<P> A motte - and - bailey castle is a fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised earthwork called a motte , accompanied by an enclosed courtyard , or bailey , surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade . Relatively easy to build with unskilled , often forced , labour , but still militarily formidable , these castles were built across northern Europe from the 10th century onwards , spreading from Normandy and Anjou in France , into the Holy Roman Empire in the 11th century . The Normans introduced the design into England and Wales following their invasion in 1066 . Motte - and - bailey castles were adopted in Scotland , Ireland , the Low Countries and Denmark in the 12th and 13th centuries . By the end of the 13th century , the design was largely superseded by alternative forms of fortification , but the earthworks remain a prominent feature in many countries . </P>
<P> A motte - and - bailey castle is a fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised earthwork called a motte , accompanied by an enclosed courtyard , or bailey , surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade . Relatively easy to build with unskilled , often forced , labour , but still militarily formidable , these castles were built across northern Europe from the 10th century onwards , spreading from Normandy and Anjou in France , into the Holy Roman Empire in the 11th century . The Normans introduced the design into England and Wales following their invasion in 1066 . Motte - and - bailey castles were adopted in Scotland , Ireland , the Low Countries and Denmark in the 12th and 13th centuries . By the end of the 13th century , the design was largely superseded by alternative forms of fortification , but the earthworks remain a prominent feature in many countries . </P>
when were the motte and bailey castles built
when were the motte and bailey castles built
10th century onwards
10th century onwards