Christmas at Downton Abbey – Downton Abbey Season 2 Finale

Synopsis: Lord Grantham, Mrs. Hughes, and Miss O’Brien are called to testify in court and states facts that unwittingly lead to Mr. Bates’ guilt.  Lady Mary is growing more and more tired of Sir Richard Carlisle so much so that everyone can see that she is on edge including her father.  This prompts Lord Grantham to ask Lady Cora why their daughter feels obliged to marry such a man, and finally learns of Lady Mary’s secret.

Episode Summary: It is Christmas in 1919, and all at Downton Abbey are happily engaged in the preparation and celebration of such a joyous occasion except of course for Anna whose husband is on trial for his life.  Although it will not erase her worries, Lady Mary’s generous gift did at least touch and bring joy to Anna’s heart.  As it has always been, the servants celebrate Christmas at lunch with cheer, but Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson’s mind are with Mr. Bates whom Miss Shore, Lady Rosamund’s new maid, refers to as a murderer.  With the servants having their feast at luncheon, the masters are left to fend for their food, which is a tradition Sir Richard Carlisle would not allow in his home.  The Crawleys exchange gifts, and discuss their plans for the New Year Day’s celebration.  Lady Rosamund’s request to invite Lord Hepworth appears to have piqued Lady Violet’s interest for she knew his father.Continue reading...

Matthew Crawley learns that Lavinia’s father is fatally ill, and has decided to go to London to see him.  This news and Lord Grantham and a few of the servants having to testify on Mr. Bates’ trial cast a gloom over Downton Abbey.  All are concerned about Mr. Bates that the conversation at the dinner feast revolved around his trial.  Daisy finding an Ouija board, and O’Brien showing the other servants how to use it did not help brighten up the mood.  However, the game of charades appears to have done the trick for the Crawleys, but not for Sir Richard who finds it ridiculous.

With Christmas over, masters and servants alike go about their daily lives.  Mr. Carson decides to bring up the dreaded question of having to replace Mr. Bates, and recommends Thomas for the job.  Although Thomas’ previous transgressions have been forgiven, Lord Grantham is not quite at ease with the idea of being dressed and undressed by Thomas.  Meanwhile, Anna pays a visit to Mr. Bates who asks her to prepare for the worst to which she requests him to grant her to deal with it only after it has happened.  With Lady Edith disappointed at Sir Anthony Strallan rejecting Lord Grantham’s invitation for him to come shooting with them, Lady Violet takes it upon herself to invite the man for tea without informing her granddaughter.  Having been caught unaware of her grandmother’s guest, Lady Edith finds herself uncomfortable at receiving Lord Strallan.  Moreover, she soon learns that Sir Strallan’s war injury resulted at his losing faculty of his right arm, which is the reason why he had refused to come to the shoot.  Learning of this, Lady Violet regrets having set up the date between the two.  She would not want her granddaughter to spend the rest of her life being Sir Strallan’s nursemaid.

Lady Cora receives a letter from Sybil who is now residing in Ireland after being wed to Tom Branson in Dublin, a wedding that only Mary and Edith attended.  The letter brings news that Sybil is now with child, news that did not appear to please Lord Grantham.  No matter how ecstatic Lady Cora is with the news, she agrees to her daughter’s wish to keep the news of her pregnancy from her siblings.

Lord Hepworth arrives at Downton on New Year’s Eve, and wastes no time to flirt with Lady Rosamund.   Meanwhile, Miss Shore joins the other servants downstairs as they have a glass of wine to toast the New Year.  With Lord Hepworth staying at Downton Abbey without a valet, Mr. Carson assigned Thomas to attend to him.  Thomas senses Lord Grantham’s distrust, and gets advice from Miss O’Brien.  She suggests that he hide something Lord Grantham loves, find it, and give it back for his act would make him a hero in their master’s eyes.  With the servants celebrating downstairs, the masters are once again left to fend for themselves, a matter Sir Richard brings up once again.  This annoys Lady Mary who finds that the servants deserve to have a feast after spending the whole year attending to their needs.  Looking for a change in conversation she turns to Matthew who informs her that Mr. Swire has regretfully passed away, but he at least was there to accompany him in his last hour.  And at the stroke of the midnight hour, it is 1920.  Anna catches Lord Hepworth conversing with Shore, and although she says nothing about it, Shore shares the reason for their discussion.  According to her, Lord Hepworth has asked her to speak up for him to Lady Rosamund, and Anna’s advice is for her to stay away from those matters.

Everyone prepare for the shoot, and get their partners in order.  Sir Richard declares that Lady Mary will be standing by him on the first drive, but Matthew contests this making up a story of how Lady Mary agreed to be with him for the first drive.  Preferring to be with Matthew than with Sir Richard, Lady Mary joins in with the lie, and goes with Matthew.  Matthew confesses to be a bad shooter, and Mary confesses that Sir Richard is getting on her nerves.  The two find enjoyment in each other’s company.  Meanwhile, Daisy receives a surprise visit from Mr. Mason, and informs Mrs. Patmore that it is time for her to make things clear with him.  Mrs. Patmore begs the young kitchen maid not to push through with her plan saying that William would not want her to, but Daisy believes that William would not want her to lie to his father as well.  Daisy serves Mr. Mason tea, and prepares to tell him the truth.  Hearing how William felt so much joy at learning that she loved him too, Daisy could not bring herself to tell the man that she did not share the same love his son had for her.

Lady Edith foregoes the shoot to instead drop by Sir Strallan’s house to invite him to go for a drive.  The man, however, rejects her offer, but invites her to have tea with him.  His intention, however, is the opposite of what Lady Edith has in mind.  Sir Strallan makes it clear to her that the two of them have no future together for he is far too old for her.  Moreover, his disability is unfair to any woman who longs to be his wife for she will end up being his nurse.  Lady Edith, however, rejects Sir Strallan’s reasoning.

The first drive is over, and so Lady Mary must stand by Sir Richard.  The man has become more annoying than ever with him asking about what she and Matthew were laughing at earlier.  He goes on berating Lady Mary for being happier in Matthew’s company.  Matthew overhearing them arguing decides to go over to put a stop to it, and his presence did just that.  All stop for lunch, and discuss their plans for the coming days.  Matthew decides to attend Mr. Bates’ trial, and Mrs. Crawley asks Lord Grantham if she could come as well to which the man agrees.  However, Matthew’s trip to London is not solely to attend the trial, but also to attend Reggie Swire’s funeral.  The man has asked to have his ashes buried in Lavinia’s grave that is in Downton, and Matthew gladly plans to fulfill the man’s wish.  Lady Mary offers to accompany him when he performs the request. Meanwhile, Lord Hepworth leaves the shoot to chat with Lady Violet who bluntly brings up the matter of his finances, and his plan to marry Lady Rosamund that he may partake in the fortune of her late husband, Mr. Painswick.  Lord Hepworth insists that his intentions are genuine to which Lady Violet does not argue, but she insists that he inform Lady Rosamund of the state of his finances, and let her decide whether she is still interested with him.  The man does as he is told, and asks to have a word with Lady Rosamund later than night.

After dinner, Sir Richard is once again in an awful mood, and having grown impatient demands that Lady Mary set a date for their wedding.  The men including Matthew and Lord Grantham become witness to his threats to Lady Mary who walks out of the room, but only Matthew goes after her.  Matthew tells her that she does not have to marry Sir Richard for she will always have a home at Downton Abbey as long as he is alive, but Lady Mary tells him that she must marry him for a reason she believes would lead Matthew to despise her.

Miss O’Brien and Thomas take out the Ouija board again, and have Mrs. Patmore as their patsy.  The woman had asked to speak to her late nephew, Archie, and receives a message from him saying that she is too fat.  Not a fool, she is convinced that Thomas has been deliberately choosing the letters.  Mrs. Patmore leaves and orders Daisy to come with her, but Miss Shore says something to stir up her curiosity.  Miss Shore has been dropping seeds of ambition in Daisy hinting that given her talent she can become more than a kitchen maid.  Daisy, however, shrugs off her insinuations, and asks Mrs. Patmore to do the same.

Cora asks about the late call Robert received, and learns that it came from Mr. Murray who has asked permission to come to Downton to speak with the witnesses before the trial.  Robert agrees, and is not bothered by it, but is concerned about Mary and Carlisle.  Cora is not concerned about it believing that Mary has it under control, but Robert could not help but notice that his daughter is already unhappy with her fiancé.  Robert could not fathom why her daughter would want to marry that man seeing that she clearly dislikes him, and is surprised to hear from his wife that there is a reason he is unaware of.  Cora finally divulges to Robert Mary’s secret she helped cover up.

Mr. Murray arrives at Downton Abbey, and receives questions from Mrs. Hughes and Miss O’Brien as to why they have been called as witnesses for they claim to know nothing of the crime Mr. Bates is accused of.  The day of the trial has arrived, and Miss O’Brien takes the stand to tell the court of having heard Mr. Bates blaming Vera for canceling the divorce.  Knowing that her testimony would hurt Mr. Bates, she uncharacteristically tries to side with the man on trial.  However, when the prosecutor asks about the gash on Mr. Bates’ face the night he returned to Downton after meeting his wife, Miss O’Brien is left with no other choice but to inform the court that Mr. Bates had a scratch on his cheek.  Miss O’Brien tries to make an excuse for him having the gash, but is shut down.  Moreover, she was asked to relay to the court what Mr. Bates had said to Anna when the woman had asked him how the meeting with Vera had gone.  Miss O’Brien tells the court that according to Mr. Bates the meeting had been worse than she could possibly imagine.  It is now Mrs. Hughes turn to testify, and becomes nervous at being asked to tell the court what she heard when she eavesdropped on Mr. Bates and Vera’s conversation.  Mrs. Hughes reluctantly tells the court that Mr. Bates had called Vera a bitch, and that he had threatened to strike her.  The court takes a break, and after hearing Miss O’Brien and Mrs. Hughes testimony everybody seems to have a dim prospect of Mr. Bates fate.  Anna is surprised at Mrs. Hughes damning testimony, but Lady Mary and Mrs. Crawley comes to the governess’ defense telling her that it is difficult to lie at court and how Mrs. Hughes’ testimony appears to have pained her to tell.  Lord Grantham believes that his testimony informing the court that the crime Mr. Bates is accused of is beyond the man’s character will help the poor valet’s defense.  Lord Grantham takes the stand and speaks of Mr. Bates’ character and insists that he is a man who could not plot to kill his wife.  However, the prosecutor was able to draw out from Lord Grantham his advice to Mr. Bates to show restraint when he goes to London to meet his wife.  Lord Grantham could not remember having said so, but Mr. Bates has said it to the police in his interview.  Moreover, Lord Grantham had to relay to the court the conversation he had with Mr. Bates that led to his advice.  He had hoped that the reason for his needing to go to London is about a property he owned and not about the former Mrs. Bates, and he painfully tells the court that Mr. Bates had said “If only she was the former, or better still, the late.”  So it appears, the most damning testimony came from the most unlikely source, and that is Lord Grantham.  Both Mrs. Hughes and Miss O’Brien feel so guilty about their testimony though they had no intention of causing harm to Mr. Bates when put to the stand; they turn to Mrs. Crawley to impart to Anna that they meant no harm on his husband.  The jury has reached the verdict and they find Mr. Bates guilty of willful murder.  The judge then sentences John Bates to be executed by virtue of hanging.  Anna is beside herself upon hearing the fate of her husband.

Lady Violet has tea with Lady Rosamund and brings up the matter of Lord Hepworth only to learn that her daughter is very much aware that the man has lost his fortune.  Lady Rosamund, although unsure of Lord Hepworth, has not completely dismissed the idea of marrying the fortune hunter.  In fact, she had asked Lord Grantham to extend the invitation to the Servants’ Ball to her suitor.  Lady Violet is unsure if there will be a Servants’ Ball given the death sentencing of Mr. Bates.  In London, all gather in support of Anna who receives word from Mr. Murray that the judge handing a death sentence to Mr. Bates is a matter of routine for it is a verdict given to any man found guilty of murder.  Mr. Murray will work to change the sentence to life imprisonment to which Matthew adds that if they are successful in doing so then they may begin to build a challenge to the verdict.  Mr. Murray adds that the flaw in the prosecution’s case is the question of premeditation, and that they can argue that Mr. Bates did not plan to murder his wife.  Anna remains strong in her belief that John did not murder Vera, however, Mr. Murray honestly tells her that there is not a good chance that they will overthrow the verdict, but there still is a chance.

Mrs. Hughes and Miss O’Brien return to Downton Abbey with news of Mr. Bates’ verdict, but Mrs. Hughes stresses that she does not believe in Mr. Bates’ guilt.  Miss O’Brien though she does not expressly declare it shares the same belief as Mrs. Hughes, and moreover she feels sorry to be a part of it.  Thomas, on the other hand, could only think of him being Mr. Bates’ replacement as Lord Grantham’s valet, a thought so selfish that it disgusts even Miss O’Brien.  Learning that Lady Cora would want them to serve dinner twenty minutes after Lady Mary and Lord Grantham arrives after having put Anna in an inn to give her time to grieve, Daisy complains of the added pressure of the uncertainty of the time to serve dinner.  Mrs. Patmore scolds the young kitchen maid for ranting about something as shallow as preparing dinner when their colleague faces death.

Lord Grantham could no longer stand the chatter about Mr. Bates’ fate, and Lady Mary finds him sitting alone in the library.  She is surprised to hear him ask her about the true reason as to why she is marrying Sir Richard as her father candidly asks her whether she is doing it so to prevent him from exposing the story of Mr. Pamuk dying in her bed.  Mary admits that his supposition is partly true for she is damaged goods, and Carlisle is the one man who is willing to marry her in spite of the knowledge of what she had done.  Robert still could not fathom how Mary could marry the man she appears to already be tired of, and is even more surprised to learn that the matter with Mr. Pamuk is not what split her and Matthew apart for Matthew is unaware of it.  Mary informs her father that the reason for them not getting back together has to do with Lavinia, and the reason is final for Matthew so she has no future with him.  Robert wanting her daughter to be happy tells her to break her relationship with Carlisle even though it would bring scandal to the House of Grantham, and suggests that Mary stay in America until the fuss dies down.  Mary is brought to tears by her father’s intolerance to have her marry a man who threatens her with ruin.

Certain that Mr. Bates will not be returning to Downton Abbey soon or even at all, Thomas asks Mr. Carson if he has given any thought of him becoming Lord Grantham’s valet.  Mr. Carson having already brought the matter to Lord Grantham informs Thomas that his lordship believes that he is more suitable in his present position.  Thomas deduces that Lord Grantham’s decision stems from his distrust of him.  Meanwhile, Mrs. Patmore is tired of Daisy’s disposition, and learns that the young kitchen maid feels that she is taken for granted even though she has been a very good worker.  Moreover, Mr. Bates’ fate only reminded her that life is short, and that she is wasting hers.  Mrs. Patmore suggests that Daisy take a day off believing that she is having these thoughts because she is tired.  She suggests that she pay a visit to Mr. Mason’s farm.  Soon after, Lady Violet finds Daisy by the fire in the library weeping, and learns that the young kitchen maid believes that she was false to William for not loving him the same way he loved her.  Daisy did love William but confesses that he only married him to keep his spirits up when he lay dying.  To Lady Violet, this only showed that Daisy loved William a great deal.

