In London
Holiday, Darcy spends some time *gasp* in disguise as a footman. While the
circumstance is terribly uncomfortable for him, it does afford him some
freedoms he would not have had otherwise. However, life as a Regency era
footman was no cake walk. If your name did not happen to be Fitzwilliam Darcy,
and if you did not get to replace your livery with a custom-tailored set of
clothing the next day, what would your life have been like?
First of
all, footmen were typically fit, young, handsome, and tall. Darcy would have
looked rather fetching in livery, and it is not so surprising that there might
have been a set somewhere that would fit him. The footman was almost a
functional piece of furniture in a wealthy household, for his appearance was
one of the first considerations upon hiring him. His job, as Elizabeth says in
the book, is to be handsome, and a well-turned calf which showed well in silk
stockings was considered a job qualification.
Being
attractive in livery is not his only job, as we will see. He was called a
footman because of all the time he spent on his feet! From opening doors to
waiting at table, running errands to polishing the silver, the footman was
always on the go. His duties included escorting ladies on their outings about
town, ushering in guests, directing the coachman to his master’s destination
when out on calls, announcing his master’s arrival, and presenting calling
cards on his master’s behalf.
His duties
did not end when the “quality” were not looking. He carried coal buckets more
often than he carried letters. He would also participate in the nightly
security of the household, making sure all the windows and doors were properly
in order. He did a deal of work in the pantry, trimming lamps and cleaning
dishes. Often, a footman would sleep in front of the silver cabinet to prevent
theft. If they were traveling, he would assist the coachman with the horse,
then must make himself clean and presentable in a trice to assist the master
once more. Oh, he did not get to ride inside the coach with the master. There
was a special place on the back of the carriage for him. Usually standing.
If you were
starting to think that this might be a little more work than wearing a fancy
uniform and waiting to open a door, you are correct. Footmen were expected to
be working from dawn until halfway through the night… every day. In the early
days, as one historian records, such men often grew old before their time
because the long days, combined with the heavy physical labor of running everywhere (sometimes racing other
footmen to win a bet for their master, and sometimes even racing the horse
pulling his master’s carriage!) tended to make them old before their time.
For all his
pains, the footman’s compensation was not all that dazzling. Two sets of livery
cost twenty pounds per year, which was about the same as his wages. Now, when
we consider that a modest family might twenty pounds per year in rent, you can
see that this is hardly a wage which would support a family. No matter, for the
footman was given food and a place to sleep (protecting the master’s
possessions) and was expected to remain unmarried anyway. What footman would
have time for a wife? Even if she also worked for the same house, he certainly
could not… visit her in the maids’ quarters… at least, not without causing
something of a stir.
Of course,
a footman did not stay a footman forever. This was a job for the young and
handsome, and when he was no longer either of those things (or simply did not
look it anymore because he had been worked to the bone) he might one day aspire
to a higher position. It was possible to work up through the ranks in the
household servants, but to be quite truthful, only a handful of footmen would
ever become a butler or a valet. Our imaginations must supply the destinies of
the rest.
Fortunately
for our dear Darcy, he enjoyed the advantages of masquerading as a footman for
the day with none of the drudgery or grief that would have gone with the
position. I can only imagine that he would have become a more sympathetic
master for his experiences.
Nicole Clarkstone
References:
Copeland,
Edward (editor): The Cambridge Edition of
Sense and Sensibility, Cambridge University Press (2006)
Craig,
Sheryl: Contribution to Jane Austen’s
Regency World Magazine
Horn,
Pamela: Flunkeys and Scullions, Life
Below Stairs in Georgian England Sutton Publishing (2004)
Kelly,
Pauline E.: Jane Austen Dictionary
Ink Well Publishing (2009)
Martin,
Joanna: Wives and Daughters Hambledon
Continuum (2004)
Roberts,
Robert: Roberts’ Guide for Butlers & other Household Staff Applewood Books
reprint of 1827 original (1993)
“Economics in the Regency Era.” Jane Austen's World,
janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/tag/economics-in-the-regency-era/.
Vic.
“Footmen: Male Servants in The Regency Era.” Jane Austen's World, 22
Nov. 2008,
janeaustensworld.wordpress.com/2008/01/24/footmen-male-servants-in-the-regency-era/.
Excerpt from Chapter 13
“No.
I will not do it.”
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. Again. “The
footman rides on the back of the coach! It is always so!”
“I am perfectly aware of this, but I
will not do it.”
“Well, you certainly cannot ride inside
the coach. What will passers-by think?”
“If I am inside, they cannot see me.”
“They can see me, mounting and
dismounting the box with you. I will tell you what they will think! We will be presumed to be entering an
assignation—a lady and a lover dressed as a servant to evade prying eyes at
home! You wish to avoid drawing attention? That would certainly do the
opposite.”
