Country houses were spacious and crowded at the same time because their walls housed several generations simultaneously. All family members were part of the noble “house” which had to be maintained not in the least in the bedroom. What that means? Anne Sophie Overkamp explains.

Families only survive if they procreate. Around 1900, noble parents, however, had to think hard what ought to become of their sons and daughters. They feared for their preeminence in state and society, and they experienced economic setbacks. Their traditional income from agriculture oftentimes no longer sufficed to support either the family or the country house: Quite a few family members had to search for a second income; So, nobles started to focus on a good education for their children. In early life, nurses and teachers took care of the offspring, later on, they attended boarding schools for secondary education. In  this way, nobles learned the distinctions of class and money early on.

Ludwig Freiherr von dem Bongart also comes from a long line of nobility. See for yourself.

After 1945, more and more nobles worked in a profession that had little to do with the country house’s estate. They formed extensive networks of kinship and  professional associations beyond the realm of the country house. Widely ramified networks formed an influential lobby that acted for economic and political interests. People remained aware of their noble family background and took care of the older generation, for example by granting them a life estate or a pension. These agreements were put down in formal contracts, as in the case of  the Kempis family in 1951. In that year, Franz Joseph von Kempis and his family moved to Haus Kendenich in the Rhineland and took over the estate from his widowed mother Maria Theresia von Kempis. The two of them sorted out the exact conditions to the last degree, not least to ensure Frau von Kempis’ financial protection. But the financial obligation was mutual: From time to time, Frau von Kempis supported her son. 

In the contract between Franz Joseph von Kempis and his mother Maria Theresia von Kempis in 1951, both sides record in detail the kind of benefits Frau von Kempis would receive in the future. See for yourself which natural produce she could expect.