In the Victorian era, Britain had many domestic workers. The butler was the most important one. At meal times he was like a head waiter. Other male domestic workers were often called "valets". A valet (sometimes said with a silent "t") may have been a personal servant who looked after his master’s clothes and comforts, and possibly looked after money matters as well. Female domestic worker were usually maids who cleaned, cooks who prepared the meals and nannies who looked after the children. Gardeners did the gardening.
In the early 18th century, even some musicians were servants and had to wear livery (uniform). In 1717, when composer Johann Sebastian Bach said he wanted to leave his job, the duke he worked for put him in prison. In the 19th century, there were many domestic workers in Europe or the United States and elsewhere. In the early 20th century, new laws were made in Britain to protect domestic workers, and give them more rights.
After the middle 20th century, fewer people in rich countries became servants. Domestic workers from poorer countries either work for rich people in their own country, or go to richer countries to find work.
To ensure the right of decent work for all kind of domestic workers including migrant workers, International Labour Organization has made Convention No. 189 on domestic workers.
Cassandra
Cassandra or Kassandra (, also 'Alexandra') was a person in Greek mythology. She was the daughter of King Priam of Troy and Hecuba, and twin sister of Helen. She was famous for her prophesies of bad events.
The god Apollo gave her the gift of prophecy so that she would love him, but Kassandra did not want him. This made Apollo angry, but he could only change his gift and not take it away. So he made it that Kassandra could only foresee bad things, and that no one would ever believe her.
In the Trojan War Kassandra knew of the trick with the Trojan Horse, but no one believed her, and so Troy was destroyed. After the Trojan War she became a slave of Agamemnon. She warned him that his wife Klytaimnestra would kill him. But he would not believe her, and so Agamemnon was killed, and Kassandra shortly after him.
There is a work called "Alexandra" by Lykrophon. The poet is only known through this work which was done between 196 and 190 BC. The work has 1474 lines, which are done in jambic trimeters. This is what most Greek tragedies were written in.
Leda
Leda is a person in Greek mythology. She was the daughter of a king, and the wife of King Tyndareos of Sparta.
Zeus seduced her as a swan, and Leda laid two eggs. When they hatched, her children Helen, Klytaimnestra, Castor and Pollux) came out. Helen was a child of Zeus, and the myths vary on who was the father of the others.
Tyndareus
Tyndareos (or Latin Tyndareus) was a character in Greek mythology. He was the king of Sparta, and husband of Leda.
He was the father of Klytaimnestra and Kastor. His wife Leda also had Helen and Polydeukes by the god Zeus.
Menelaos, husband of Helen, became the next king of Sparta after Tyndareos.
Telemachus
Telemachos (or Latin Telemachus) is a person in Greek mythology. He is the son of Odysseus of Ithaca and Penelope. While Odysseus was trying return home, many believed him to be dead. Suitors surrounded his home, trying to claim Penelope as their wife. Athena came to Telemachus in disguise and gave him advice. She told him to search for evidence that his father was still alive. If he was alive he could force the suitors away. However, if he believed his father to be dead, he would let one of the suitors claim her. He gathered a search party and set out to question many of the people Odysseus served with in the war. He decided that his father was dead. Telemachos held a competition for the suitors to claim Penelope. Odysseus showed up in secret, won the competition and rejoined his family.
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi (born Venice, 4 March 1678; died Vienna, 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer. He was the most important composer in Italy at the end of the Baroque period.
Vivaldi wrote more than 400 concertos for various instruments, especially for the violin. The scores of 21 of his operas, including his first and last, are still intact. His most popular work is the group of four violin concertos called “The Four Seasons”. Each concerto describes a season: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. He is believed to be the inventor of the ritornello form. He was very famous for his piccolo compositions, such as "Il gardellino".
Vivaldi probably was taught to play the violin by his father, who was professional musician. He trained to be a priest, and because of his red hair, he became known as "il prete rosso", which means "the red priest.". He did not work as a priest for very long, and in 1703, he began teaching violin to girls at an orphanage in Venice, the Pio Ospedale della Pietà. The name means "Devout Hospital of Mercy.". The girls were chosen because they showed exceptional musical abilities. They gave regular concerts, so as part of his duties Vivaldi wrote music for them to play. He lost the job between 1709 and 1711, when he was reappointed. He also took on the extra job of writing sacred music for the girls' choir. He continued teaching until 1716 when he was put in charge of all the music events.
Vivaldi's music was becoming well known. During his break from teaching between 1709 and 1711 he wrote a large number of works including violin sonatas and concertos. In 1711 he wrote a collection of 12 concertos, "L'estro armonico op.3", for one, two and four solo violins was published by Etienne Roger in Amsterdam. This made him famous throughout Europe, and musicians coming to Venice would visit Vivaldi for lessons. Further new publications of his music made him even more famous. The first of his many operas, "Ottone in villa", was performed in 1713. His first oratorio, "Juditha Triumphans devicta Holofernis barbaric", was performed by the girls from the Pietà in 1716.
In 1718 Vivaldi left Venice and moved to Mantua, where he became the director of music for the governor, Prince Philip of Hesse-Darmstadt. He composed his famous "Four Seasons" as well as several operas during this time. He went to Rome in about 1721, where he performed on several occasions for the Pope. While he was travelling, he continued to write music for the girls at the Pietà, over the years he sent them about 140 concertos. He went to a number of cities in Europe to have his operas performed including Vienna, Verona, and Prague. He often went back to Venice to rehearse his music with the girls.
Even though his music was popular, Vivaldi did not make a lot of money from his music. As newer musicians, and more modern styles became popular, he found it more difficult to earn a living. He moved to Austria to play for royalty but when the king died, he became poor and had no way to return home. He died, a poor man, in Vienna, on 28 July 1741.
Agamemnon
Agamemnon () was a legendary king of Mycenae, as told in "The Iliad". The son of Atreus and Aerope, he was the brother of Menelaus, and the commander of the unified Greek forces in the Trojan War. His wife was Clytemnestra, with whom he sired Iphigenia, Electra or Laodike, Orestes and Chrysothemis. Homer's "Iliad" tells the story of his quarrel with Achilles, the greatest of the Greek warriors, in the final year of the war. Upon his return home from Troy, Agamemnon is murdered by Aegisthus, the lover of Clytemnestra. The story of his return home and subsequent murder is featured in the "Odyssey" (5.266).
Menelaus