Recently I was reading about Regency housemaids and their chores and salary. I’ve looked up details about servants before, but this time I stumbled across an article with the National Trust for Scotland that chronicled the actual schedule and budget of a Regency/Georgian era family in Edinburgh. It was fascinating.
The housemaid for the Lamont family at No. 7 Charlotte Square rose around five in the morning. She would need to clean and restart the fires before the family awoke, as well as open the shutters or drapes to let in the light. Her day would easily be 14-16 hours long. There might be a little time to rest in the servant’s hall in the afternoon reading–or more likely, tutoring the kitchen maid who was probably nine or ten years old–but most of the day would be busy. She would be fetching and carrying for the upstairs family who would rarely descend to the basement. She’d be carrying water up and downstairs a lot for washing, bathing, dishes, and laundry. She might go with the cook to the market (if they were without a kitchen-maid for a while) and help haul home fresh food for the day’s meals. Fireplaces were a constant source of work, too, as well as regular cleaning like dusting, sweeping, and polishing.
Besides making me want to write an ode to my dishwasher, washing machine, and toilet, this article was a fascinating glimpse into a real Georgian family and their rotating roster of 5-7 servants.
Most of the work and chores I was familiar with, but one thing that surprised me was the rapid turnover of servants within that home. Perhaps Georgette Heyer and other authors have mislead me into thinking of the servants as loyal and long-term members of the household. But apparently most households were in a constant state of turnover. When a maid of pretty much any sort got married, it was expected that she would stop working and keep house. A footman might also quit once he got married. That’s why fraternization between the footmen and maids was strongly discouraged. Nobody wanted to lose two perfectly good servants at once!
So, although being a housemaid sounds like a job and a half, many women would not have done it forever. Marriage would end their occupation. And that explains why housekeepers and butlers were almost never married. They were once the regular housemaid and footman who were gradually promoted to higher levels because they didn’t get married and quit. The cook and housekeeper were still called Mrs. So-and-so, however, since that was a sign of respect.
With the Lamont family, most of the servants lived in nearby tenements, so in those cases, marriage would be less of an impediment to work. There were fold-down beds in the servant’s hall for them to sleep in if they worked late for some occasion. The cook and the butler were the only ones who lived there for good.
What are your favorite modern conveniences? Mine might be the washer and dryer. I used laundromats until I had three kids, and we moved somewhere we could have our own. However, the only hookup for the appliances was in the backyard, so it was always extremely dusty. When we moved two years ago, and got an indoor washer and dryer, that was a red-letter day! How about you?
Corrie
P.S. Don’t forget to grab a book if you need a new read for November!
12 responses to “Housemaids and Early Hours in Edinburgh”
I used to wash my babies clothes by hand (apart from the nappies) but I would now miss my washing machine. I do have a dryer out in the garage but I can’t remember the last time I used it as I tend to wait for a nice day then hang my washing out. I’ve never had a dishwasher so I can live without one of those. But the thing I can’t live without is my bathroom, the shower and toilet are absolute necessities. Until I was 4 the house we lived in had no bathroom, we had an outside toilet and a tin bath in front of the fire. My Nana still had the same until I was 14!
Alas if I’d lived in Regency times I’ve no doubt I would have been a maid rather than a lady of leisure 🙁
That’s fascinating, and it makes me appreciate my toilet and shower even more!! I’ve always had those, so I know I take them for granted more than I should. My aunt spent years in Alaska with only an outside toilet, and glorious indoor bathrooms are something she still appreciates!
And I’m sure I would’ve joined you as a maid, haha! 🙂
I have a love-hate relationship with my robot vacuum. When it works, it helps significantly to cut down my cleaning time. Unfortunately, mine has broken twice in the last year and had to be sent in for warranty repair, which has made me wish I’d bought a different brand.
Oh no! I hear you about the robot vacuum! I saved up some of my first book’s income for that exact purpose, I was so excited! — but I’ve had issues with mine breaking down too. Hmmm…
I have been doing a whole series on servants over on my own blog. It is fascinating subject, one not often discussed in novels.
Oh, well now I am off to read your posts on servants!! 🙂 Thank you!
Growing up, I would say, a clothes dryer. We had a washing machine that but hung our clothes on the line. We did live in the country, and it was not dusty. But in the winter, our fingers did get pretty cold. We did have only one bathroom for 7 people though.
As an adult, I guess I was fortunate that we had all of the modern conveniences.
Ohh, yeah, cold wet clothes sounds unpleasant! I lived in a hot place for a long time, but now being in a place with winter–I can imagine. I’m thankful the modern conveniences are (at least somewhat) more affordable and available than they used to be!
I am so thankful for indoor plumbing & washer/dryers!
Indoor plumbing seems to be a common thread! I agree 1000 percent! :
So happy we have modern conveniences! My hands would be so cold if I had to wash clothes by hand!We used to hang our clothes outside on a line and now we have drying racks! We have come a long way!
Drying racks are great! I don’t know why I was oblivious to their existence for so long, but they are so handy for indoor (and/or basement) drying!