This system has helped people for decades
The Piper travels with the Queen when she visits her many palaces, just to make sure she doesn’t sleep in!
The position of Piper to the Sovereign was established by Queen Victoria in 1843. The royal piper’s job is to play the bagpipes under the Queen’s window for 15 minutes at 9 am every single day. That’s certainly an effective alarm clock.
Hannah Stone (pictured) served as the Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales until 2015, when the married musician ran away with an older opera singer, leaving the position open! Anne Denholm took over after that.
Back in the day, the monarch of Britain would frequently travel by royal barge on the River Thames. As such, they needed an expert fleet of nearly 50 Royal Watermen to row, and a Bargemaster to take charge of them all. These days the royals don’t travel by barge, but the honorary position of Bargemaster still exists.
Apparently, it’s not an easy job. In 2014, the Queen was making a speech to Parliament at the House of Lords when one of her pageboys suddenly dropped to the floor in a faint. The Queen reportedly glanced over to see what the commotion was about, and continued her speech without skipping a beat.
The role of Official Harpist was phased out more than a century ago in the days of Queen Victoria. But Prince Charles decided the harp could do with a renaissance, so he reinstated the position and assigned himself an official harpist.
Nobody likes breaking in a new pair of shoes, particularly when they’re heels! This is especially problematic when you have to wear them every day to endless public events and you’re in your nineties!
The Pages of Honour are usually the young sons of nobles who are dressed up in funny little outfits and told to carry the train of the Queen’s long ceremonial cape. Every teenage boy’s dream, right?
The Queen's Flag Sergeant, currently Lance Sergeant Nathan Bowen, has the task of following the Queen around to her various residences to adjust the flags. The Royal Standard flag should be raised to indicate when she’s in residence, and lowered again when she leaves.
Someone has to keep an eye on the swans, naturally. In the past, there was an official position titled Keeper of the Swans, but in 1993 it was decided that one swan wrangler simply wasn’t enough. They divided the role into two titles: Marker of the Swans, currently held by David Barber, and Warden of the Swans, currently held by Professor Christopher Perrins (they sit to the left and right of the Queen, respectively).
As such, a member of the Queen’s staff is responsible for breaking her new shoes in for her. Her royal stylist, Stewart Parvin, explained that it’s essential that someone soften up the Queen’s new leather heels before she heads out to perform her royal duties.
On the rare, sad occasions that there’s a death in the royal family or there's a period of national mourning, the Flag Sergeant is also responsible for ensuring that the flags are lowered to half-mast out of respect. This caused some controversy after Princess Diana’s death when the flag was not lowered, possibly because she was already divorced from Prince Charles at the time.
Together, their responsibilities basically involve a yearly census of the swans that roam the River Thames. The process is called “swan-upping.” In the past, a swan would also be plucked from its watery home to be consumed at a banquet. That sort of thing doesn't fly these days, so they simply pick a swan and perform a ceremonial health check instead.
Did you know that Queen Elizabeth is a stamp collector? It sounds a little fancier when she does it, though. The Royal Philatelic Collection is the impressive name given to her assortment of rare stamps from the past.
Conservators normally work in museums, restoring and analyzing art and antiques. Considering the fact that the British royals essentially live in museums full of priceless historical artifacts, it’s not a huge surprise that they need conservators for many things, including their furniture.
Buckingham Palace was looking to hire a Royal Linen Keeper in 2016. The role required someone “to ensure all linen requirements are met to the highest standards every day.” But above all else, they must ensure that “the cloth matches the magnificence of the banqueting table.”
In reality, the Queen inherited the collection from her father, King George VI, who was an avid collector. She isn’t particularly interested in them herself, but wants to ensure that his collection is properly preserved. As such, an expert called Michael Sefi has been appointed to keep a watchful eye over the safety of the Queen’s stamps.
Flamsteed was the first person in recorded history to identify the planet Uranus, although at the time he incorrectly stated that it was a star. The position of Royal Astronomer is currently held by renowned astrophysicist Martin Rees, although it’s mostly a ceremonial role these days.
