SERVANTS IN A SCOTTISH CASTLE

Anne Greene here. On July 14th I blogged about nobles living inside a Scottish Castle. If you missed my blog and are interested, go to the archives.

 

The nobles living in the castle had a luxurious and responsible lifestyle. Life for the servants was drastically different. As nobility had a hierarchy level, so did the servants.

The Steward held complete charge of the entire household. He gave orders to the cooks, the musicians and storytellers, as well as to the servants of the lord and the ladies in waiting. Under the Steward, these upper level servants were then in charge of other servants, like bakers, gardeners, tailors, washerwomen, carpenters and undercooks. If the lord were away, then the Steward took charge of the castle. He also recorded the rent that people living on castle land paid. The Steward was often a member of the noble family. Can you imagine how much the Laird of the Castle trusted him?

The Marshal organized the groomsman who looked after the horses, the blacksmiths and the farriers who shoed the horses. The Marshal also ordered the carters who made and drove the carts, the boatmen and the stable boys. The Marshal organized sending messages to other people, maybe even to the King. If the lord wanted to go hunting, the Marshal organized the hunt.

 

 

The Constable, also known as the Keeper, controlled castle security, weapons and the gunners, the archers and the men-at-arms who defended the castle. He organized the porters who guarded every door and the bodyguards, who guarded important members of the family. Most castles had a prison and the Constable oversaw the jailers.

 

The Chaplain was a priest who conducted services in the castle chapel and advised the lord about religious matters. The Chaplain oversaw choirboys and other people involved in church services. Churchmen were among the few people who could read and write at this time, so the Chaplain wrote any letters that the lord needed. The church had great power in those days.r

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The Steward, the Keeper, the Chaplain and the Marshal had their own rooms in the castle. All the other servants found space where they could, many sleeping on the floor of the hall or in the kitchen for warmth. There might be a separate dining area for the servants; otherwise they ate where they worked. 

 

Most of the servants in the castle were men. The lady of the castle had her personal servants, high-born women who were known as her ladies-in-waiting. Women also worked as washerwomen, alewives who brewed beer, and nurses who looked after any of the lord’s young children.

 

Children also worked in a castle. In the kitchen the cook always needed water carrying from the well. A small boy, known as the turnbrochie, sat by the fire to turn the metal spits of roasting meat. Children carried messages from one noble to another.

 

The Laird of the Castle spent much time travelling, meeting with other members of the nobility, attending parliament, and meeting with the king or queen. When he travelled, many of his servants went with him. Only a few remained in the castle with the lady to attend to any local business.

 

Read about the children in Castle Drummond in my book Marriage By Arrangement to be available December 6, 2013. Would you have liked to have grown up living in or near a Scottish castle? Would you have liked for your children to be subject to the whims of a noble? 

 

Leave your answer and your email for a chance to win an autographed copy of one of my Scottish Trilogy Books.

 

Visit Anne’s new blog Plotters And Pantsers Write To Publish Workshop at www.annegreenewritingteacher.wordpress.com.

ANNE GREENE delights in writing about wounded heroes and gutsy heroines. Her second novel, a Scottish historical, Masquerade Marriage, won the New England Reader Choice award, the Laurel Wreath Award, and the Heart of Excellence Award. The sequel Marriage By Arrangement releases in December, 2013.  A Texas Christmas Mystery also won several awards. She makes her home in McKinney, Texas. Tim LaHaye led her to the Lord when she was twenty-one and Chuck Swindoll is her Pastor. View Anne’s travel pictures and art work at http://www.AnneGreeneAuthor.com. Anne’s highest hope is that her stories transport the reader to an awesome new world and touch hearts to seek a deeper spiritual relationship with the Lord Jesus. Buy Anne’s books at http://www.PelicanBookGroup.com. Or at http://www.Amazon.com.

Visit here with Anne the 14^th day of every month.