“We must simply wait for a coach that
is better suited.”
“You have dismissed two already. We
will never make half a mile at these odds.” Elizabeth blew a huff of
frustration. “How can you have lived so long in the world and yet remained so
innocent to its realities?”
“I am not a simpleton. I know very well
the realities of the world, I thank you, but bouncing on the rumble seat of a
hired coach through the busy streets of London, knowing that at any moment the
horseflesh I stare backwards at could
very well seat itself in my lap, is not an appealing way to travel. Even worse
to cling by the straps, standing on a step no larger than a stirrup iron. Have
you ever examined the hand grips on the rear of coaches? I have no wish to meet
my death today.”
“I suppose you must own some manner of
carriage? After all, you have confessed to fewer details of yourself than have
I, but if you are not some manner of a gentleman,
you would be the most worthless manservant in the house. I pray you truly are a
man of means, for your own sake.”
His eyes darkened, and even his
nostrils flickered in annoyance. Elizabeth tried not to smile. He was so easy to goad.
“I do have a carriage, madam, if I must confess so much. More than
one. What has that to do with the issue at hand?”
“If you object so strongly to the usual
accommodations for a footman on the back, I presume you have suited your own
carriages with better provisions?”
She watched his jaw tighten. His lips
were twitching into a frown, and he
glared at the pavement for half an instant. Elizabeth tilted her head and
waited.
He turned then, without a word to the
contrary, and lifted his hand to the next hackney
as it approached. It drew to the curb, and her dark stranger shot her a look
that demanded she appreciate his efforts. He opened the door, appeared to sniff
the upholstery, then nodded curtly to her. As she approached, he put down the
foot block and held the door for her to mount the box. Elizabeth dipped her
head in a scant approximation of a full curtsy and raised her foot, then found
that he had caught her hand to help her in.
She met his eye in surprise, but his
expression was grave, yielding nothing. She drew a sharp little breath and
stepped up, feeling his strong arm assisting her more than she was accustomed
to. Even through the gloves they both wore, there was something reassuring about the firmness of his grip as he
steadied her. She seated herself and looked back as he put up the step and
closed the door. She heard his voice outside, giving the driver the direction,
and then there was a creaking just behind her as his weight settled into the
rumble seat on the back.
There was a small, darkly soiled window
between them; evidence that this particular coach had been rather fine in its
youth. Elizabeth turned to peer through it, finding it completely obscured by
his broad shoulders as they rocked through the busy streets. He was forced to
press his back directly against the thin panel which separated them, and she
could hear through the glass the soft scraping of his clothing against the
wood.
It was slow going, traversing the busy
streets at any time of day. Elizabeth began to wonder if they would not have
done better to walk, but the few places where the horse jerked into a faster
gait more than made up for any stoppage. She had ridden in her uncle’s carriage
often enough, which could boast a clever driver, but this master of the ribbons
did not seem to hold with finesse over practicality. Quite often she was forced
to grip the seat for balance as the frantic driver dashed his jaded vehicle
through holes in the way which were far too small. She gritted her teeth,
resettling her bonnet after one particularly rough lurch. The chaise had
skidded to a sudden halt, forced to wait on traffic. There was a grunt from
behind her, but the shoulders still darkened the window, so he had not fallen
off.
Unable to resist, she knocked on the
glass. “Is there a horse in your lap?”
“Two,” was the dry retort.
“Perhaps you should step onto one of
their backs.”
There was a pause, and Elizabeth tried
to imagine what expression would be crossing his face. Alas, she did not know
him well enough to predict his response. More was the pity, for the facial
reaction was always the most entertaining part of any exchange.
“I doubt the two together could hold
me,” came his muffled reply. “The pair of nags can barely pull their own cab.”
Their vehicle jerked again, and the
rattling of the wheels made further attempts at conversation impossible.
Elizabeth turned to face forward, giggling as she did so. Oh, he was the most
haughty, insufferable man, and she would be well rid of him soon, but he was
not without his abilities. Few apart from her father could truly banter with
her, giving rise to this bounding sense of playfulness she felt when speaking
to him. Uncomfortable he clearly was, for a variety of reasons, she could
imagine, but he was intelligent. Such a shame that more gentlemen were not so
well read and spared so little time for serious thought. And such a shame that
this particular man’s good looks and fine figure belonged to a personality so
brooding and prideful!
In due time, they had reached their
destination. Elizabeth settled her bonnet once more, just as the door was
opening. He was frowning down at some bit of mud sprayed upon his shoes but straightened as she bent toward the
door. Once again, that strong hand took hers. She stared at him curiously as
she lowered herself to the pavement, and he gazed back, dark brown eyes
unflinching. He remained so, ensuring that she was safely upon her own two
feet, for an uncomfortable second longer until the driver coughed.
