Society's Home: Blenheim Palace
A family's house, whether in Town or in the country was meant, above all, to impress. Whether entertaining good friends or complete strangers, it was meant to give guests a sense of the wealth and power which the owners of the house possessed. One of the grandest houses in all of Great Britain, and a house which was very successful at this grandeur, was Blenheim Palace, home of the Duke of Marlborough.

Blenheim Palace is the only non-royal palace in England. A grand building, built to commemorate the Battle of Blenheim for which the first Duke had been awarded his title, it was meant for splendor rather than for life. The 9th Duchess of Marlborough marveled that "It is strange that in so great a house there should not be one really livable room." (Balsan, pg. 65). It really was a terrible place to live. She writes that "we slept in small rooms with high ceilings; we dined in dark rooms with high ceilings; we dressed in closets without ventilation; we sat in long galleries or painted saloons." (Balsan, pg. 65). Looking at Blenheim, one can see what she means: it might be nice to visit, but it doesn't look like anyplace where a person could relax.

The purpose of such a house was to show off not only one's ancestors, but also one's wealth. The 9th Duchess writes, of the disturbingly splendid rooms, that "had they been finely proportioned or beautifully decorated I would not so greatly have minded sacrificing comfort to elegance." (Balsan, pg. 65). It was, however, not taste which mattered most, but conspicuous consumption of every sort. It was most likely freezing cold in winter, as were most houses of this scale: Lady Camoys, nee Mildred Sherman of Newport, Rhode Island, actually gave up going out to dinner at other people's houses because she couldn't stand the freezing temperatures in her evening gowns. (MacColl, pg. 189)

The only way that it was possible for an estate-owner to keep up such a house was with a massive staff of servants, especially if he owned multiple houses and had to leave some of them vacant for part of the year. He might keep multiple sets of complete staffs, but most families simply kept two staffs of housemaids, and had their upper servants, such as the butler, the cook, and several maids, travel with them.

Explore: servants

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