Behind The Scenes At Chatsworth

Chatsworth house, garden, farmyard, park and woodland survive only through careful management. Joiners, masons, electricians, plumbers, housekeepers, seamstresses, gardeners, foresters, dry stone wallers, game keepers, river keepers, shepherds and farmers are just some of the people who help maintain the Estate. Some of these people learn their trade at Chatsworth, and many of them live in Estate houses in the villages of Edensor, Pilsley, Beeley and Calton Lees.

Newer roles in curatorial and education, marketing and communications, retail and catering, human resources, account

Chatsworth has a tradition of long service. In 1963 the Duke gave a party for people who had worked on the Estate for 25 years or longer. 175 people came, of whom 123 had done 25 years or more and 52 had completed over 40 years. Since then awards have been given at the annual staff party. By 2003 there had been 218 for 25 years and 113 for 40 years.

The Chatsworth House

Beneath Chatsworth’s 1.3 acres of roof are 297 rooms, 3,426 feet of passages, 18 staircases and 359 doors, all lit by 2,084 light bulbs. There are 397 external window frames, 62 internal window frames, 5 roof lanterns and 60 roof lights with a grand total of 7,873 panes of glass, 27 baths, 55 wash hand basins, 29 sinks, 6 wash ups and 56 lavatories complete these unusual statistics.

All parts of the house are well used. The Duke and Duchess of Devonshire occupy rooms on the ground and first floors of the house. Many of the rooms in the North Wing are now staff flats, offices, workshops and storerooms. The Victorian kitchen is the joiners shop, the laundry and servants’ hall are now archive stores, and the theatre is used for events.

If you would like to see backstage, from the cellar to the roof, and learn more about how the house is looked after, you can pre-book a Behind the Scenes tour for a group of any size, or book a place on one of our Behind the Scenes days.