Elizabeth shook herself. She drew out
her reticule to pay the man, but as she extended the coin for her “footman” to
pass to the driver, his hand touched hers again, staying it. He turned to pay
the driver himself, then came back to her with a slight bow. “At your service,
madam.”
About the Book
When the truth is harder to believe than
disguise.
Drugged
and betrayed in his own household, Fitzwilliam Darcy makes his escape from a
forged compromise that would see him unhappily wed. Dressed as a footman, he is
welcomed into one of London’s unknown neighbourhoods by a young lady who is
running out of time and running for her life.
Deciding to hide in plain sight, Miss Elizabeth Bennet dodges
the expectation to marry the man of her mother’s dreams. When the insolent
footman she “found” refuses to leave her side until they can uncover a solution
to their respective dilemmas, the two new acquaintances treat themselves to a
holiday, experiencing the best of what Regency England has to offer.
Based
on Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice, can two hard-headed
characters with kind hearts discover the truth behind the disguise? Enjoy the
banter, humour, and growing affection as Mr Darcy and Miss Elizabeth have the
best day of their lives, and discover that they just might find love and romance
while on a London Holiday. This book is appropriate for all ages.
About the Author
Nicole Clarkston is a book lover and a
happily married mom of three. Originally from Idaho, she now lives in Oregon
with her own romantic hero, several horses, and one very fat dog. She has loved
crafting alternate stories and sequels since she was a child watching Disney’s
Robin Hood, and she is never found sitting quietly without a book of some sort.
Nicole discovered Jane Austen rather by
guilt in her early thirties―how does any book worm really live that long
without a little P&P? She has never looked back. A year or so later, during
a major house renovation project, she discovered Elizabeth Gaskell and fell
completely in love. Her need for more time with these characters led her to
simultaneously write Rumours &
Recklessness, a P&P inspired novel, and No Such Thing as Luck, a N&S inspired novel. The success she
had with her first attempt at writing led her to write four other novels that
are her pitiful homage to two authors who have so deeply inspired her.
Nicole contributes to Austenvariations.com,
a group of talented authors in the Jane Austen Fiction genre. In addition to
her work with the Austen Variations blog, Nicole can be reached through
Facebook at http://fb.me/NicoleClarkstonAuthor,
Twitter
@N_Clarkston, her blog at Goodreads.com,
or her personal blog and website, NicoleClarkson.com.
Contact
Info
Buy
Links eBook
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Links for Nicole’s other books
Blog
Tour Schedule
12 comments:
Thank you for hosting, Maria!
She felt a bounding sense of playfulness in his presence......! Oh,be still my heart! What a lovely excerpt!
Lizzy and Darcy are the perfect foil for each other and their interactions and verbal sparring are such a pleasure to read.
They each parry and thrust as if they were forever partnered in this psychological dance and are destined to do so for the foreseeable future!
I loved this story and highly recommend it!
I loved this humorous story.
This is a fantastic book! Everyone should enter this draw! Thanks for the interesting history about footmen, Nicole, and thanks for hosting, Maria!
Fantastic excerpt that ties in with the enlightening and informative post on footman, Nicole. Do footmen still wear wigs during the Regency era? I imagine Darcy wouldn't look quite as handsome if he wears one.
Thank you, Mary! I am so touched that you enjoyed it that much.
Suzan, you are such a treasure, thank you for your support! I am glad you stopped by.
Luthien, YES, they did wear powdered wigs, particularly in formal settings. I couldn't quite go that far... one of the joys of writing fiction is that you get to tweak things a LITTLE bit.
I enjoyed the excerpt and learning more about footmen. Thanks for the post!
Golly, I feel exhausted just reading about all of the duties expected of a footman! Thanks for letting us in on that, Nicole. Next time I see a footman mentioned in a book, I'll be sympathising with him about his aching feet!
Another lovely excerpt for us, as well. You're really spoiling us on this tour. Many thanks. Love the conversation and repartee between these two.
I appreciated learning more about footmen. Thank you. I have never heard of one falling asleep while standing on the back of the carriage and falling off.
Isn't it fun to see Darcy adapt to the requirements of being in a footman's place! Quite a treatment against pride!
Thank you for the excerpt and giveaway!
Sounds like a footman was quite a 'grunt' of the household.
This was such an interesting and informative post on footmen. I learned some things and I always love learning. Thank you for the excerpt too. It was the perfect companion. Darcy and Lizzy are adorable together.
Thanks for hosting, Maria!
I do agree with all the ideas you have presented in your post. They’re really convincing and will certainly work. Still, the posts are very short for newbies. Could you please extend them a little from next time? Thanks for the post..
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