Tag Archives: servants

The Role of Servants in Jane Austen’s Novels, a Guest Post from Eliza Shearer

Posted on February 26, 2020 by Regina Jeffers

To complement my series on Life Below Stairs, I thought you might enjoy this piece from Eliza Shearer which first appeared on Austen Authors on 7 January 2020.  One of the things I love about Jane Austen is that nothing … Continue reading →

Posted in Austen Authors, book excerpts, Emma, Georgian England, Georgian Era, Guest Post, Jane Austen, Living in the Regency, Mansfield Park, Pride and Prejudice, reading habits, Regency era, servant life, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Life Below Stairs: Benevolent Groups Come to the Aid of Domestic Servants

Posted on September 21, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

There were groups operating in London and throughout England to aid domestic servants. The most important of those were… Established in May 1846, The General Domestic Servants’ Benevolent Institution was located at 32 Sackville Street, Piccadilly. It was under the … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, Living in the UK, servant life, Victorian era | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Life Below Stairs: Servants as a Status Symbol

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Regina Jeffers

A trend we incur during the Victorian era was the obsession to have more servants than one’s neighbors or comparable members of one’s social circles. It was “Keeping up with the Joneses” with servants, rather than with expansive homes and … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, family, fashion, Georgian Era, Great Britain, Living in the Regency, servant life, Victorian era | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Life Below Stairs ~ Part One ~ Compensation and Obligations

Posted on January 1, 2014 by Regina Jeffers

With the popularity of Upstairs, Downstairs and Downtown Abbey, the populace has become more aware of the British servant class. So what do we know of those who lived “below stairs”? First, rank and precedence ruled those of the servant class as much … Continue reading →

Posted in British history, Great Britain, real life tales | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments