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The inner bailey or inner ward of a castle is the strongly fortified enclosure at the heart of a 
The terms "upper bailey" or "upper ward" are sometimes used to describe the inner bailey of a hill castle or water castle where the main ward was usually higher than the outer or "lower" bailey. Similarly the Romanesque inner ward of Hohensalzburg Fortress is still called the ''Hoher Stock'' ("Upper Storey").
The inner bailey or inner ward of a castle is the strongly fortified enclosure at the heart of a medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
.Friar, Stephen (2003). ''The Sutton Companion to Castles'', Sutton Publishing, Stroud, 2003, p. 22. It is protected by the outer ward and, sometimes also a ''Zwinger
"" () is a German word for outer ward or outer bailey. It represents an open kill zone area between two defensive walls that is used for defensive purposes. s were built in the post-classical and early modern periods to improve the defence ...
'', moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...
s, a curtain wall and other outworks. Depending on topography it may also be called an upper bailey or upper ward.
The inner bailey enclosed the most important living quarters and defensive elements for the lord and his family, e.g. the great hall
A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages, and continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the gr ...
, the ''palas
A ''palas'' () is a German term for the imposing or prestigious building of a medieval '' Pfalz'' or castle that contained the great hall. Such buildings appeared during the Romanesque period (11th to 13th century) and, according to Thompson ...
'', the tower house
A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, in order to command and defend strateg ...
and the keep
A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...
or ''bergfried
''Bergfried'' (plural: ''bergfriede''; English: ''belfry''; French: ''tour-beffroi''; Spanish: ''torre del homenaje'') is a tall tower that is typically found in castles of the Middle Ages in German-speaking countries and in countries under Germ ...
''. The castle well or cistern
A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by ...
was usually found in the inner bailey, because water supplies were particularly important in the past in order to be able to withstand a siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...
for any length of time.
The inner bailey is usually the oldest part of a castle, because it contains those buildings that were the first to be built during its construction. It often has flanking towers that enabled grazing fire to be brought to bear in front of the curtain wall and gave additional protection to the castle gate
A gate or gateway is a point of entry to or from a space enclosed by walls. The word derived from old Norse "gat" meaning road or path; But other terms include ''yett and port''. The concept originally referred to the gap or hole in the wall ...
.
In complex castles the buildings of the inner ward were frequently grouped in a ring around a courtyard which acted as a central storage area and – if it were large enough – as a tournament arena.
The terms "upper bailey" or "upper ward" are sometimes used to describe the inner bailey of a hill castle or water castle where the main ward was usually higher than the outer or "lower" bailey. Similarly the Romanesque inner ward of Hohensalzburg Fortress is still called the ''Hoher Stock'' ("Upper Storey").
See also
*Bailey (castle)
A bailey or ward in a fortification is a courtyard enclosed by a curtain wall. In particular, an early type of European castle was known as a motte-and-bailey. Castles can have more than one bailey. Their layout depends both on the local topogr ...
* Outer bailey
* Motte and bailey
A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy t ...
References
Literature
* Horst Wolfgang Böhme, Reinhard Friedrich, Barbara Schock-Werner (ed.): ''Wörterbuch der Burgen, Schlösser und Festungen''. Philipp Reclam, Stuttgart, 2004, , p. 169. {{Fortifications Castle architecture