The history behind the Backstairs

Underhousekeeper was one of the top jobs in the Royal Household, and came with status, responsibility, and good pay. Housekeeping was an exclusively male profession until the 1800s, when women would enter and ultimately dominate the field. At Hampton Court Palace, the Underhousekeeper’s annual salary in 1710 was around £300 (equivalent to approximately £55,000 today), and came with an allowance.

The role of Housekeeper itself was a formal title only, offered on a voluntary basis to a member of the nobility. In 1710 the Housekeeper was Charles Montagu, the first Earl of Halifax. He had no involvement in the day-to-day running of the Palace, visiting only when the monarch was in residence.

Somerset English is recorded as Underhousekeeper of Hampton Court Palace from 27 July 1710, a job he appears to have kept until May 1741. He inherited the role from his father, Jasper English, who was established in the position by at least 1694.

Like their predecessors, Jasper and Somerset lived at Palace Gate House. When Jasper died in 1710, Somerset gained permission to demolish and rebuild the premises. His newly built house still stands today, and can be seen from the Palace gates.

Body Laundress (or Laundress of the Body) was an intimate and prestigious role within the royal household. Responsible for all royal linen – including royal bedsheets and clothing – the Body Laundress didn’t do laundry herself but oversaw a team of women who undertook the labour of washing, drying, and pressing. The position commanded a salary of £20 per year and board wages (an allowance for living costs) of £199 in 1710.

Born around 1661 to a genteel family of Welsh descent, Elizabeth Atkinson became Body Laundress to Queen Anne in 1692 after being Body Laundress, first Cradle Rocker and Breakfast Maker for Anne’s son William, Duke of Gloucester. Her family had a long history of service to the Stuart monarchy, ensuring she was well-trusted.

Elizabeth died on 9th March 1725 aged 64 and was buried in Westminster Abbey. A marble monument can be found in the Abbey today, its inscription reading:

Near this place lies the body of Mrs Elizabeth Atkinson whose truly benevolent temper render'd her universally belov'd, and especially by the poor, whose relief was her care and constant pleasure. She had the honour to serve Her late Majesty Queen Anne during her whole reign as body-laundress.

Page of the Backstairs was a role in the royal apartments introduced by Queen Anne, and still exists today; Paul Whybrew, trusted Page of the Backstairs to Elizabeth II, walked beside her coffin at her state funeral in 2022.

In Queen Anne’s time, the role related to a Page of the Bedchamber. Wearing bright livery, Pages would wait on the monarch in her private apartments and greet visitors who entered via the backstairs – private passageways that led to the royal apartments away from public spaces. The role was intimate, trusted, and given by royal warrant.

John Bonin (or Bonine) is listed as Page of the Backstairs at Hampton Court Palace from 1692 to 1702, in the household of Princess Anne of Denmark. Little is known about his life, but records show he vacated the position on Anne’s accession, on 8 March 1702.

Necessary women were menial members of staff at the Palace, working under the supervision of higher-status servants. They undertook tasks deemed ‘necessary’ – cleaning and “carrying away soil”, which included emptying chamber pots.

Like many roles in the royal household, the women working in the royal apartments often came to their jobs through family connections. Being a member of a trusted family with a history of service to the crown went a long way when it came to employment decisions.

As low-status members of staff little is known of individual lives. The character of Jane Hickson is based on Anne Hickson, who was established as necessary woman to the ladies of the bedchamber in 1705 and earned £20 a year. Nothing is known about her other than this entry in the Palace records.

A little more however is known about another necessary woman from the period. Bridget Holmes was a necessary woman during the reigns of Charles I, Charles II, James II, and William III and Mary II, and one of the longest-serving servants in royal history.

She worked so long and so diligently in the service of the Stuart monarchy that a life-sized portrait was painted of her in 1686, in which she holds a broom up to a playful Page. It remains in the royal collection today, as a rare insight into the lives of the working class in the seventeenth century. She died aged 100 and is buried at Westminster Abbey.