Maid

For other uses, see Maid (disambiguation).

Smedley maid illustration 1906

A maidservant or in current usage housemaid or maid is a female employed in domestic service.

Description

Once part of an elaborate hierarchy in great houses, today a single maid may be the only domestic worker that upper and even middle-income households can afford, as was historically the case for many households. In the contemporary Western world, comparatively few households can afford live-in domestic help, usually compromising on periodic cleaners. In less developed nations, very large differences in the income of urban and rural households and between different socio-economic classes, fewer educated women and limited opportunities for working women ensures a labour source for domestic work.

Historically many maids suffered from Prepatellar bursitis, an inflammation of the Prepatellar bursa caused by long periods spent on the knees for purposes of scrubbing and fire-lighting, leading to the condition attracting the colloquial name of "Housemaid's Knee".^[1]

Maids perform typical domestic chores such as cooking, ironing, washing, cleaning the house, grocery shopping, walking the family dog, and taking care of children. In many places in some poor countries, maids often take on the role of a nurse in taking care of the elderly and people with disabilities. Many maids are required by their employers to wear a uniform.

Legislation in many countries makes certain living conditions, working hours, or minimum wages a requirement of domestic service. Nonetheless, the work of a maid has always been hard, involving a full day, and extensive duties.^[2]

Types of maid

Maids traditionally have a fixed position in the hierarchy of the large households, and although there is overlap between definitions (dependent on the size of the household) the positions themselves would typically be rigidly adhered to. The usual classifications of maid in a large household are:

• Lady's Maid — a senior servant who reported directly to the lady of the house, but still ranked beneath the Housekeeper, and accompanied her lady on travel.
• House Maid — a generic term for maids whose function was chiefly 'above stairs', and were therefore usually a little older, and better paid; where a household included multiple House Maids they were often sub-divided as below.
  • Head House Maid — the senior house maid, reporting directly to the Housekeeper. (Also called House Parlour Maid in an establishment with only one or two upstairs maids).
  • Parlour Maid — the parlour maids cleaned and tidied reception rooms and living areas by morning, and often served refreshments at afternoon tea, and sometimes also dinner. They tidied studies and libraries, and (with footmen) answered bells calling for service.^[3]
  • Chamber Maid — the chamber maids cleaned and maintained the bedrooms, ensured fires were lit in fire places, and supplied hot water.
  • Laundry Maid — the laundry maids maintained the bedding and towels, and also washed, dried, and ironed clothes for the whole household, including the servants.
  • Under House Parlour Maid — the general deputy to the House Parlour Maid in a small establishment which had only two upstairs maids.
• Nursery Maid — also an 'upstairs maid', but one who worked in the childrens' nursery, maintaining fires, cleanliness, and good order, and reporting to the Nanny rather than the Housekeeper.
• Kitchen Maid — a 'below stairs' maid who reported to the Cook, and assisted in the running of the kitchens.
  • Head Kitchen Maid — where multiple kitchen maids were employed, the Head Kitchen Maid was effectively a deputy to the Cook, engaged largely in the plainer and simpler cooking.
  • Under Kitchen Maid — where mulitple kitchen maids were employed these were the staff who prepared vegetables, peeled potatoes, and assisted in presentation of finished cooking for serving.
• Scullery Maid — the lowest grade of 'below stairs' maid, reporting to the Cook, the Scullery Maids were responsible for washing up cutlery, crockery, and glassware, and scrubbing kitchen floors, as well as monitoring ovens whilst Kitchen Maids ate their own supper.
• Between Maid — roughly equivalent in status to scullery maids, and often paid less, the Between Maids in a large household waited on the senior servants (Butler, Housekeeper, Cook) and were therefore answerable to all three department heads, often leading to friction in their employment.^[4]

In more modest households a single Maid-of-all-work or skivvy was often the only staff.

In popular culture

One of the most in-depth and enduring representations of the lives of several types of maid was seen in the 1970s television drama Upstairs, Downstairs, set in England between 1903 and 1930.

See also

• Domestic worker
• Footman
• Nanny
• Au pair
• French maid
• Foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong
• Maid service

References

1. ^ See medical reference and explanation at the UK Patient website, here for details.
2. ^ See a breakdown of such duties, and typical hours worked at Victorian Lifestyle website, here.
3. ^ A Parlour Maid's timetable is summarised in this webpage extract from a book.
4. ^ This website offers an approximation of rates of pay for Victorian servants.