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Information about Great House

For the architecture of great houses, see Mansion. For the great house masonry pueblos, see Chaco Culture National Historical Park.


A great house is a large and stately residence; the term encompasses different styles of dwelling in different countries. The name refers to the makeup of the household rather than to any particular architectural style. It particularly refers to large households of times past in Anglophone countries (especially those of the turn of the 20th Century, i. e. the late Victorian or Edwardian ages in the United Kingdom and the Gilded Age in the United States), such as the English country house, the "stately homes of England" and the homes of various "millionaires' row" (or "millionaires' mile") in some U.S. cities such as Newport, Rhode Island) with luxurious appointments and great retinues of indoor and outdoor staff. By some reports, the summer homes of the wealthy at Newport averaged four servants per family member. There was often an elaborate hierarchy among staff, domestic workers in particular.

It was considered declassé to refer to one's own townhouses, estates or villas (or those of friends) as mansions and modern etiquette books still advise that the terms house, big house or great house be used instead.

Today's great houses are limited to the very well-to-do; royalty, aristocrats and people whose professions demand that they entertain, such as those in the diplomatic service and chief executive officers. The International Guild of Butlers estimates that the annual salaries of a 20-25 person household staff total in excess of US$1,000,000.

In countries with supplies of cheap domestic labour, the middle classes are still able to afford household help, but not approaching the numbers involved in the running of a great house.

Management of a great house

On large estates or in families with more than one residence, there may be a steward (or estate manager, a more modern expression) who oversees direction of the entire establishment. Today it is not uncommon for a couple to split the duties of management between them.

Household staff

Practices vary depending on the size of the household and the preference of the employers, but in general the staff is divided into departments run by the:
  • Butler--the head of household staff in most homes; in charge of the pantry, wine cellar and dining room. In a small house the butler also valets for the master of the house. Male staff report to him. The butler is often engaged by the master of the house but usually reports to the lady of the house or sometimes to the housekeeper.
  • Cook--in charge of the kitchen and kitchen staff. Sometimes a chef is employed with several subordinate cooks. The cook usually reports directly to the lady of the house but sometimes to the housekeeper.
  • Housekeeper--responsible for the house and its appearance; in charge of all female servants. In grand homes the butler and cook sometimes report to the housekeeper.

Support staff

Junior staff

Grounds staff

An Estate Manager may have charge of the maintenance and care of the grounds, landscaping, and outbuildings (pool, cabana, stables, greenhouse etc.) which is divided into departments run by the:

Support staff

Depictions of great houses

The complex hierarchy of a staff in a great house has been portrayed in several notable productions for film and television. Among these are:

Notable great houses

References

  • id="CITEREFMalcolm Airs2000">Malcolm Airs (2000), The Victorian Great House, University of Oxford, ISBN 0903736292
    A mansion is a large dwelling house typically built for the wealthy. The word itself derives (through Old French) from the Latin word mansus the perfect passive participle of manere "to remain" or "to stay".
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    Location San Juan County, New Mexico, USA
    Nearest city Farmington, New Mexico
    Coordinates
    Area 33,974.29 acres
    (137.
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    The term residence may refer to:
    • House
    • Nursing home.
    • Residence in English family law, pertaining to where children should live in the case of disputes
    • Habitual residence, a civil law term dealing with the status of refugees, and child abduction

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    household is the basic unit of analysis in many microeconomic and government models. The term refers to all individuals who live in the same dwelling.

