The size of the Great Hall in a medieval castle depended upon the resources and importance of the owner, as well as his own personal preferences. A prominent lord would need plenty of room in which to receive and entertain guests and would be able to afford a large hall. A lord of lesser means, who had fewer visitors, would have to be content with a hall on a more modest scale which fitted with the size of his household.
The Great Hall in a Medieval Castle
As the name suggests, the Great Hall was one large room, usually dominated by a long table, which had a raised platform at one end. This was where the Lord, Lady, close family and important guests would dine each evening, with the rest of the household seated below them in the main body of the hall.
In the early Middle Ages, before the eleventh century, after the meal had been cleared away, the Lord and Lady would sleep on this dais, shielded from the rest of the room by a curtain. However, later in the Middle Ages, separate sleeping accommodation was arranged for the owner and his family.
Furnishings in the Great Hall of a Medieval Castle
The floor of the Great Hall was either beaten earth (if the hall was on the ground floor) or timber (for halls above floor level). Earth floors were strewn with rushes, which were intended to be swept out regularly, taking all rubbish with them and a fresh coating of rushes laid.
The main feature of the hall was a long table, which could be used for examining documents and for banquets, with the more important guests and the owners of the castle sitting in the best places. The largest fire in the castle would also be in the hall, so that the majority of people could benefit from the heat.
The Decline of the Great Hall in Medieval Castles
As castles fell out of use, to be replaced by manor houses, towards the end of the medieval period, great halls became less fashionable. It become more modern to have a large number of rooms, each with a different purpose. The Lord and Lady of the Manor would have their own private suite of rooms, rather than entertaining in public in the great hall.
Source
Kaufmann J, Jurga, Robert The Medieval Fortresses: Castles, Forts and Walled Cities of the Middle Ages [Da Capo Press, 2004]
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