Windsor Castle advertised for the position of Furniture Conservator in 2019, but considering the level of expertise involved, they weren’t offering much in terms of compensation! The job post offered £25,500 per year, approximately US$32,860.
Sources: (Insider) (Reader's Digest) (SCMP) (Ranker)
See also: Fascinating photos of British jobs that no longer exist
If you think about how much linen is used in royal palaces on a regular basis, the rather innocuous title of Royal Linen Keeper is actually much more weighty than it seems! While countless staff members are involved in dressing tables for banquets, it’s the Linen Keeper who must sign off on the finished work, confirming that everything is just right.
The current holder of the title is the Earl of Denbigh. Apparently, the role is passed down like an inheritance. Perhaps there is a hereditary factor in one's skill with a knife and a roast!
The Yeomen are usually found stationed in front of the Tower of London, where they pose for photos with visiting tourists and tell creepy stories about the horrors and hauntings of the tower.
The Grand Carver of England is a prestigious title given to the person chosen to carve and serve meat for the Queen on special occasions. Similar to many dads who hold sacred the responsibility of carving the turkey at Christmas, the Grand Carver steps up to the impressive hunk of meat armed with knife and carving fork to perform his duties with great aplomb.
The Yeomen of the Guard were once an essential part of the sovereign’s Royal Bodyguard. Their importance earned them the right to eat as much beef as they wanted, a great luxury back then! This is why they earned the nickname "beefeaters." They still sport their spiffy Tudor costumes to this day, but their positions are mainly ceremonial now.
The first Astronomer Royal was appointed by King Charles II in 1675. He hired John Flamsteed to map “the motions of the heavens.” King Charles may have had unrealistically high expectations of his Royal Astronomer, but Flamsteed did make some impressive discoveries.
The Royal Horological Conservator has to make sure that all of the royal clocks are kept in good working order and tell the correct time. They also see to all of the repairs and restoration work.
This is quite the title for someone whose job is to make sure the clocks are running on time. That being said, there are quite a lot of clocks to keep track of. There are over 1,000 clocks, barometers, and thermometers spread among the royal family’s main residences, many of them priceless heirlooms.
This position is basically just the Queen’s in-house doctor, but for some reason they’re still given the lofty title of Apothecary to the Household. The most recent physician to be granted the honor is Dr. Timothy Evans.
While it makes perfect sense to have a financial officer to oversee the royal family’s major expenses and publish a yearly report for transparency, the name Keeper of the Privy Purse brings to mind actual purse strings that must be kept tight… That particular responsibility currently falls to Sir Michael Stevens.
If you’ve ever wondered what “pomp and circumstance” really means, look no further. The British royal family applies grandiosity and solemnity to even the most mundane tasks, such as changing the clocks or breaking in a new pair of shoes. Bearing in mind, of course, that a member of the royal family would never deal with such minutiae themselves. Naturally, they have an enormous staff on hand to ensure that every detail of their lives is handled smoothly and with a ceremonial flare.
If you weren’t born with blue blood and marrying into the family isn’t likely, then your best shot at getting a look inside the life of a royal is to apply for a job at the palace. Riveting positions such as Royal Linen Keeper and Master of Swans are just a couple of roles that might appear on the careers page of Buckingham Palace.
Curious? Click through the following gallery to learn about some of the most bizarre and flamboyantly named job positions that exist within the royal household.
Bizarre jobs within the British royal household
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LIFESTYLE British royal family
If you’ve ever wondered what “pomp and circumstance” really means, look no further. The British royal family applies grandiosity and solemnity to even the most mundane tasks, such as changing the clocks or breaking in a new pair of shoes. Bearing in mind, of course, that a member of the royal family would never deal with such minutiae themselves. Naturally, they have an enormous staff on hand to ensure that every detail of their lives is handled smoothly and with a ceremonial flare.
If you weren’t born with blue blood and marrying into the family isn’t likely, then your best shot at getting a look inside the life of a royal is to apply for a job at the palace. Riveting positions such as Royal Linen Keeper and Master of Swans are just a couple of roles that might appear on the careers page of Buckingham Palace.
Curious? Click through the following gallery to learn about some of the most bizarre and flamboyantly named job positions that exist within the royal household.