What was life like for Victorian servants?

They had the most gruelling job of all, as they had to do all the chores for the house, often working from 6 in the morning until 10 at night, with very little time off. In households like Shibden, there were normally a few servants working together. Despite this, the work was still demanding.

How were servants treated in the Victorian era?

The mistreatment of servants was commonplace, and young maids were especially vulnerable to being sexually exploited. Once hired, they found themselves in households in which a strict and unbreachable hierarchy below stairs ensured that they stayed on the lowest rung of that society.

What happened to servants in England?

Servants were often left utterly exhausted but they had no unions or employment rights.” Invisibility and segregation were part of their job. In some stately homes such as Petworth in West Sussex hidden passages kept servants separate from family members to spare them the embarrassment of encountering this under-class.

What did Victorians call their servants?

Lower Servants: They included: Footmen; Under-Butlers; Housemaids; Nursery-Maids; Still-room Maids; Kitchen Maids; Scullery Maids; Laundry-Maids; Dairymaids; Kitchen Men; Baker and Helpers.

How old were Victorian servants?

The average age of a servant in Victorian England began between the ages of 10 and 13, so pre-puberty. Q: What duties did the kitchen maid do in Victorian England?

What did servants eat in Victorian times?

For breakfast, the servants ate bread and meat, the meat carved by the cook from the previous day’s roast or served in a slice of cold pie. Alternatively, they ate porridge, followed by bacon and eggs.

Where did servants sleep in Victorian times?

Servants’ bedrooms and dormitories were pushed to the margins of the house: in garrets and occasionally basements. In newly built or extended houses, wings were created on the main house that offered separate accommodation for indoor and outdoor servants, grooms for example often sleeping above the stables.

What was the life like for servants in the Victorian era?

A Difficult Life for Servants in Victorian England. The British census of 1891 found that 1.3 million girls and women worked as domestic servants in Victorian England. They were usually recruited between the ages of 10 and 13, after they had been through some elementary schooling.

How many women worked as domestic servants in Victorian England?

In 1891, 1.3 million girls and women worked as domestic servants in Victorian England. (Image: By Miami U. Libraries – Digital Collections/Public domain) The British census of 1891 found that 1.3 million girls and women worked as domestic servants in Victorian England.

How did people cope with hardships in the Victorian era?

Unfortunately, many workers resorted to the use of drugs like opium and alcohol to cope with their hardships (Thomas). The Under class were those who were helpless and depended on the support of others. The poor and young orphans relied on donations to survive (Victorian England Social Hierarchy).

What was it like to be a servant in medieval times?

As a servant, you had an attic or shared an attic with another servant. It wouldn’t look like much to us, but to them, it was a great thing. If you had a good employer, you could have at least a limited sense of membership in the family. Some families were very good to their servants.