As promised, Mary accompanies Matthew and Mrs. Crawley as he brings Reggie Swire’s ashes in Lavinia’s grave.  Mary hints of going away, which piques Matthew’s curiosity but says nothing more about it.  Mrs. Crawley tells her son that Mary is still in love with him, and tells him that Lavinia would not want him to be unhappy.  However, Matthew believes that he and Mary deserves to be unhappy to which Mrs. Crawley vehemently disagrees.

Anna pays a visit to John, and it pains her to hear her husband bid her and their friends goodbye.  He asks that she find it in her heart to forgive the witnesses including Miss O’Brien whose testimony unwittingly led to his guilty verdict.  Despite knowing his end, neither husband nor wife regrets having married each other no matter how brief a time they spent together.  Anna returns to Downton Abbey and tenders her resignation to Mrs. Hughes. Mr. Carson is concerned about the scandal befalling the House of Grantham and Anna keeping it alive with her being the widow of a murderer, but Mrs. Hughes does not share the same worry.  Mrs. Hughes rejects Anna’s resignation.

Thomas and Miss O’Brien are at the Ouija board again with Daisy intently looking on, but this time Mrs. Patmore is showing a rather keen interest on playing the game.  She takes Miss O’Brien’s place and asks who is out there.  The board points to the letter W, and when Daisy asks if it is William the board confirms it.  William’s apparent message for Daisy is for her to go to the farm and make his father happy.  Although it is clear that Mrs. Patmore made up the message, Daisy appears to have taken the request to heart.  Daisy confides in Mrs. Patmore about the message, and informs her of her decision to go to the farm to see Mr. Mason.

Confirming Lord Grantham’s distrust of him, Thomas sets out to gain his trust.  He brings his lordship’s beloved dog Isis in the woods, and traps her inside an old shed.  Matthew learning of the missing dog suggests that they organize a search party to go look for her.  All the men and his daughters join the search for Isis in the woods, but they are out of luck for the dog could not be found.  Seeing the shed where he trapped Isis, Thomas is anxious to get to it, but Lord Grantham calls it a night before he gets a chance to get to it.  Moreover, Mr. Carson instructs him to run back home and have Mrs. Patmore heat up some soup for the searchers.  On their way back, Matthew takes the opportunity to ask Mary the reason why she feels obliged to marry Carlisle.  Moreover, he is curious to know why she believes it will cause him to despise her if he found out.  Matthew learns Lord Grantham is aware of Mary’s reason and that he is very disappointed with her daughter, but even so he begs Mary to tell him.  Matthew is shocked to learn of the reason, and is caught off-guard by it.  He, however, insists that she should not marry Carlisle for doing so means that Mary will have to endure a lifetime of misery, the cost of buying off a month of scandal.  Moreover, he tells her that he could never despise her.

Daisy wastes no time to fulfill William’s supposed request and pays a visit to Mr. Mason’s farm.  The old man welcomes her as if he is his own child.  Daisy learns that William had siblings, but all died at an early age.  Moreover, Mr. Mason shares with her his belief that William married her just so he will not be alone for all his family are gone.  Mr. Mason asks Daisy if she would let him take care of her like a father.  Daisy confesses that she does not have parents, and have never been special to anyone to this Mr. Mason replies that she was special to William.  Daisy relishes in the thought that she was special to William, something she never realized before.  Furthermore, she is now special to Mr. Mason thanks again to William.  And like a real daughter, Daisy confides to Mr. Mason her grievances at work, and receives advice from him telling her to simply make a case with Mrs. Patmore explaining why she is worth more than she is getting.  Moreover, she should stop listening to the unsolicited advice Miss Shore has been giving her.

Thomas runs to the shed in the woods first thing in the morning to retrieve Isis only to find the shed unlocked.  His worst fear has happened, Isis is nowhere in sight.  He goes deeper into the woods and frantically looks for the dog.  A downtrodden and disheveled Thomas returns to Downton Abbey and is genuinely delighted to learn that Isis has returned.  Lord Grantham informs him that a village child found the dog trapped in a shed, and brought her home.  Although he did not actually find the dog, Lord Grantham is impressed at learning that Thomas took it upon himself to search for Isis.

So it seems that Thomas’ plan worked after all for Lord Grantham to the shock of Mr. Carson decides to give Thomas a chance to be his valet.  Lady Rosamund and Lord Hepworth return to Downton Abbey just learning that the Servants’ Ball has been canceled due to the uncertainty of Mr. Bates’ fate.  Anna having her resignation turned down and learning that Lady Mary has decided not to marry Carlisle and to go to America instead asks Lady Mary permission to come with her.  Lady Mary approves of her coming with her to America, but asks Anna not to give up hope just yet.  Anna informs Mrs. Hughes of her being allowed to go to America with Lady Mary, and the governess is relieved that Anna is not entirely leaving them.  It still, however, pains her to see her go and be in such grief for she has high respects and compassion for Anna and Mr. Bates.

