Inverary Castle, located in western Scotland on the shores of Loch Fyne, has been the home of the Dukes of Argyll for centuries. The present castle, begun in 1746, replaced an earlier 15th century castle on the same site. Built in the Gothic Revival style, the castle highlights the importance of the Clan Campbell in the history of Scotland and Britain.
The original castle kitchen, which takes up much of the basement, was last used in 1956 by the grandmother of the current Duke of Argyll. More recently, it’s been restored to the way it would have looked while the staff prepared an elaborate dinner in the Victorian period.
If you’ve watched Downton Abbey, you have some idea of the details involved in preparing meals for the nobility in 19th- and early 20th-Century England and Scotland. (As an aside, the Christmas 2012 episode of that TV series was filmed at Inverary Castle.) Cooks, maids, and footmen filled the downstairs kitchen with activity. Food prepared here was carried upstairs to the dining room, where it was served by staff wearing House of Argyll livery.
Much of the food would have been locally sourced. Mutton, beef, pork, doves, and fowl were raised on the estate farm. Venison, pheasant, and other game came from the area. A nearby river provided salmon, sea trout, and brown trout, while sole, herring, and mackerel were obtained from the loch (lake).
Equipment in the massive kitchen included two stewing and roasting ovens, two baking ovens, a hot plate, a boiling stove for water, and seven fireplaces, one of which featured a smoke-jack.
The smoke-jack was an ingenious device for roasting meat on a spit. Hot air from the fire rising up the chimney turned a wheel of metal vanes, much like a fan, which engaged a system of gears and a chained pulley connected to the spit. Thus, the heat of the fire kept the meat turning, eliminating the need for a staff person to turn the spit.
There were also a butter churn and flour mills. Copper pots and pans, used for both sweet and savory foods, were kept highly polished.
Ingredients that were unavailable locally could be stored in wooden cabinets located at one end of the kitchen. The various drawers were labeled for such items as spices, pasta, sugar, currants, and almonds.
And to ensure the staff remembered protocols for interacting with the family or guests of the Duke, a list of 12 “Servant Rules” was prominently posted. To summarize, servants were expected to speak only if spoken to or when absolutely necessary, use the proper address, and be invisible when possible. The final rule stated that any female staff who “fraternized” would be immediately terminated.
Imagining what it would have been like to work in this kitchen of a hundred-plus years ago was interesting, but it also reminded me of the blessings we enjoy in our modern kitchens.
If you’ve watched Downton Abbey, you have some idea of the details involved in preparing meals for the nobility in 19th- and early 20th-Century England and Scotland. (As an aside, the Christmas 2012 episode of that TV series was filmed at Inverary Castle.) Cooks, maids, and footmen filled the downstairs kitchen with activity. Food prepared here was carried upstairs to the dining room, where it was served by staff wearing House of Argyll livery.
Equipment in the massive kitchen included two stewing and roasting ovens, two baking ovens, a hot plate, a boiling stove for water, and seven fireplaces, one of which featured a smoke-jack.
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| Illustration of a smoke-jack from The Century Dictionary: An Encyclopaedic Lexicon of the English Language (New York: The Century Co., 1895) |
There were also a butter churn and flour mills. Copper pots and pans, used for both sweet and savory foods, were kept highly polished.
Ingredients that were unavailable locally could be stored in wooden cabinets located at one end of the kitchen. The various drawers were labeled for such items as spices, pasta, sugar, currants, and almonds.
And to ensure the staff remembered protocols for interacting with the family or guests of the Duke, a list of 12 “Servant Rules” was prominently posted. To summarize, servants were expected to speak only if spoken to or when absolutely necessary, use the proper address, and be invisible when possible. The final rule stated that any female staff who “fraternized” would be immediately terminated.
Imagining what it would have been like to work in this kitchen of a hundred-plus years ago was interesting, but it also reminded me of the blessings we enjoy in our modern kitchens.
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When the lights of Broadway dim, Delia leaves the city behind. But will her family welcome her home again?
The historical short story, “All That Glistens,” was included in the 2023 Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction collection and is now available free when you sign up for Marie's newsletter here. In her newsletter, she shares about her writing, historical tidbits, recommended books, and sometimes recipes.
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