Private Life In Britain's Stately Homes - Plot & Excerpts
[If] I were equal to your ladyship, where would be the pleasure to me? For it would be counterbalanced by the pain of feeling that [the footmen] Thomas and John were equal to me.’Crichton the butler in J. M. Barrie’s playThe Admirable Crichton, 1902‘His whole time being mine, he is not to leave home without permission, as each man is liable to be called in at night, in case of fire &c.’Extract from servants’ rules at Santry House, Co. Dublin, 1864, written by the owner, Charles Domville The ease and opulence of the leisured class was in stark contrast to the pace of life below stairs. The great majority of members of a country-house community were, of course, servants. They could outnumber their employers by as much as ten or twelve to one. The social and cultural attainments of the owners – the perfecting of this enviable lifestyle – were only made possible because there was a large, well-trained staff to clean the houses, feed and dress the occupants, transport them and assist with their sporting pastimes.
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