Lady Mary now has the daunting task of breaking her engagement with Sir Richard.  She meets with him alone, and as expected receives the wrath of Sir Richard who promises her with ruin.  The man is furious that he is being cast off after all the favors he had done to protect the House of Granthams from scandal for it was him who bought the story of Lady Mary’s indiscretion and prevented people from linking Mr. Bates with the Crawleys.  Matthew hears the shouting and comes to Mary’s rescue, which only adds to Carlisle’s anger.  Carlisle taunts Matthew with a claim that Lavinia had long known that he did not love her, and how the poor young woman hoped Matthew would just admit it that the four of them may have a chance.  Matthew is beside himself at hearing this, and throws a punch at Carlisle; the two of them engage in a fistfight until Lord Grantham arrives to stop it.  Carlisle then derides Lord Grantham and holds over his head the scandal that will soon befall his family.  Sir Richard as planned leaves first thing in the morning, but in spite of the threats and insults Lady Mary genially bids him farewell.  She admits to having used him, and asks for his forgiveness.  Moreover, she does so without begging him not to expose her secret for she is prepared to weather the storm that is to come.  Gone is Sir Richard’s fury, and although he does not promise to keep her secret, he does tell Lady Mary that he loved her more than she would ever know.  Lady Mary prays that the next woman Sir Richard loves deserves him more than she did, and with that Sir Richard leaves Downton Abbey for good.

Anna sees Miss Shore chatting with Lord Hepworth once again, and the woman insists that the man has been bugging her to press his case to Lady Rosamund.  Meanwhile, Mr. Bates receives a telegram and hastily hands it to Lord Grantham who reads it and shares the good news that Mr. Bates has been reprieved.  Mr. Bates gets life imprisonment instead of being executed.  Lady Cora instructs Mr. Carson to get Anna at once that they may share the news with her.  Moreover, Lord Grantham believes in Mr. Bates’ innocence, and is certain that they will be able to prove his innocence in time.  Mr. Carson shares the good news with the rest of the servants and all rejoice including Miss O’Brien.  Moreover, Mr. Carson adds that they will be holding the Servants’ Ball that night.  Meanwhile, Anna rushes to London to see John, and informs him of her decision to stay at Downton believing that she may be of help in overturning his conviction.  Knowing that it would take years to prove his innocence, John makes Anna promise to live her life for his sake.

The Servants’ Ball has finally come, and the servants dance with their masters and mistresses.  Daisy takes the opportunity to take on Mr. Mason’s advice, and tells Mrs. Patmore of wanting to be made a proper assistant cook.  Mr. Mason’s advice worked for Mrs. Patmore has no objections to her demand, and is willing to bring it up to Mrs. Hughes and Lady Cora.  Anna not yet quite up to the task of living life sees Lord Hepworth and Miss Shore making their way up the stairs.  She informs Lady Mary of what she saw who then informs Lady Rosamund.  The three of them go up to Lord Hepworth’s room to find him on top of Miss Shore.  Though there is no denying his guilt, foolish Lord Hepworth scrambles to make excuses, but it is made clear that he and Miss Shore has been playing Lady Rosamund all along.  Lady Rosamund seems to have taken a blow at this discovery for although she would not admit it she appears to have fallen in love with the fortune hunter.

Matthew asks Mary to dance with him, and asks of her plans to go to America.  All are pleased to see the two dancing together especially Lord Grantham and Lady Cora.  Cora tells Robert of her regret at not attending Sybil’s wedding, and her plan to go see her daughter in Ireland and bring her and her husband back to Downton.  Robert finally agrees.  Having taken a moment to ask Lord Grantham permission to withdraw her resignation, Anna is relieved to know that his lordship has been hoping she would.  She joins Daisy downstairs with the Ouija board and takes the first step in living life.  The two receives a cryptic message of “May they be happy.  With my love.”  Both are startled at the realization that neither one of them was pushing the pointer.  Matthew finds Mary outside watching the snow fall, and he joins her.  Matthew with all certainty asks Mary for her hand in marriage, and she accepts.

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Episode 8 Season 2 – Downton Abbey Episode Summary 2.8

Synopsis: The preparations for Matthew and Lavinia’s wedding are underway, but masters and servants alike being hit with the Spanish flu causes the couple to delay their wedding.  Moreover, Lavinia becomes witness to something she has been dreading.  Lady Sybil’s decision to marry Tom Branson has been revealed infuriating Lord Grantham, and causing a stir in their family.  Following Lady Sybil’s determination, Anna takes courage and tells Mr. Bates of her decision to marry him despite the trials and tribulations that are coming their way.