    Most economic models do not address whether the members of a household are a family in the traditional sense.
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    Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. Although commonly used to refer to the period of Queen Victoria's rule between 1837 and 1901, scholars debate whether the Victorian period—as defined
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    The Edwardian period or Edwardian era in the United Kingdom is the period 1901 to 1910, the reign of King Edward VII. It succeeded the Victorian period and is sometimes extended to include the period up to the sinking of the RMS Titanic
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    Motto
    "Dieu et mon droit" [2]   (French)
    "God and my right"
    Anthem
    "God Save the Queen" [3]
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    "Gilded Age" refers to unprecedented wealth polarization in the U.S. and wasteful displays of wealth and excessive opulence of America's upper-class during the post-Civil War and post-Reconstruction era, from the 1870s to the 1890s.
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    Motto
    "In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
    "E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
    Anthem
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    English country house is generally accepted as a large house or mansion, once in the ownership of an individual who also most likely owned another great house in the West End of London. Hence one moved from one's town house to one's country house.
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    A stately home is, strictly speaking, one of about 500 large properties built in England between the mid-16th century and the early part of the 20th century, as well as converted abbeys and other church property (after the Dissolution of the Monasteries).
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    Millionaires' Mile also written Millionaire's Mile and sometimes called Millionaires' Row is an informal name given to exclusive residential neighbourhoods of various cities, often along one scenic strip such as a riverside or hilltop drive, or a wide city
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    Newport, Rhode Island
    Nickname: City by the Sea, Queen of Summer Resorts , America's Society Capital
    Location in Rhode Island
    Coordinates:
    Country United States
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    domestic worker, domestic, or servant is one who works, and often also lives, within the employer's household. Servants are distinguishable from serfs or slaves in that they are compensated
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    Historically in the United Kingdom, Ireland and in many other countries, a townhouse (or a "house in town") was a residence of a peer or member of the aristocracy in the capital or major city.
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    For other uses, see Estate.
    An estate comprises the houses and outbuildings and supporting farmland and woods that surround the gardens and grounds of a very large property, such as a country house or mansion.
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    villa was originally an upper-class country house, though since its origins in Roman times the idea and function of a villa has evolved considerably. After the fall of the Republic, a villa became a small, fortified farming compound, gradually re-evolving through the Middle
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    A mansion is a large dwelling house typically built for the wealthy. The word itself derives (through Old French) from the Latin word mansus the perfect passive participle of manere "to remain" or "to stay".
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    royal family is the extended family of a monarch. Generally, the head of a royal family is a king or queen regnant. The term "imperial family" more appropriately describes the extended family of an emperor or empress regnant, while the terms "ducal family", "grand ducal family" or
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    aristocracy refers to a form of government where power is held by a small number of individuals from a social elite or from noble families. The transmission of power is often hereditary.
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    A diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel enjoy diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to other countries.
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    Chief Executive Officer (CEO), or chief executive, is the highest-ranking corporate officer, administrator, corporate administrator, executive, or executive officer, in charge of total management of a corporation, company, organization or agency.
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    middle class, in colloquial usage, consists of those people who have a degree of economic independence, but not a great deal of social influence or power. The term often encompasses merchants and professionals, bureaucrats, and some farmers and skilled workers.
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    The butler is a senior servant in a large household.

    In the great houses of the past, the household was sometimes divided into departments with the butler in charge of the dining room (including the wine cellar) and pantry, and sometimes the entire parlour floor, and a
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    Valet and Varlet are terms for male servants.

    Etymology

    In English, valet "personal man-servant" is recorded since 1567, derived from the French valet (the t being silent), an Old French variant of vaslet
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    Master is an English title.

    In English society

    Master was used in England for men of some rank, especially "free masters" of a trade guild and by any manual worker or servant employee to his employer (his master), but also generally by those lower in status to
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    For other uses, see Lady (disambiguation).


    A lady is a woman who is the counterpart of a lord or, the counterpart of a gentleman. A lady is also a woman who folds, presses, and stretches dough such as bread; in other words, a lady is also known as
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    A cook is a household staff member responsible for food preparation. The term can refer to the head of kitchen staff in a great house or to the cook-housekeeper, a far less prestigious position involving more physical labour.
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    Chef is a term commonly used to refer to a person who cooks professionally. Within most restaurants however, the term is more highly defined. In a professional kitchen setting, the term is used only for the one person in charge of everyone else in the kitchen, the executive
    ..... Click the link for more information.
    Chef is a term commonly used to refer to a person who cooks professionally. Within most restaurants however, the term is more highly defined. In a professional kitchen setting, the term is used only for the one person in charge of everyone else in the kitchen, the executive
    ..... Click the link for more information.


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