Castle-guard was an arrangement under the

feudal system Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was a combination of legal, economic, military, cultural, and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe from the 9th to 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structuring socie ...

, by which the duty of finding knights to guard royal castles was imposed on certain manors, knight's fees or baronies. The greater

barons Barons may refer to: *Baron (plural), a rank of nobility *Barons (surname), a Latvian surname *Barons, Alberta, Canada * ''Barons'' (TV series), a 2022 Australian drama series * ''The Barons'', a 2009 Belgian film Sports * Birmingham Barons, a Min ...

provided for the guard of their castles by exacting a similar duty from their sub-enfeoffed knights. The obligation was commuted very early for a fixed money payment, a form of

scutage Scutage was a medieval English tax levied on holders of a knight's fee under the feudal land tenure of knight-service. Under feudalism the king, through his vassals, provided land to knights for their support. The knights owed the king militar ...

known as "castle-guard rent", which lasted into modern times.AL Poole, ''Domesday Book to Magna Carta'' (OUP, 2nd edition, 1955) Castle-guard was a common form of feudal tenure, almost ubiquitous, on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

where all manors were held from the Lord of the Isle of Wight, seated at Carisbrook Castle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Castle-Guard Castles Feudalism Land tenure