List of Downton Abbey characters
This is a list of characters from Downton Abbey, a British period drama television series created by Julian Fellowes and co-produced by Carnival Films and Masterpiece for ITV and PBS, respectively. Some also appear in one or more of the film sequels: Downton Abbey, Downton Abbey: A New Era and Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale.
Cast
Main cast
Recurring cast
Guest cast
The Crawley family
Robert Crawley, 7th Earl of Grantham
Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham , usually called Lord Grantham, is the 7th and current Earl of Grantham, based in the Downton Abbey in village of Downton, situated between Ripon, Thirsk and Easingwold in the Yorkshire region. Being a British peer, he also holds the position of Lord Lieutenant. He is the husband of Cora, son of Violet, and father of Mary, Edith and Sybil. Robert is immensely proud of Downton as the place he grew up and takes his responsibility for the estate very seriously; he sees himself as its caretaker, not its owner. Although in some ways his character embodies the traditional values of the aristocracy, Robert does not shun all progress, and he is very protective of and loyal to his family and servants. He comes forward on both occasions to protect his eldest daughter Mary when she is blackmailed for having sexual affairs outside marriage with Kemal Pamuk and Anthony Foyle. Despite these virtues, Robert's adherence to tradition lets him down in other ways. He often resists "modern" suggestions for better management of the estate, especially after his daughter Mary joins his sons-in-law Matthew and Tom in running it. His attitudes occasionally clash with that of the more progressive and pragmatic Cora. Unlike the people of his era, Robert has a relaxed attitude towards homosexuality, so he does not sack his servant Thomas Barrow or hand him over to the police when he is accused of kissing men. Robert also loves dogs and owned one, Isis. After Isis died from cancer, Robert's mother gave him a new dog, Tiye. By the end of the final series, Robert's worsening health forces him to step down from running the estate, leaving the task to his son-in-law Tom, and eldest daughter, Mary. In series 2, Robert had a brief liaison with a housemaid called Jane Moorsum, a widow whose husband had died in the Battle of the Somme, but this did not last long as she left. In the third film, Robert relinquishes full control of his estates to Mary and moves into the dower house.Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham
Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham , usually called Lady Grantham, is the wife of Robert and mother of Mary, Edith and Sybil. A wealthy American heiress of Jewish descent, she married Robert around 1890 when the Crawleys were in straitened circumstances; her fortune helped rescue Downton, thereby making her a dollar princess. Although she has adopted the lifestyle of the British aristocracy, her character is portrayed as more forward-thinking and open-minded than that of her family, a trait her husband and daughters attribute to her "American-ness". Her eldest daughter Mary somewhat seems to have a low opinion about her mother, describing her marriage to Robert as one of "duty and boredom". Her industrious nature, first discovered during the First World War when she opens and maintains Downton as a convalescent home for soldiers, and later put to use on the Downton hospital board, often causes conflict with Robert, especially after she becomes president of the hospital board in the final series. However, Robert relents after seeing how effective Cora is in the role. During the summer of 1914, Cora discovers she has become pregnant for the first time in eighteen years, but she suffers a miscarriage caused by her maid O'Brien. Shortly after the war, Cora has Spanish influenza and nearly dies before making a full recovery. In 1923, an art historian Simon Bricker, who had come to Downton Abbey to study one of its paintings, tries to flirt with Cora, making Robert jealous, but Cora steadfastedly resisted Bricker's advances. In the third film, Cora steadfastedly supported her daughter Mary, following the discrimination she began to receive after her divorce, declaring that she would no longer attend events where Mary wouldn't be invited due to her divorcee status. At the end, she & Robert retire to the dower house.Fellowes stated that the character of Cora had been largely inspired from that of Almina Herbert, who also lived in Highclere Castle.
Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham
Violet Crawley was Robert's mother and widow of the previous earl. Violet, portrayed as a matriarchal figure and quick of wit despite her age, symbolised the "old world" and order of the pre–First World War days. She was the informal head of the management board of the local cottage hospital that her husband had set up for charitable purposes. She lived in the dower house with her own cook, lady's maid, house maid and butler, away from Robert's household living in the main building but occasionally came to dine in with her family. She particularly resented the introduction of modern technology such as electricity and telephones into the household. During and after the war, Violet remained a strong influence at Downton Abbey but found her influence under threat as social norms changed with time, particularly from Isobel Crawley, with whom she had a tendency to quarrel, and her daughter-in-law Cora, both of whom are more forward-thinking and strong-minded women. However, she later admitted that she had become fond of Isobel and cherished her company, even aiding her to marry the widowed Lord Merton. Violet's inflated sense of entitlement led her to be called "sister of Marie Antoinette". Violet exhibited a classist mindset but she immediately sacked her maid Denker when she heard that Denker had publicly humiliated Dr. Clarkson for not siding with her decision of resisting the cottage hospital's takeover by the larger government hospital of York. She was initially bitter at Cora replacing her as the head of the hospital's management board but by the end, she admitted that Cora runs the hospital better than she did. She has a strong bond with her granddaughter Mary, to whom she is the most similar. After Mary struggled to find a suitable match following the death of her first husband, Violet arranged for Mary to meet Henry Talbot, the nephew of her childhood friend Lady Shackleton, whom Mary eventually married. In the fifth series, it is revealed that Violet had a brief liaison with a Russian aristocrat, Prince Igor Kuraigin. She dies from old age at the end of the second film.Fellowes stated that the character of Violet had been largely inspired from his own great-aunt Isie, who also served as the inspiration for the character of Constance, Dowager Countess of Trentham in Gosford Park.
Lady Mary Crawley
Lady Mary Josephine Crawley is the eldest daughter of Lord and Lady Grantham and arguably the centre of interest of all the family story arcs in the series. Early on, she is portrayed as a petulant and cold young woman; as the series progresses, however, she shows more vulnerability and compassion. One of her most constant traits is her unfailing devotion to Downton as her home and, eventually, the estate which she will preside over. Mary is described as closely resembling her grandmother, the Dowager Countess Violet Crawley in her sense of entitlement and looks down upon her own mother's Americanness. Like her father, Mary too is sympathetic to the gay footman Thomas Barrow's condition.After the death of the heir to the estate and her unofficial fiancé, her second cousin Patrick Crawley,in the sinking of the Titanic, Mary's relationship with the new heir, a distant cousin Matthew Crawley, begins coldly owing to their different upbringing. Over time, however, the pair grow closer, and a romance develops. In 1914, Matthew asks Mary to marry him, but she is hesitant because of circumstances regarding the inheritance of the estate. Heartbroken and angered by her hesitancy, Matthew withdraws his proposal and decides to leave Downton. During the second series, Matthew serves in the First World War and both become engaged to other people, but after a series of obstacles, Matthew proposes to her again, and the two marry. After struggling with infertility, Mary becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son, George, at the end of the third series. However, the same day, Matthew is killed in a car crash while driving home from the hospital. Mary struggles to move past her grief, but after the discovery of a letter from Matthew stating his intention to name Mary as his sole heiress, she recovers and begins helping her father and brother-in-law Tom manage the estate.
In the fourth series, Mary becomes an archetypal 'bright young thing' & is pursued by three suitors: Anthony Foyle, Evelyn Napier and Charles Blake. However, she eventually decides she does not want to marry any of them, providing a shock, especially for Tony. In the fifth series, Mary meets Henry Talbot, a distant relative to the Earls of Shrewsbury and a racing car driver by profession. Though Mary struggles to overcome her lingering grief over Matthew's death, she realises she loves Henry, and the two marry at the end of series six. In the first film, she has had a daughter with Henry named Caroline. In the second film, Mary has a flirtatious relationship with a film director named Jack Barber, but she stays faithful to Henry. In the third film, it is revealed that Mary has divorced Henry, for which she faces discrimination from her Edwardian era contemporaries. She had a one-night stand with Gus Sambrook, the financial adviser of her American maternal uncle Harold Levinson, for which she is briefly blackmailed, but Mary firmly resists it. At the end of the film, Mary acquires full control over the estates of the earldom and becomes the main occupant of Downton Abbey following her parents moving out to the dower house into retirement. Mary's on-and-off relationship with Henry Talbot is portrayed as the inspiration for Private Lives.