Episode Summary: Downton Abbey is abuzz with the preparations for Matthew Crawley and Lavinia Swire’s wedding.  Matthew who a few months ago was told that he could never walk again is now on his feet.  His having to rely on a cane, however, frustrates him.  As if the whole household does not have enough to think of with the upcoming wedding and whatnot, Lady Sybil plans on telling her parents about her decision to marry their chauffer, Tom Branson.  The urgency is due to Tom being offered a job as a journalist at a newspaper in Dublin.  As the Crawleys wait for their dinner, Tom arrives surprising everyone, and soon it is revealed that he and Lady Sybil have fallen in love and plan to get married.  Lord Grantham is infuriated with what he had heard, and at first dismisses his daughter’s plan to marry their chauffer as folly, but soon learns that Lady Sybil is serious about her decision.  She is to go to Dublin to live with Tom’s mother while the banns are read, and soon after they are wed she is to work as a nurse, while Tom works as a journalist. Continue reading...

Mrs. Hughes receives a surprising letter from Mrs. Bryant telling her that she and her husband would like to see Ethel’s baby.  Seeing the wrath of Mr. Bryant, Mrs. Hughes is having second thoughts about having them reenter Ethel’s life moreover her son’s, but the decision is not hers to make.  She pays a visit to Ethel to deliver the news, and the young mother agrees to have them meet their grandson.  Mrs. Hughes arranges the meeting to occur at Downton.

Thomas having lost everything in the black market finds himself begging for Mr. Carson to let him stay at Downton Abbey while he tries to find a job and a place to live.  Gone is his air of arrogance, and also gone is Mr. Carson’s compassion for the man who once bragged about leaving the life of service.  Little did he know that it was Branson who found his way out.  Branson arrives at the servant hall with only Anna by his side for none of the servants except for Mr. Carson know of his plan to marry Lady Sybil.  Mr. Carson finds him making the announcement to the rest of the servants, and derides him for it.  As expected, Branson is no longer to work for the Crawleys, and he is asked to leave Downton Abbey.  Branson makes it known that he will be staying at the Grantham Arms until Lady Sybil joins him for Dublin.  Meanwhile, Lord Grantham speaks to Lady Sybil in a last attempt to dissuade her from marrying Branson, but his approach is shallow and his threats hollow.  Lady Sybil could not care less about her status or money.  In fact, she longs for the drastic change in her lifestyle.  Lady Cora speaks to her husband on what their next step would be, but unlike Lord Grantham she knows that their daughter’s decision was not out of folly.

Mr. Carson has gotten ill, and if not for Mrs. Hughes urging he would still have served dinner.  Having agreed to get some rest, Mr. Carson has Mr. Molesley help with the dinner service.  Anna briefs Mr. Molesley about the dinner service starting with the wines they serve.  Thomas who has served dinner at Downton Abbey numerous times wonders why he was not asked to help, and the answer comes bluntly from Mrs. Patmore who tells him that being helpful is not his character.  Mr. Molesley takes everything seriously afraid to make a mistake, but it seems that he too has gotten ill.  Matthew notices this when Molesley becomes unusually clumsy at dinner, and Lady Cora confesses to not feeling quite all right as well and excuses herself from dinner.  Mr. Molesley soon finds himself to be unable to function, and is sent down to the servant’s hall leaving Anna to serve dinner.  News of him being taken ill as well creates an air of concern, and Lavinia informing them that she too is not feeling quite well proves disturbing especially for Matthew.  Dr. Clarkson arrives to check on the people that have fallen ill and diagnoses that the patients have gotten the Spanish flu except for Molesley who has only gotten himself drunk.

With Lavinia in Mary’s room resting, Matthew finds a way to distract himself from worrying about his fiancée.  He puts a record on the gramophone Lavinia’s cousins sent as a wedding gift, and Mary finds herself watching him.  Mary then informs him that Dr. Clarkson has instructed them to have Lavinia stay for the night that he may see her tomorrow.  Soon Matthew and Mary find themselves dancing to the song “Look for the Silver Lining” from the unsuccessful musical Zip, Goes a Million, which leads Mary to comment that their relationship too was a flop.  This prompted Matthew to express how sorry he is for their fate, and confesses that Lady Violet had asked him to marry Mary instead, but he could not bring himself to discard even if it means letting the love of his life slip by because Lavinia was willing to sacrifice her life and future for him.  Mary, although shocked at Matthew’s confession, agrees that he could not possibly follow his heart at the expense of Lavinia.  Matthew passionately kisses Mary and she reciprocates only to be interrupted by Lavinia who is now out of bed and feeling much better.  Although she does not say for sure, Lavinia hints of having seen them, and tells Matthew to never let her be a nuisance and begs him not to let her get in the way.

Jane finds Lord Grantham on his way to bed and takes the opportunity to tell him that her son has been admitted to Ripon Grammar.  Lord Grantham finds himself once again confiding to Jane about him losing Lady Sybil, and Jane hints of her willingness to provide him comfort.  Lord Grantham brings Jane to his room and the two passionately kiss only to be interrupted by Mr. Bates who have come to ask when Lord Grantham wants to be woken up.  Lord Grantham makes it a point to hide Jane from Mr. Bates’ view, and the valet leaves without seeing her, but the moment is lost.  Lord Grantham, although he confesses to want to be with Jane, comes to his senses and pushes her away.

