Chapter 13: Settling in

It’s around seventhirty in the evening when I arrive at the von Herrschaft Schloss, which is an hour or so’s drive south of Munich. Sophia meets me at the small ‘servant’s entrance’ to the Schloss and takes me into the kitchen. I’m relieved that Sophia is still working for the von Herrschafts, although I don’t envy her long term role as an indentured maid. Nobody openly refers to those of us indentured to the von Herrschafts’ as slaves, but it is effectively what we are. Sophia even wears a collar around her neck and a solid metal bracelet on her left wrist which are undeniably symbols of ownership. Nevertheless, Sophia seems happy and content with her life, so hopefully I’ll feel no different.

“There’s some food for you on the table over there,” says Sophia as we enter a deserted annex to the kitchen. “But first I must introduce you to Frau Edeltraud, the head cook.”

“I don’t speak any German,” I confess to Sophia.

“That shouldn’t be a problem,” replies Sophia. “All the senior staff here speak several languages, including English.”

Frau Edeltraud is a woman in her late fifties with a friendly disposition. Her rotund body suggests that she’s partial to sampling the food that she makes. There are three other women, all around my age, working in the kitchen, but I’m not introduced to them. From the hive of activity, I presume they are preparing the evening meal for owners of the Schloss. Sophia guides me back to the annex and she waits patiently while I eat the chicken salad meal that has been prepared for me.

“We Vertragsmädchen normally have our evening meal at six o’clock,” says Sophia.

“Vertragsmädchen? What does that mean?” I ask.

“It’s what those of us indentured to the von Herrschafts are called,” replies Sophia. “VM for short. It translates into English as ‘indentured maiden’ which is a close enough description of our status here. With the exception of Frau Edeltraud, all of the female servants at the Schloss are Vertragsmädchen.”

“What are my duties going to be?” I ask.

“They’ll be assigned to you in the morning by Domina Adelheid. She’s the Schlossherrin, the castle mistress. Now I’ll give you a quick tour of the Schloss ... or at least the parts that VMs are allowed to enter.”

“Is Heidi von Herrschaft staying here?” I ask.

“No. Domina Heidi is overseas. I’ve been reassigned as Domina Adelheid’s personal maid in the interim. She’s the only family member staying here at the moment.”

Sophia gives me a running commentary about the history of the Schloss as we tour parts of the main building. The three storey Schloss is a cross between a castle and a palace. The bleak castlelike exterior gives way to the sumptuous rooms of the interior. Outside, the high crenelated stone battlements are surrounded by a moat, both of which date from medieval times. The only access to the Schloss is along a private road through the massive estate. As I discovered on my way here, reaching the Schloss itself means going over a stone bridge across the moat, and through a matching stone arch. The absence of a gate suggests that the arch isn’t the original structure. The main buildings inside the battlements are relatively modern although the exterior stone cladding matches the medieval battlements. Sophia tells me that most of the interior dates from a substantial rebuilding and modernisation in the 1950s after the Schloss had been allowed to decay over the preceding hundred years. Only the stables and the small Sklavenschlafsaal, or slaves’ quarters, are the original medieval buildings.

“Some of the cellars are also original,” says Sophia when I inquire about the older buildings. “Parts of the wine cellar are believed to be from a twelfth century structure that was partially replaced some two hundred years later. The family history claims that the Schloss was the site of a Roman villa about two thousand years ago, but there’s only circumstantial evidence to support that theory.”

The tour takes over an hour and I feel in need of a shower. Sophia shows me to the dormitory where I will be sleeping. Unsurprisingly the dormitory is inside the ancient Sklavenschlafsaal. Whereas the main building is airy and modern, the inside of the Sklavenschlafsaal is dark and foreboding. The twentybed dormitory for female servants is like an eighteenth century workhouse. The beds are nothing more than flock mattresses on a low timber frames. An exarmy woollen blanket and a well used pillow are all that we are given as bedding. Sophia points to the bed that is assigned to me. There’s even a tiny plaque with my name on it fastened to the wall above the bed.

“There’s a locker over here for your things,” says Sophia, showing me a line of metal lockers fastened to the end wall. The lockers look like army surplus stock from the first world war although the combination locks are more recent additions. “Toilets and showers are through here. Towels and soap are stored in this cupboard. Used towels go in this basket. Sanitary towels are in the dispenser here, and the bin for used ones are next to the toilets.”

The medieval origins of the bathroom are clear to see. There’s no roof to the bathroom, which is essentially a high walled annex to the single room of the Sklavenschlafsaal. The concept of flushing toilets and showers didn’t exist when the Sklavenschlafsaal was built. What passes for plumbing is a much more recent addition, presumably from the 1950s rebuild of the Schloss. The set of three composting toilets are divided by waist high screens that provide minimal privacy. The drain for the basins and the single shower is nothing more than a channel carved into the stone floor, emptying to the outside through a small hole in the wall. Presumably, any rainwater exits the same way.