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The first footman was the designation given to the highest-ranking servant of this class in a given household. The first footman would serve as deputy butler and act as butler in the latter's absence, although some larger houses also had an under-butler above the first footman.
Directly under the butler was the first footman (or head footman), although there could also be a deputy butler or under-butler who would fill in as butler during the butler's illness or absence. The footman ‒there were frequently numerous young men in the role within a household‒ performed a range of duties including serving meals ...
The luck that the first-foot brings with him will determine the luck for the household for the rest of the year. [10] Generally, the first-foot should be a tall, dark-haired male who is not already in the house when midnight strikes. [10] In many areas, the first-foot should bring with him symbolic gifts such as coal, coins, whisky, or black ...
A footman is a servant. Footman may also refer to: Infantry ("foot soldier") Footman (furniture), British term for a metal stand for keeping plates and dishes hot; Dan Footman (born 1969), American football player; Philip Williams (MP) alias Footman (c.1519–c.1558), English politician; Tim Footman (born 1968), British author, journalist and ...
The Groom of the Stool was a male servant in the household of the English monarch who was responsible for assisting the king in his toileting needs. [5] It is a matter of some debate as to whether the duties involved cleaning the king's anus, but the groom is known to have been responsible for supplying a bowl, water and towels and also for monitoring the king's diet and bowel movements [6 ...
John Dymmok, who served in the retinue of the earl of Essex, Elizabeth I’s lord lieutenant of Ireland, provides the classic description of a kern equipped for war: ". . . a kind of footman, slightly armed with a sword, a target (round shield) of wood, or a bow and sheaf of arrows with barbed heads, or else three darts, which they cast with a ...
A 17th-century valet de chambre. A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "valet" by itself most often refers to a normal servant responsible for the clothes and personal belongings of an employer ...
Though in English the term man-at-arms is a fairly straightforward rendering of the French homme d'armes, [b] in the Middle Ages, there were numerous terms for this type of soldier, referring to the type of arms he would be expected to provide: In France, he might be known as a lance or glaive, while in Germany, Spieß, Helm or Gleve, and in various places, a bascinet. [2]