This is a fine book, much late C19 scholarship with much use of, and direct quotes from original manuscripts. This remains a essential resource for Northumberland fortifications. Copiously illustrated with b/w plates, diagrams and woodcuts; includes fold-out maps and plans. This is volume one and the work was unfinished by Bates; Even so it stands out as a work of historical scholarship unmatched for Northumberland, and rarely matched for other places and more modern authors.