Bedchamber

Bedchamber, LORDS OF THE, officers in the British royal household, twelve in number, who, in the reign of a king, wait in turn upon the sovereign's person. They are under the groom of the stole, who attends his majesty only on state occasions. There are also thirteen grooms of the bedchamber, who take their turns of attendance. The salary of the groom of the stole is £2000; of the lords of the bedchamber, £1000; and of the grooms, £500 a year. These offices in the reign of a queen are performed by ladies. Corresponding to the groom of the stole is the mistress of the robes, and to the grooms of the bedchamber are bedchamber women. These offices are objects of high ambition, from the access they give to the person of the sovereign, and are for the most part filled by 'the prime nobility of England.' In 1839 the queen's refusal to part with the ladies of her bedchamber, on the occasion of a change of government, led to Sir Robert Peel's declining to form a ministry, and to Lord Melbourne's return to office. The incident was playfully called 'The Bedchamber Plot.' See HOUSEHOLD (THE KING'S OR QUEEN'S), and Mrs Armitage, Old Court Customs and Modern Court Rule (1883).