<P> The motte - and - bailey castle is a particularly northern European phenomenon , most numerous in Normandy and Britain , but also seen in Denmark , Germany , Southern Italy and occasionally beyond . European castles first emerged in the 9th and 10th centuries , after the fall of the Carolingian Empire resulted in its territory being divided among individual lords and princes and local territories became threatened by the Magyars and the Norse . Against this background , various explanations have been put forward to explain the origins and spread of the motte - and - bailey design across northern Europe ; there is often a tension among the academic community between explanations that stress military and social reasons for the rise of this design . One suggestion is that these castles were built particularly in order to protect against external attack -- the Angevins , it is argued , began to build them to protect against the Viking raids , and the design spread to deal with the attacks along the Slav and Hungarian frontiers . Another argument is that , given the links between this style of castle and the Normans , who were of Viking descent , it was in fact originally a Viking design , transported to Normandy and Angers . The motte - and - bailey castle was certainly effective against assault , although as historian André Debord suggests , the historical and archaeological record of the military operation of motte - and - bailey castles remains relatively limited . </P>
<P> The motte - and - bailey castle is a particularly northern European phenomenon , most numerous in Normandy and Britain , but also seen in Denmark , Germany , Southern Italy and occasionally beyond . European castles first emerged in the 9th and 10th centuries , after the fall of the Carolingian Empire resulted in its territory being divided among individual lords and princes and local territories became threatened by the Magyars and the Norse . Against this background , various explanations have been put forward to explain the origins and spread of the motte - and - bailey design across northern Europe ; there is often a tension among the academic community between explanations that stress military and social reasons for the rise of this design . One suggestion is that these castles were built particularly in order to protect against external attack -- the Angevins , it is argued , began to build them to protect against the Viking raids , and the design spread to deal with the attacks along the Slav and Hungarian frontiers . Another argument is that , given the links between this style of castle and the Normans , who were of Viking descent , it was in fact originally a Viking design , transported to Normandy and Angers . The motte - and - bailey castle was certainly effective against assault , although as historian André Debord suggests , the historical and archaeological record of the military operation of motte - and - bailey castles remains relatively limited . </P>
where was the first motte and bailey castle built
where was the first motte and bailey castle built
northern Europe
northern Europe