Beaulieu

Running a Country House

The Victorian kitchen in Palace House has been re-created on its original site.

For hundreds of years Britain's country houses were run on the tacit understanding that the servant class would work to keep the owner and his family in style, and keep the estate in good order, and in return they would be given a home and security. The staff could be divided in two: those who worked on the estate and those who worked in the House.

The Census for 1881 reveals the servants w ho worked in Palace House during Lord Montagu's grandparent's time. Pleasant, the butler, was the head of indoor servants. He was responsible for the security of the silver, the condition of the wine cellar and the stocking of all writing tables. He arran ged the dining table, carved the joints, announced meals and answered the front door. Throughout the day he wore a morning suit, but in the evening he changed into evening dress with tails and black tie. Pleasant also wore a red Egyptian fez hat given to him by Lord Montagu's grandfather! The housekeeper, Mrs. Chadwick, supervised the female servants, running the household on behalf of the Lord and Lady. It was her task to keep the accounts and ensure that the larders and cleaning cupboards were kept stocked, that the house was kept clean and the linen cupboard full. 'Mrs' was a courtesy title for like most housekeepers, Jane was unmarried.

Directly under Mrs. Chadwick in the house hierarchy was Mrs. Hale, the cook. she produced meals in accorda nce with the owners' wishes, working under the most trying conditions. She supervised the preparation and cooking of most dishes, but when something delicate was required, such as pastry or an iced cake, she made it herself. The butler and cook would also have played a large part in arranging any Entertainment at the Abbey.

Next came the footmen and maids. Palace House had three footmen whose job involved cleaning the knives and lamps, which they also lit, cleaning shoes and boots, and carrying in coal and wood. One of their more unusual tasks was to scrub clean the small s ilver coins carried by the ladies!

The maids were divided by areas in which they worked. The most senior was the lady's maid, who like her male equivalent, the valet, was responsible for taking care of my grandmother's clothes, hair and jewellery and helping her dress in the elaborate costumes of the day. The two housemaids spent most of their time above stairs, cleaning the house, making the beds and lighting the fires, but the kitchenmaid and scullery maid were confined below stairs. The former did much of the routine preparation and cooking of food for the cook, whilst the scullerymaid washed up.

Laundry maids were usually identified by their red hands and laundries were found well away from the main living quarters on account of the steam an d smell. Generally speaking servants' hours were from 6am to 10.30pm or when my grandfather retired. Each week they were given one evening and half a day on Sunday off, together with one free day a month. Any of these might be stopped if work was not up t o standard. They were issued with one candle a week and a uniform, which if it wore out before the appointed time was replaced by stoppages from wages. These varied considerably, from the Ï25-30 a year a butler might hope to earn, to the Ï5-9 earned by th e scullerymaid. Every servant knew the limits of his or her position and whilst conditions of service may seem unreasonable, for some the security provided by employment and a home was attractive.