A Community of Masters and Servants? Chatsworth, 1811-1914
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Sheffield
Department Name: Sch of English Lit, Lang and Linguistics
Abstract
The aim of this project is to use the extensive archival materials in the Devonshire Collection in order to gain an understanding of the wider community who have lived and worked at Chatsworth during the nineteenth century, brought together by relationships of work and service. It will employ an interdisciplinary linguistic-historical approach to explore the changing relationship between masters and servants between 1811 and 1914.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Jane Hodson (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Lauren Butler (Student) |
| Description | Through this research I have explored the concept of power at the country house through a social history lens. Rather than focusing on the economic capital of the landowning family, I have used Anthony Giddens' definition of power as a person's 'transformative capacity', or their ability to enact change in their situation. Through this definition I have asked who had access to power at the power house, focusing on the agency of servants, tenants and other non-élite individuals at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire, rather than on the more obvious power of the Cavendish family. My thesis is interested in servants and tenants as people with their own ambitions and perspectives, rather than as facilitators of upper-class leisure. I have been able to answer my research questions through extensive research in the rich Devonshire Collection archive, which contains rare and hitherto unexplored collections of letters written by servants and tenants. |
| Exploitation Route | I hope that my findings might inform future research in the field of country house studies. In collaboration with organisations such as the National Trust, the field of country house studies is branching out from traditional histories of art, architecture and great families, to consider themes such as sexuality, slavery, protest and other social topics. This burgeoning direction in country house studies is bringing new relevance to a cultural institution which is seeing unprecedented levels of popularity and public engagement. I see my research as doing essential groundwork for future historians, by revisiting the outdated social history of the country house with a fresh perspective. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Creative Economy,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Description | The findings of this research have been used to inform exhibitions, performances by costumed actors, blog posts and talks at Chatsworth, as well as the knowledge of staff who engage with the public. Chatsworth welcomes over half a million visitors each year, and the most frequent suggestion for improvement from these visitors is that the house could be 'brought to life' more, and that more could be done to tell its history. The findings arising from this award are helping to make Chatsworth a more relatable and accessible heritage site. The research has had immediate impact, with positive feedback from visitors and the audiences of talks. We have produced over 50 reports for the Collections Department, which will be used to ensure that the research continues to influence interpretation in the future. An improved visitor offer from Chatsworth will have a positive impact on the local economy, in addition to having a positive influence on the experiences of millions of British and international tourists. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2016 |
| Sector | Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
| Impact Types | Cultural |
| Title | Servants Database |
| Description | A publicly-available database of individuals who worked for the Cavendish family from 1600 to 1950. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2018 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Family history researchers are able to access archival information without contacting the department at our partner institution, Chatsworth. |
| URL | https://www.chatsworth.org/art-archives/access-the-collection/archives-and-library/historic-servants... |
| Description | Chatsworth Guides Talk |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Talk given to guides, staff and Duke at Chatsworth about our research. Contents of talk have since been disseminated to public by guides. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Friends Preview Day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Two talks given to loyalty scheme members at Chatsworth during the exhibition preview day. Positive feedback received. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015,2017 |
| Description | House of Stories Pop-Up Exhibition |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | House of Stories was a pop-up exhibition and storytelling event which took place on Wednesday 13th June 2018. The event showcased the findings of the three-year Collaborative Doctoral Award project From Servants to Staff: The Whole Community at Chatsworth 1700-1950, which has been co-supervised by Chatsworth and the University of Sheffield since October 2015. The project has seen three PhD researchers (Lauren Butler, Fiona Clapperton and Hannah Wallace) making use of extensive archival materials contained within the Devonshire Collection at Chatsworth in order to uncover the nature of everyday life, work and relationships on the estate over three centuries. Whilst undertaking our research in the archives at Chatsworth, we have come across some fantastic stories about some of its staff and servants. This event trialled the dissemination of these previously hidden stories and aimed to engage with visitors and ask them to share their own memories of Chatsworth. Altogether we estimate that 130-150 people attended the 'House of Stories' pop-up exhibition. We received 71 feedback forms from these attendees. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Local History Group Talks |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Two talks given to local history groups interested in the history of Chatsworth. Both audiences engaged well and expressed interest in further information. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Powering the Power House Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Powering the Power House: New Perspectives on Country House Communities was a 2-day conference held at the University of Sheffield and Chatsworth in June 2018. It attracted participants from the heritage sector as well as academics and postgraduate students. We received funding from the Royal Historical Society and the Economic History Society. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://powerhouseconf.wordpress.com/ |
| Description | Servants to Staff Blog |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | A monthly blog post published on the Chatsworth website, telling stories from the archives. Some of the posts have had several hundred 'likes' on Facebook. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016,2017 |
| Description | Sothebys Success Academy workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Workshop about servants' lives with a school group from New York, around 20 students aged between 12 and 15. Students engaged very well with the activities and we received positive feedback from students and teachers. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Storytelling Performances |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Following a series of training workshops with a professional storyteller, I performed two stories to the public, the first as part of the University of Sheffield Arts and Humanities Research Festival, and the second for the 'Tales from the Ivory Tower' event. Both stories were filmed and uploaded to YouTube, and the second in particular received a positive response. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016,2017 |
| Description | Winter Talk |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | This was a ticketed event in January which aimed to engage with the public while Chatsworth was closed for conservation. The event was sold out with around 80 people and the feedback was very good. Some audience members requested for a book to be published. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Winter Talks |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Around 200 members of the public paid to attend three talks delivered during the winter closing period at Chatsworth, with very positive feedback received. All three talks sold out, and the third was added due to high demand. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017,2018 |
| Description | Workshop at Derbyshire Record Office |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Workshop for the general public at Derbyshire Record Office, including a talk about servants at Chatsworth followed by a document-viewing session. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |