How to draw
How to Draw a Castle
- Confident (level 4 of 5)
- 25 min
- 12 steps
- Ages 7–12 (a guide, not a rule)
Draw on paper: Paper, Pencil. Optional: Eraser, Ruler, Gray, blue, brown and yellow crayons, colored pencils or markers.
Draw it on the screen
A castle looks strong when both halves match. A light center line keeps the gate in the middle and the two towers the same, and two light height lines keep the towers taller than the wall. The round towers stand in front of the wall, and the tall keep stands behind it, so you will practice stopping lines where another part is in front.
Rather color it? Print the castle coloring page.
Step by step
- New lines: purple, thick and glowing
- Lines you already drew: gray
- Guides: dashed blue, draw them lightly
- Erase: dotted pink with an eraser
Step 1 of 12
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Step 1 of 12 Draw a light line straight down the middle of your paper and a light ground line across the bottom. -
Step 2 of 12 Draw two light lines across: a high one for the tops of the towers and a lower one for the top of the wall. -
Step 3 of 12 Draw a round tower on each side, the same distance from the center line. Draw straight sides up to the high line and a curved bottom on the ground. -
Step 4 of 12 Draw a pointed roof on each tower. Make the bottom edge curve down a little, like the rim of a round tower, and let it stick out past the sides. -
Step 5 of 12 Draw the wall between the towers. Its top has square bumps called battlements: six bumps with equal gaps. Draw its bottom along the ground and leave a gap for the gate. -
Step 6 of 12 Draw the tall keep behind the wall, centered on the center line. Its sides start at the top of the wall, and it has three battlements on top. -
Step 7 of 12 Draw the gate in the middle: two straight sides and a round arch on top. It is about one third as wide as the wall. -
Step 8 of 12 Add flagpoles and flags on the two tower roofs and the keep. Make the two tower flags point the same way. -
Step 9 of 12 Draw arched windows: one high on each tower, one on the keep and one on each side of the gate. Check that each pair matches across the center line. -
Step 10 of 12 Erase the guides: the center line, the ground line and the two height lines. -
Step 11 of 12 Draw the gate's bars: three lines down and two across. Add a path from the gate and a few bricks on the walls. -
Step 12 of 12 Shade the right side of each round tower and each roof with short slanted lines. The light comes from the left.
You did it!
Your drawing does not have to look like this one. Every artist draws a little differently.
Tips for this drawing
Helpful hints
- A ruler helps with the long straight lines, but freehand lines look friendly too.
- Count the battlements before you draw: equal bumps with equal gaps look neat and strong.
- Fold your paper in half along the center line and hold it up to a light to check that both halves match.
Common mistakes
- One tower is fatter than the other. Measure from the center line with your fingers or a ruler before you draw the second tower.
- The wall's lines run across the towers. The towers are in front of the wall. Start and stop the wall's lines at the edges of the towers.
- The towers look flat like boxes. Curve the bottom of each tower and the edge of each roof, and shade one side.
Make it simpler
Draw two towers with pointed roofs, a wall with square bumps between them and an arched gate in the middle. Skip the keep and the shading.
Symmetry
The left half of this castle is a mirror of the right half. Measure each part from the center line so the towers, windows and flags match.
Proportion
The towers are taller than the wall, and the keep is the tallest of all. The gate is about one third as wide as the wall between the towers.
Overlap
The round towers are in front of the wall, and the wall is in front of the keep. A line that goes behind another part stops at its edge.
Light and shadow
The light comes from the left, so the right side of each round tower and roof is in shadow. Shading one side makes the towers look round, not flat.
