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I think that the secret passages are more often a way for the servants to do daily maintenance without disturbing the owner and guests. In rare occasions they w
by gostsamo 5y ago
I think that the secret passages are more often a way for the servants to do daily maintenance without disturbing the owner and guests. In rare occasions they were used so that the lord/lady can visit a lover without bringing unnecessary attention.
- GoodbyeMrChips 5y agoAnecdote: I was attending a drinks party at a friends house and nearly shit when a bit of wood panelling suddenly opened up next to me.... only for a young lady to appear with a tray of canapes. Here, quite a few large 18th & 19th century houses were built with separate, discrete, servants staircases and passageways.
- BrandoElFollito 5y agoThis is the case for the castle in Versailles (obviously not medieval). There areplenty of doors (more or less visible) that are used to split the public and private activities (and a way for servants to better navigate the castle). The doors are not always hidden - they clearly separate these two worlds, and may also led to very nice places that are just not public.
- beardyw 5y agoI once had an office (c 1740) with a secret passage. It would only open from inside, so not an access for staff. More like a quick getaway!
- gostsamo 5y agoWhere was your office? I can only speculate with so little information.
- beardyw 5y agoA company we were consulting for bought a big old country house here in the UK. It was completely empty when my small team moved in. I took the massive library as my office.
- gostsamo 5y agoHah, sounds like a quick getaway unless the tunnel was leading to a private and usually unoccupied bedroom so that sir spending time in reading books did acquire a new meaning.