Yeoman or Gentleman? Problems in Defining Social Status in Seventeenth- and Eighteenth-Century Gloucestershire

By analysing information from over four hundred inventories, most of them dated between 1650 and 1750, the writer identifies features indicating the status of both houses and their owners. The value of the deceased's estate, the architecture of his house, the number and quality of its rooms and furnishings, are all taken into account. The question of social mobility is illustrated. The houses at the top and bottom of the range are clearly distinguishable, but the degree of overlap between the houses of yeomen and gentlemen is considerable.The article is closely based on a paper given by the author at the VAG winter conference in December 1990

Archaeology · Estate · Genealogy · Political science · Quality (philosophy · Social science · Social status · Sociology · Value (mathematics · Computer Science · Historical Economic and Social Studies · Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes · History · Law · Philosophy · Architecture