Lord Grantham pays a visit to Branson and offers him money in exchange for Lady Sybil.  Branson is insulted, but not the least bit threatened.  Lord Grantham orders him to leave Downton, but the young man gives him fair warning that Lady Sybil will leave with him if he does so.  He returns home with a heavy heart, and with more bad news.  Lady Cora’s condition has gotten worse, and some of the maids have gotten the Spanish flu as well.  With Downton Abbey not functioning in full capacity, and people including Lavinia still suffering the effects of the flu, Mrs. Crawley takes it upon herself to tell Lavinia and Matthew that their wedding needs to be postponed.

Lady Sybil’s courage and determination to live a life entirely different from what she knows gave Anna the strength to tell Mr. Bates that they are to be married in spite of the tough road they have in front of them.  Anna will not watch on the sidelines as Mr. Bates defends his innocence, and she is determined to be by his side as his wife.  Mr. Bates does as he is told, and has begun the process of acquiring a marriage license for him and Anna.  They are to be married in the afternoon that Friday.  Knowing that the house is in chaos with people being struck with the Spanish flu, Anna hesitantly informs Lady Mary of her and Mr. Bates having to take the afternoon off to get married.  Lady Mary is happy for Anna and commends her courage to marry a man who may soon be put in prison for being falsely accused of murdering his wife.

With all the bustle at the house, everyone has forgotten about the Bryants dropping by to see their grandson.  Mrs. Hughes receives the Bryants and receives the same rude attitude from Mr. Bryant she witnessed the last time he was at Downton Abbey.  Ethel arrives, and presents Charlie to his grandmother who accepts him wholeheartedly as Major Bryant’s son for she knew he was his after seeing the undeniable resemblance with his father.  Ethel soon learns the reason for their visit.  The Bryants want to take Charlie with them consequently separating the child from his mother.  Mrs. Hughes proposes having Ethel be Charlie’s nurse, and Mrs. Bryant is open to this idea, but Mr. Bryant is strongly opposed to it.  Mr. Bryant does not want the child to know that his mother is a housemaid.  He is to be raised by his grandparents as an orphan with his father being killed in the war, and his mother dying of Spanish flu.  Ethel appeals once again to be Charlie’s nurse, and promises never to let the child know her real relationship with him.  Ethel appeals to Mrs. Bryant, but she is under the control of her husband, and has no say to the matter at all.  They leave the decision of what is best for Charlie to Ethel.

Thomas proves himself to be useful as he goes an extra mile helping out at the house without asking for anything in return; he considers his service as payment for his stay at Downton Abbey.  Miss O’Brien displays genuine concern and loyalty to Lady Cora as she stays with her at all hours.  She expresses her concern to Daisy and Mrs. Patmore who are astonished to see her uncharacteristically genuinely worried about someone.  O’Brien worries that Lady Cora is at the end of her life, and there is something she wants to tell her.  O’Brien is left alone with Lady Cora, and asks for her forgiveness for something she had done to her that she bitterly regrets; the guilt constantly hangs over her head.  Unfortunately, Lady Cora is too delirious to understand what she had confessed.  O’Brien’s guilt continues to gnaw at her, and Lord Grantham sincerely thanking her for looking after Lady Cora only adds to her troubled conscience.

With Lavinia and Matthew agreeing to postpone the wedding until Lavinia is up and about, Matthew takes it upon himself to inform all their relatives and guests.  Matthew speaks privately with Lavinia to discuss the new date for their wedding, and shamefully learns that Lavinia had seen him and Mary dancing.  Moreover, she heard what he said, and saw what he did.  Goodhearted Lavinia does not feel any anger towards Matthew, in fact, she finds that it is noble of him to keep his word.  Lavinia, however, could not bear to deprive Matthew of a chance at true love even though he is hers.  Lavinia has long ago felt that she might not be right for him, and seeing them together only made it very clear to her.  Overcome with guilt, Matthew tries to convince Lavinia that they are to be married, and there is no point in sending him off to pursue Mary for she is already marrying someone else.

Sir Richard Carlisle arrives at Downton Abbey with the pretense of lending a hand to the Crawleys.  Lady Mary sees right through him when he starts asking about Lavinia’s condition.  The man has come to ensure that Lavinia and Matthew’s wedding will push through, and to ensure that Matthew will not fall into Lady Mary’s arms if Lavinia succumbs to the Spanish flu.  Sir Richard does not deny this.  It is not Lavinia whom they should worry about, but Lady Cora for her condition has gotten much worse with her hemorrhaging.  Dr. Clarkson cannot do much about it aside from hoping that the medicine he gave her will work, and his conclusion is that if Lady Cora survives through the night then she should be out of the weeds.  Mr. Carson’s condition has improved, and he worries about Lady Cora and Miss Swire, but Dr. Clarkson is confident that Lavinia is not doing too bad at all.  Lady Mary pays a visit to Mr. Carson, and with a few words have their fences mended.  She does warn him about Thomas who although has recently been obliging and has been acting like the perfect servant might have an ulterior motive.

