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Hoar Cross Hall - Life below stairs #45

...oks, housemaids, chambermaids, a lady’s maid, a governess, a nanny, a butler, footmen and a house-keeper among others. All staff were expected to attend the 9am service which was held in the Chapel in the house. They were also expected to attend services at the church which had been built in the grounds; however, they weren’t allowed to walk down the drive to the church but had to make a detour around the perimeter of the grounds so that they wouldn’t be seen by the family! In the Victorian days a lowly housemaid earned about £10 a year compared to the house-keeper who earned the princely sum of £52 a year! The staff at Hoar Cross were well treated it s...

A Christmas Celebration #74

...The final festive story is here based on true events and people that lived at Hoar Cross Hall.  “Come on, look sharp!” shouted Cook to her assistants in the kitchen.  “We’ve got a load of cooking to do for the Christmas party at the weekend and if you don’t get a move on there’ll be nothing to eat!” The kitchen maids looked at each other, stopped their gossiping and started to move a bit quicker.  Cook could be quite intimidating when she was in one of her moods.  The table was laden with pastries, jellies and fruit and the girls were just putting the finishing touches to the gingerbread biscuits before starting on the blancmange. “I love...

To the Manor Born #77

...ese room, maids’ rooms, store rooms and a back staircase.  Altogether there were nine bedrooms and at the bottom of the house a cellar with brewing tubs in it.  Leading off the main bedroom was a smaller room with another door to the back staircase – we called this the nursery as my younger brother Piers was born here and we assumed that the need for a doorway from the servants’ quarters meant that an 18th century nursery maid could access the room to see to a crying baby, thus ensuring the lady of the house got her beauty sleep! The rooms at the back of the house were made into two, one-bedroom apartments on the ground and first floor, which were rente...

A Christmas Celebration #89

...The final Christmas blog this year is a story of how the servants celebrated Christmas at Hoar Cross Hall, based around true events.  The Meynells always gave a party for their servants and local tradesmen in the Long Gallery, and I imagine it went a bit like this!     “Come on, look sharp!” shouted Cook to her assistants in the kitchen.  “We’ve got a load of cooking to do for the Christmas party at the weekend and if you don’t get a move on there’ll be nothing to eat!” The kitchen maids looked at each other, stopped their gossiping and started to move a bit quicker.  Cook could be quite intimidating when she was in one of her moods.  The...

Victorian Courtship - gloves #92

...e help of maids to get dressed – it must have taken an eternity to button up gloves, dresses and boots! A lady in her long white gloves   It was common not to wear gloves within the domestic sphere – for example, when having a meal at home.  However, it was considered inappropriate for a woman to go outside without her gloves on, as ungloved hands were sometimes associated with nudity.  Gloves, of course, were mainly for the wealthy and were made of kid leather.  Wealthy women also wore silk and cotton gloves for informal or country wear.  But how did they use gloves in courtship?  In 1890, Henry Wehman presented his interpretation and analysis...