Everyman's castle

An Englishman's home has always been his castle. Everyman's Castle restores people to the panorama of domestic architecture. Philippa Lewis turns an affectionate eye to the characteristics of British types of houses - cottages, farmhouses, semi-detached, suburban, flats, terraces, bungalows, country houses - and charts their rise and fall. How were they perceived when they were built, and what happened to them subsequently? How were the interior spaces used and altered over time? This books provides insight to all these questions, even what sort of message the design of a house sends about the inhabitants, from stairs up to the front door (implying servants living below) in a Victorian terrace to bay windows (implying private ownership) in the twentieth century. The book is thoroughly and beguilingly illustrated with amusing and out-of-the-way material from a wide variety of sources. Using the same technique as her acclaimed Everything You Can Do in the Garden Without Actually Gardening, Philippa Lewis builds up the story using original specifications, plans and architects' writings on the various types of houses, and then layering in the experiences or expectations of those who lived in them, drawing on novels, diaries, letters, magazines, even sale advertisements.