| The Chef, The Prince, The Duchess...and Pigs! |
|
|
|
| Written by Joanne Leyland | |||||||
| Saturday, 31 December 2005 | |||||||
|
We've often heard from former members of royal staff just how difficult a boss the Prince of Wales can be (equally, we've been told what a kind and thoughtful employer he can too). Remember those amazing revelations from the Prince's former valet, Ken Stronach, in the early 1990s? According to the former aide, Charles suffered monumental rages — "gnashes" perhaps inherited from his equally short-fused grandfather, King George VI. Stronach alleged that, on one occasion, the Prince was so angry that he literally pulled a whole sink from the wall. Another time Charles, who likes air to circulate around his bedroom, reportedly became incandescent because he couldn't open a window. His remedy? He simply smashed the glass...and it wasn't even in his own home! Now, today, we hear the thoughts of the outgoing Head Chef of Deborah, the Dowager Duchess of Devonshire, a great friend of Prince Charles (but perhaps not so close to Camilla, if what we're about to hear is anything to go by). Prince Charles spends a great deal of time in peaceful retreat at Chatsworth House in the Peak District. The house also has a less pleasant link to royal history, one the Prince surely prefers to forget. It is believed that Charles was in his bed at Chatsworth when he made that infamous, highly sexual phone call to his mistress, the contents of which were (unbeknownst to him) recorded by still unknown forces. The full transcript of the rather sleazy royal pillow talk, henceforth known as 'Camillagate', was first published by the Australian magazine New Idea in January 1993. As people faxed the contents around the world, it wasn't long before the full details of Charles and Camilla's conversation was reprinted in Britain's Sunday tabloids. Nevertheless, to this day Chatsworth continues to be a much-loved retreat for the Prince of Wales and the woman who is now finally his wife, HRH The Duchess of Cornwall. Hervé Marchand had worked at Chatsworth House since 2001. On being offered his job as Head Chef to the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire (Andrew and Deborah Cavendish), he sold his home and moved into a cottage on the sprawling estate. This week, the formerly loyal chef has broken ranks and spoken to the Daily Mail about what he witnessed at this most historic family home, his reason for this act of 'disloyalty' being because he is disgusted by the way he and other members of staff of this most aristocratic family have been treated on the news that the Dowager Duchess, who ruled over the estate for 55 years, is to finally leave Chatsworth.  What the 55-year-old, French-born Chef has to say makes for very interesting reading, especially for royal watchers as the Cavendish family have enjoyed a very long association and friendship with generations of royalty. Despite the uncomfortable links to his past, it is to the Devonshire estate that the Prince of Wales continues to retreat, annually spending the first weekend of December at Chatsworth, where he relishes the opportunity to take time out from his royal duties to write his Christmas cards, one of which he always send to the Head Chef, along with a small pill box to thank him for his work. However, despite having witnessed the kind side of the Prince, the chef wasn't impressed by the future King's sometimes fastidious ways. "When planning his menus, the Prince barred the use of chocolate or garlic and insisted on having a vegetarian meal on Fridays. Unlike many of the other guests we cooked for, he would always wander down to the kitchen to say thank you at the end of his visit and took a genuine interest in the food we served him, asking how long we hung our beef for or the secret of our home-made stock". "He did, however, insist on bringing his own breakfast, which consisted of honey from his home at Highgrove and organic cereal —much to the irritation of the Duchess, who would often mutter “how rude” under her breath when she saw his things laid out. Of course, she was sensible enough not to make an issue of it. She is an astute woman with an intrinsic knowledge of the way the upper classes work and knows exactly how to handle the Prince". A keen huntsman, Charles always made sure he had enough food to keep him going during the many hours he spent riding or hunting deer. According to Marchand: "Apparently the Prince likes his sandwiches just so and I was asked to ring his personal chef at Highgrove, who had been on a weekend off, to get the list of ingredients from him. First, I would have to get a home-made, organic granary bap exactly eight centimetres in diameter and cut it in half. The size was, apparently, very important and I would have to cut it to size if it was too big or too small". "I would butter the first half with mayonnaise, add pesto, shredded salad leaves and an egg which had been fried on both sides so that it was not runny. I would then have to season the eggs and add two thin slices of Gruyere cheese. Then I would have to butter the second half and add a small layer of Marmite before carefully placing the two halves together. As the Prince liked his