Far from the images we typically associate with the Middle Ages, the stately homes of our countryside have left behind far more remnants than we usually imagine. The author takes readers on a journey of discovery through these “keep” structures—to use the popular term—which have often survived within old farmhouses that were once “castles.” And why not teach you how to “read” these buildings, the exploration of which can be fascinating—particularly in the case of the “keep” at Crupet, which was the subject of an in-depth study during its recent restoration (2016–2020).