How much did Downton Abbey pay servants?

They were hired by the Lady and Master of the house rather than by the butler, housekeeper or house steward. Typical salaries were 20-30 pounds ($2,100-3,200) per year.

How much did servants get paid?

The average servant earned a mere 25 pounds a year or $2,700 in today's economy. Cheap labor is what made large staffs possible.

Did English servants get paid?

Ordinary household servants are hired at an annual wage and paid by the quarter (on quarter days). Most such servants earn between £2 and £5 per year, not adjusting for vails and fines. They also get bed and board and 2 or 3 suits of livery clothing per year.

How many servants would it take to run Downton Abbey?

The hierarchy among the servants was strictly defined. At the top stood the butler and housekeeper. Dowton Abbey, the series, highlights eleven servants who ran the household, but in 1912, Highclere Castle, where the exterior and interior shots were filmed, used the services of 25 maids, 14 footmen, and three chefs.

Does Highclere Castle still have servants?

The jobs of many of the 1920s staff at Highclere castle, which serves as Downton Abbey in the show and film, still exist today, albeit in more modern forms.

Downton Abbey: Hierarchy of the Manor House

How much does Downton Abbey pay to use Highclere Castle?

In 2013, the New York Times wrote that it costs $1.5 million a year to run Highclere Castle. The Countess has done everything she can to make sure the estate continues to rake in that amount.

How much is Highclere Castle worth?

mortgage experts say Highclere is valued at about 72 million British pounds, — or about $95 million dollars.

How much did a lady's maid earn?

She notes that a housekeeper for a zillionaire may earn up to $60,000 a year (the industry median salary is less than $20,000), but a “lady's maid” can take in $75,000. Full-time butlers can earn $70,000 a year, and some who travel around with a family on yachts or private jets could earn as much as $200,000 a year.

Did Downton Abbey have toilets?

So the lavatories of even the really grand country houses were as nasty and as uncomfortable as was humanly possibly. Non-absorbant toilet tissue was available, but you were just as likely to get torn up bits of newspaper. Yes, even for the bottom of the Dowager Duchess of Grantham.

What time did servants eat?

The basement is buzzing again: the servants eat supper at 6 pm - a smaller meal than at midday. A five-course dinner is to be served upstairs at 8 pm, so everyone is hard at work.

How much does a butler on Downton make?

Butler:The highest ranking official servant. Responsible for running the house. Forty to 60 pounds ($4,300-$6,400) per year.

How much did a footman make?

The salaries of Footmen in the US range from $18,780 to $49,960 , with a median salary of $27,950 . The middle 50% of Footmen makes $27,950, with the top 75% making $49,960.

Did servants ever get a day off?

Servants worked 17-hour days with time off limited to church on Sunday morning and one afternoon a week. SOCIAL historian Dr Pamela Cox, who presents Servants - The True Story Of Life Below Stairs, says: "Country houses wouldn't have been able to function without a vast hidden army of servants.

Do the rich still have servants?

They have dog walkers, maids, assistants, butlers, and drivers to take care of the monotonous chores of everyday life. Contrary to this image, billionaires often do just fine fending for themselves.

Why is a footman called a footman?

Footman. The term footman originally applied to servants who ran alongside their masters who were on horseback - servants who were literally on foot. This practice changed over time as these servants were required to run before the master's carriage.

How much were the crawleys worth?

The Crawley family is excessively rich, with Forbes including the patriarch Robert Crawley's net worth at $1.1 billion on its “Fictional 15” list. The huge popularity of the show has also brought the cast members wealth and success.

How much did it cost to run a house like Downton Abbey?

He said many clients spend $6 million to $8 million on renovations, though some spend much more. In the end, the total bill for keeping an estate is upwards of $1.5 million or more.

Does anyone live in Highclere Castle?

In reality, it's home to just one family: the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon whose family has been living here since 1679.

Did servants live upstairs or downstairs?

The servants followed a hierarchy downstairs as strict as upstairs, and the upper servants, the butler, housekeeper, cook, valet and ladies maid would be served meals and tea by the lower servants. The highest ranking servant was the stewart, then came the butler and housekeeper.

What were board wages?

Board wages were monies paid in lieu of meals and were paid in addition to a servants normal salary.

Was Downton Abbey realistic?

Though Downton is not a real place (the TV series and movie were filmed at Highclere Castle in Hampshire), its struggles represent very real challenges that similar real-life aristocratic families faced. The working class in Britain had changed after World War I.

Do estates like Downton Abbey still exist?

Downton Abbey was stuffed with staff such as Mr Carson and Mrs Patmore, but, today, our estates employ far fewer people who perform multiple roles. Rupert Clark of Savills offers support and advice to estate owners, including the Carnarvon family at Highclere Castle, the primary location for Downton Abbey.

Who will inherit Highclere Castle?

His eldest son Lord Porchester will inherit the Highclere estate after the Earl's death. His second wife Fiona Carnarvon is a former accountant with Coopers & Lybrand and is the eldest of six sisters.

Where did Cora Crawley get her money?

Cora belonged to a wealthy American family and she had her inheritance signed away as a dowry when she married Robert. Cora's fortune got tied to the Grantham estate and entailed away from the Crawley daughters, who could not inherit the money or the estate, being women.