sandwiches to look rustic, I would finish it off by drenching the finished bap with a little white flour". Camilla was a less pernickety guest, preferring the more straightforward, home cooked meals enjoyed by the masses. As Diana often did (much to the chagrin of her royal relatives) Camilla isn't too shy to go into the kitchens to talk to the staff, on one occasion seeking out Marchand to ask for a copy of his mother's recipe for home-made gnocchi with slowbaked tomatoes. Despite the fact we're led to believe Charles has found his 'soul mate' in Camilla, Marchand claims the Duchess of Devonshire, a very close, lifelong friend of the future King, isn't overwhelmed by the woman Diana nicknamed "the Rottweiller". "She {the Duchess of Devonshire} would often say how she felt sorry for the "poor Prince" and how his life lacked a feminine touch, which was rather strange since Mrs Parker Bowles was even then a constant figure in his life". Thankfully for the Head Chef, visits by other royals don't sound to have been quite so demanding. The Queen and Prince Philip have always been friends of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire and so visits by the monarch and her husband of 58 years were always a source of great delight for the Duchess. "I have never seen the Duchess so excited before. She was like a little girl. We planned the menu very carefully — poached eggs, capers and parsley followed by organic chicken from the farm shop stuffed with aubergines and accompanied by rissolet potatoes and chicken gravy, with apple compote and cinnamon for desert, topped with home-made double cream and black treacle". Even though she had married into one of the grandest families in Britain, the Duchess was always nervous about any possible faux pas which could be made during a visit by the Queen, alerting her staff, including chef Marchand, to the fact any mistakes would be 'social suicide': "It was the first time I realised that despite her own grandeur, she was still far from the top of the pecking order". According to Marchand, dinners at Chatsworth were often colourful occasions, with guests ranging from television personalities or the most senior members of the Royal Family. The chef tells how VIPs were sometimes expected to share the table with some very unlikely house guests. "On one occasion the Duchess used live pigs in a cage as a table centrepiece. I don’t think the guests could believe their eyes or hear themselves for the noise, for that matter. On another she had chickens running around over the table. The Duchess is obsessed with her hens and has bred them for more than 70 years". "Chatsworth is a very old-fashioned household and little has changed over the years. As the woman of the house, the Duchess was in charge of the menu. Like the Prince of Wales, she is very passionate about organic farming and the idea of being a self-sufficient household. For example, she would only eat fruit and vegetables when they came into season, which could make planning meals something of a nightmare". "She also abhorred 'frills', such as garnishes, of any kind and only liked three different flavours to be used on her plate at any one time. Fortunately, she liked the classical dishes that are my speciality — beef in jelly, pig’s trotters and the like. Her tastes are most definitely of a bygone age. The other thing that stands out about the Duchess was how extraordinarily frugal she was, despite being married to one of the richest men in the land". "The old Duke loved my home-made brioche, but when she discovered how many eggs went into them, she stopped me from making them". As with so many aristocratic dynasties, while the husband is very much head of the estate and land, it is the wife who is the 'power behind the throne', as is explained by the chef: "The Duke was very old-fashioned and insisted on leaving everything of a domestic nature to his wife. Once, the Duchess confided in me that he never passed comment on the food we made for him, largely because he hadn’t cooked a thing in his life and simply couldn’t tell whether something was particularly good or bad". According to Marchand, his recent meeting with the Dowager Duchess resulted in little hope for the future of himself and his family, despite their loyal service, hence his decision to speak so openly and somewhat damningly to the Daily Mail. "When I demanded to see the Duchess on learning that I was to be made redundant, she told me that although the situation was "unfortunate", I shouldn't worry too much. She'd heard it was quite easy to get "a nice little council house" these days. When I heard that, I walked out in disgust. If that is how the upper classes treat their family, then I am glad to be their black sheep". One thing is for sure: after the publication on Saturday of the chef's interview with the Mail, Hervé Marchand won't soon be wielding his knife in the kitchens of Highgrove and Clarence House! Please feel welcome to offer your opinions on this and any other royal story by visiting our Royal Forum or via our Comments section below.
Comment on this article
Leave your comments (Show/Hide Form)
Other Visitors Comments
|
|||||||
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
