Portrait of Elihu Yale, the 2nd Duke of Devonshire, Lord James Cavendish, Mr. Tunstal, and a Page
England (c. 1708)
Oil on Canvas, 201.3 x 235.6 cm.
Yale Center for British Art
collections.britishart.yale.edu/vufind/Record/…
England (c. 1708)
Oil on Canvas, 201.3 x 235.6 cm.
Yale Center for British Art
collections.britishart.yale.edu/vufind/Record/…
So, a lot of people have misunderstandings about the role of pages like the one in this painting. Yes, there’s a massive class difference between the page pictured, and the pampered children of the gentry visible behind the page that would never be bridged.
But at the same time, the page would have social, financial and other advantages well above your “average” person in that area at that time. As a member of the Duke’s household, he would have received a genteel education, instruction in social graces, fine clothing+
and most likely would have a marriage arranged for him at some point.He would have also served at table, which if you've seen shows like Downton Abbey, is actually kind of a big flipping deal. It’s a reasonable assumption, as he’s seen here serving wine at an important meeting.
A page is basically an apprentice footman, and footmen were actually more prestigious servants in the 1700s than later (say in a Victorian setting). Keep in mind, only a few decades prior, nobleman’s nephews would have been doing the same job as the young boy in this painting.
At this time going into service was still a decent possible path to fortune and upward social mobility, although factors like bigger population=cheap and available labor didn’t make service the golden ticket it was in the pre-Elizabethan era.
Even in the late 16th century it was still possible to marry the head of the household. There are many records of widowed noblewomen in the 1550s and 60s marrying servants, and their children would then become the heirs to lands and titles.
If I bothered to do an analysis of that particular Duke’s household at that time, it’s possible that that little boy would end up making a salary that could support a family of six or more. Remember, servants were guaranteed food, shelter, new clothes, & then paid on top of that
You can read a little more about how servants and their roles were created and evolved around this time in England in 'Life in the English Country House: A Social and Architectural History' By Mark Girouard, (p. 83); (p. 135-149)
