We like to refer to our little house in Falmouth as a 'cottage'. Well, this is what the Uber-wealthy refer to as a 'cottage'. This is The Breakers, in Newport RI.
The Breakers was built for Cornelius Vanderbilt II in 1895. It was the Vanderbilt family's summer escape. This massive mansion was occupied by the Vanderbilts for only a few weeks per year.
During our visit to Newport, we wanted to visit at least one mansion, and The Breakers is by far the most popular and well-known. It is a self-guided tour through the mansion, assisted by an excellent mobile app that provides an audio tour.
Needless to say, the house is full of excess.
Walking through the massive rooms, it most certainly felt like a palace you would find somewhere in Europe. The size, scale and opulence are all over-the-top. It is hard to believe that this was a family 'home' as it seems so very formal and so very unwelcoming. However, the lifestyle back then was super formal. During the audio tour, I learned that the Vanderbilt women would change outfits up to 7 times per day. And the formal parties must have been a sight to see. Debutante balls. Lawn parties. Weddings by the sea. But I kept thinking of the massive staff that was required for the upkeep of this house. I imagine the conditions for the staff were very simple, and living here for them must have been a lot of hard work.
The Breakers is most certainly worthy of a tour when visiting Newport. I wish there were more emphasis on the staff (especially after having watched Downton Abbey on TV), as it would have been interesting to hear about their daily lives.
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