Below Stairs
400 Years of Servants' Portraits
Giles Waterfield
Anne French
Foreword by Julian Fellowes
With an essay by Matthew Craske

Below Stairs is the first study of servant portraiture in Britain and is richly illustrated with works by Hogarth, Gainsborough and Stubbs. Continuing the examination of traditional domestic life explored in the films Gosford Park and Remains of the Day, Below Stairs is also the subject of a BBC Four documentary. Featuring portraits of all ranks of servant the book illustrates the shifting organisation of households through the centuries, and the highly complex relationships between employers and employees.

Traditionally, portraiture in Britain has concentrated on recording the upper classes and the celebrated. Instead, Below Stairs explores the representation of the servant, be it in a grand or modest household, in the country or in the town, at the royal courts or at colleges and clubs. This groundbreaking selection of paintings and photographs tells a fascinating story about power, class and human relationships spanning over 400 years of social and economic history.