The scullery maid was a low-ranking servant responsible for a variety of tasks, from cleaning pots and pans to sweeping hallways. They were at the bottom of the household hierarchy and often compared their work to slavery. They worked long hours with limited pay and benefits.
A scullery maid is an all-work maid, responsible for a wide variety of tasks, from cleaning pots and pans in the kitchen to sweeping the hallways. The position has largely disappeared from most families, but historically, she would have been at the bottom of the family hierarchy, and her job would have been strenuous and largely thankless. Former scullery maids interviewed about their work by historic organizations compared their positions to a form of slavery.
In the complex organization of servants within a household, the scullery maid would be deep down, reporting to both the maid and the cook. She was responsible for a wide range of tasks and, due to her low status, would have taken orders from many of the other servants in the household, while the residents of the household rarely, if ever, actually interacted with the scullery maid. As a member of the “downstairs” staff, these maids were invisible and very hardworking.
Usually, the scullery maids were among the first to get up, because they had to prepare the house for everyone else to wake up. One of the first tasks she would have been to light the fire in the house and take out the pots, and she would also light the stove in the kitchen and start preparing for breakfast. In many homes, the scullery maid would wait on high-ranking servants, setting the table for them, bringing food and cleaning up afterward.
After breakfast, the scullery maids performed heavy cleaning work in the kitchen, ranging from dishes to mopping the floor, and scrubbing floors, threadbare rugs, dusty shelves, and performing a variety of other housekeeping duties around the house. A person in this position may also work in the home’s laundry, depending on how the home has been arranged.
The common scullery maid would be busy from the early hours of the morning until well after dark, and because of her low position, her rate of pay and work-related benefits would have been limited. Many got little more than health care, housing, and emergency medical care, with few days off and no chance for the lucrative leftovers that high-ranking officials could keep, barter, or sell to supplement their salaries.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
