o f f i n t h e f u n o f r u n n i n g i t . A l l t h e s e a s s o r t e d N P C ? s p r o v i d e o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r e n c o u n t e r s a n d c h a r a c t e r i n t e r a c t i o n b e y o n d t h e u s u a l c o m b a t s ? l o v e a f f a i r s , r e s e n t m e n t s , f r i e n d s h i p s , d i p l o m a t i c s q u a b b l e s ? a l l i n a f a n t a s y s e t t i n g t h a t w i l l s t i l l s e e m ? r e a l ? t o t h e p l a y e r s . A t r u l y w e l l - r e a l i z e d s e t t i n g a d d s e n o r m o u s l y t o e v e r y o n e ? s e n j o y m e n t ? a n d t h a t ? s w h a t f a n t a s y r o l e - p l a y i n g i s a l l a b o u t !

A note on further reading G M ' s a n d p l a y e r s w h o a r e i n t e r e s t e d i n m o r e d e t a i l a b o u t c a s t l e l i f e c a n f i n d m a n y b o o k s a v a i l a b l e t h e s e d a y s , s o m e i n p a p e r b a c k .

O n e o f t h e b e s t i s Life on a Medieval Barony by William Stearns Davis (Harper and Row, 2nd ed. 1953). Serious roleplayers, especially Chivalry and Sorcery fans, will find that reading this or some similar book adds enormously to their fun.

Hard-working GM?s who want more information about the manorial system and the sizes and population of average holdings should gird their loins and attack The Cambridge Economic History of Europe, Volume I: The Agrarian Life of the Middle Ages, edited by M. M. Postan (Cambridge University Press, 1966