Castles were brought to Britain by William the Conqueror, when he invaded England from France in 1066. Because he won in the Battle of Hastings, William became King of England. He immediately took control of his new posessions, which included England, Scotland and Wales, by having castles built in various locations. This procedure was repeated by many Kings to follow. The King had his own castle, of course ... sometimes several. But the King also granted the right to build castles to his loyal followers, along with the huge estates of land that came with them. These followers were given titles as well, often 'Earl' or Lord'. However, these new castle owners were expected, in turn, to subjugate the people who lived there, to force them to pay rent to the King, and to collect an army in support of the King should it be needed. "Castles were built to establish the power of the king and his followers, and to keep the people from regaining control of their own lands". Some of these original castles are still standing, across Great Britain. Castles as defensive fortresses survived in Britain and Europe until the widespread use of gunpowder and the cannon made them mostly useless. In addition, it was often the practice to leave a castle in ruins after a cannon battle, and the stones from the walls quickly disappeared as local people used them for building fences and houses. By the mid 1600's most of the great defensive castles were uninhabitable. Today, restored castles are tourist attractions, but few are lived in. Only the incredibly wealthy can afford to maintain them. Castles