How were castles lit at night?

Castles had basic lavatories called garderobes. Light was provided by candles or oil lamps, rarely by the sort of effective torches depicted in Hollywood films. Later castles featured fires against the wall with a flue to carry the smoke away.

How were medieval castles illuminated?

Medieval lighting came from large central fireplaces, candles, rush lights, flaming torches or lanterns. Candles, which had been around since Roman times, were made from animal fat, or beeswax if you were wealthy. These lights look particularly good in rooms with high ceilings or in barn conversions.

How were medieval cities lit at night?

In the Middle Ages, so-called “link boys” escorted people from one place to another through the murky winding streets of medieval towns. Before incandescent lamps, candle lighting was employed in cities. The earliest lamps required that a lamplighter tour the town at dusk, lighting each of the lamps.

Did medieval castles have glass windows?

Windows were equipped with wooden shutters secured by an iron bar, but in the 11th and 12th centuries were rarely glazed. By the 13th century a king or great baron might have “white (greenish) glass” in some of his windows, and by the 14th century glazed windows were common.

How were medieval torches made?

Torches were usually constructed of a wooden stave with one end wrapped in a material which was soaked in a flammable substance. Modern procession torches are made from coarse hessian rolled into a tube and soaked in wax. A wooden handle is usually used, and a cardboard collar is attached to deflect any wax droplets.

How was heating accomplished in the medieval halls?

The fireplace provided heat both directly and by radiation from the stones at the back, from the hearth, and finally, from the opposite wall, which was given extra thickness to absorb the heat and warm the room after the fire had burned low.

How were streets lit in medieval times?

In most medieval European cities, street lighting was either an act of charity (a candle placed before a church or holy relic) or a moving light carried by someone in the street. In Amsterdam this was true throughout the early modern age.

Did castles have basements?

An undercroft is traditionally a cellar or storage room, often vaulted. While some were used as simple storerooms, others were rented out as shops. For example, the undercroft rooms at Myres Castle in Scotland circa 1300 were used as the medieval kitchen and a range of stores.

How were medieval castles heated?

Castles weren’t always cold and dark places to live. But, in reality, the great hall of castle had a large open hearth to provide heat and light (at least until the late 12th century) and later it had wall fireplace. When there were no fireplaces rooms were heated with moveable fire stands.

How did windows work in medieval times?

During medieval times, stained glass windows were made from a combination of sand and potash (wood ash). These two ingredients were heated to the point where they’d liquify and become glass when cooled. In order to color the glass, powdered metals were added into the molten (heated) mixture before it cooled.