The 12 Days Of Bronte Christmas: Eight

As regular readers of this blog will know, I try to do at least one Brontë post every week, as I have done for over ten years now, with a post usually appearing on Sunday. In the run up to Christmas this year I have been posting a daily post following the pattern of the 12 Days Of Christmas song, so if you’ve missed any of the previous posts here they are:

7 books a reading

6 geese a straying

5 Brontë rings

4 coloured dogs

3 French letters

2 Captive doves

and a merlin in a bare tree

Day 8 of the original song requires 8 maids a milking, but not having a cow of their own the Brontë family have little need of a milkmaid. They did, however, have a succession of nursemaids, general maids and cooks. The ones we know most about are:

The de Garrs Sisters: Nancy and Sarah de Garrs were initially employed as maids at Thornton but travelled with the Brontë family to Haworth. Sarah married and emigrated to America, but Nancy remained in the West Riding of Yorkshire. She ended her days, like so many others, in Bradford Workhouse but she had a steady stream of visitors who were keen to hear her tales of the Brontë children she’d known and loved.

Tabby Aykroyd: After the de Garrs sisters married and left the employ of Patrick Brontë, Aunt Branwell suggested that one older servant would be better than two younger ones, so Tabitha Aykroyd came to the parsonage. The Brontë siblings loved this bluff Yorkshire woman who told them folk tales, so much so that they refused to eat when their father wanted to let Tabby go after she broke her leg. In later years Charlotte would complete the work that the by then elderly Tabby missed without telling her; another mark of the respect and love she was held in.

Martha Brown: Martha was the daughter of Haworth sexton, and parsonage neighbour, John Brown. She entered service at the parsonage aged 13 and remained there for over 20 years. After the deaths of Emily and Anne Brontë she became a confidante and friend of Charlotte, and after Charlotte’s death she moved to Ireland to live with Charlotte’s widower Arthur Bell Nicholls and his second wife Mary Anna.

Tabitha Brown: Tabitha was the younger sister of Martha, and although she never lived in the parsonage she was often called upon when an extra pair of hands were needed. It was Tabitha Brown, by then the elderly Tabitha Ratcliffe, who gave this moving recollection of the Brontë sisters to a newspaper in 1910:

‘Her most interesting relic is a photograph on glass of the three sisters. “I believe Charlotte was the lowest and the broadest, and Emily was the tallest. She’d bigger bones and was stronger looking and more masculine, but very nice in her ways,” she comments. “But I used to think Miss Anne looked the nicest and most serious like; she used to teach at Sunday school. I’ve been taught by her and by Charlotte and all.” And it is on Anne that her glance rests as she says, “I think that is a good face.” There is no doubt which of the sisters of Haworth was Mrs Ratcliffe’s favourite.’

So we have five maids, or servants, but there would undoubtedly have been others from time to time, and it is clear that they all loved the Brontë children very much. So on this eighth day of Christmas the Brontës gave to us Eight maids a loving.

I hope you can join me tomorrow, amidst your festive celebrations, as we reach day nine of our 12 Days of Brontë Christmas countdown.