Lady Sybil runs to inform them that Lavinia has unexpectedly turned for the worse.  Everyone runs to be by her side, but Sir Richard stops Lady Mary who then escapes his grip.  Unlike Lady Cora whose gruesome symptoms have manifested early, Lavinia did not show any until now.  Dr. Clarkson finds that the young woman is now fatally ill, and there is nothing that can be done.  Matthew stays by her side, and speaks to her; the only thing he could do to give her comfort.  Lavinia tells Matthew that her dying makes it better for both of them, and she tells him to be happy for her sake.  She asks Matthew to promise to her that he will be happy for that is what she wants.  Matthew filled with guilt tells her that he cannot be happy without her, but his words failed to reach Lavinia for death has come to her.

Matthew still overcome with grief returns to Downton Abbey in a daze and finds the servants taking down the décor put up for his and Lavinia’s wedding\.  Lord Grantham informs him that he already took care of the arrangements for Lavinia’s funeral, which made her death a reality.  Matthew purposefully refuses to see Mary, but is careful not to reveal his reasons.  Lavinia’s goodness did not pass unnoticed that even Mr. Carson feels sorry to learn that she passed away despite him not wanting her to be the wife of the future Earl of Grantham.  Lady Cora who survived the Spanish flu in spite of her ordeal learns of Lavinia’s passing, and tells her husband that she wants to pay her respects if she can.  Although unaware of Lord Grantham’s affair with Jane, Lady Cora asks her husband if their marriage is all right.  Moreover, she apologizes for having neglected him.

Ethel pays a visit to Mrs. Hughes to inform her of her decision.  Hearing of the death in the house, Ethel has come to a realization that life is too short.  She has decided to keep Charlie for she cannot imagine life without him.  Ethel believes that what’s best for Charlie is his mother’s love.  Mrs. Hughes seems to approve of her decision, and volunteers to write to the Bryants in her behalf.

John Bates and Anna May Smith arrive at the Ripon Register Office and at long last are wed.  They return to Downton Abbey as husband and wife, but no one else knows except Lady Mary.  They have decided to keep it secret until after the funeral.  Lady Mary has a surprise for the newly weds, and she brings Anna to a room with fresh flowers on the bed.  She with the help of Jane prepared for them a honeymoon suite where Anna and Mr. Bates can be a proper husband and wife.

Lord Grantham calls for Mr. Carson forgetting that he is ill, and gets Jane instead.  This gave him the opportunity to speak to her privately, but learns that Jane has tendered her resignation and has already packed her bags.  Lord Grantham does not ask her to stay this time, and instead gives her the name and address for his man of business that her son may have a start in life.  Jane accepts it gladly for Lord Grantham tells her that it will make him happy.  Lord Grantham believes that he has no right to be unhappy, which is almost the same as being happy.  Jane asks permission to kiss him, and the two kiss one last time.

Daisy keeps receiving letters from Mr. Mason who asks her to come visit him at the farm to talk about William.  Daisy who has not gotten over the guilt of marrying William under false pretenses no matter how noble the reasons were cannot bring herself to visit her father-in-law.  Mrs. Hughes and Mrs. Patmore urge her to accept the old man’s invitation, but Daisy puts her foot down and refuses.  She, however, sees Mr. Mason by William’s grave, and decides to join him.

Lavinia is laid to rest at Downton.  Everyone leaves except Matthew, and Lady Mary asks Sir Richard permission to give her a moment with him.  Mary offers help of any kind to Matthew, but he tells her that there is nothing she can do.  Moreover, he informs her that Lavinia heard what he said, and saw everything that had happened between them.  He tells Mary that Lavinia had asked him to cancel their wedding for she believes that he belongs with her.  Matthew believes that Lavinia gave up on life, because of what she saw.  Lavinia died of a broken heart, and it was he and Mary who killed her.  Because of this, they can never be happy, and therefore it is the end for them.  Mary agrees, and to show that she has accepted her fate, she goes away with Sir Richard leaving Matthew behind.  Lord Grantham sees Lady Sybil speaking with Branson, and finally accepts her daughter’s decision to marry Branson.  Moreover, he gives them his blessing.  Lord Grantham shakes Branson’s hand, and watches as her daughter walks away with him.

The servants return from the funeral, and Mrs. Patmore hesitantly delivers some grim news for Mr. Bates.  The police have arrived to arrest Mr. Bates, and charge him with murder.  Anna, of course, tries to stop the police from taking her husband away much to the surprise of the servants who knew nothing of their marriage.  The police cuff Mr. Bates and lead him out of Downton.

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Episode 7 Season 2 – Downton Abbey Episode Summary 2.7

Synopsis: With the war over, the Crawleys and their servants get on with their lives.  An accident revealed a miraculous surprise for Matthew.  Sir Richard makes a devious request to Anna that she refuses and informs Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson about.  The Bryants have decided to drop by Downton to see and speak to the people who knew Major Bryant as part of their way of coping with losing their only son.  Mrs. Hughes plans on speaking to Mrs. Bryant to appeal to her in Ethel’s behalf.  Mr. Bates receives news of Vera sending a letter to a friend telling her that she is afraid for her life.

Episode Summary: It’s 1919 and the convalescent home at Downton Abbey has closed, gone are the equipment, and gone are the wounded officers except for Matthew who is still staying at the house.  Cora believes that it is high time for Matthew to return to the Crawley house, but Robert finds this request distasteful especially her supposition that Matthew’s presence is holding back Mary.  Moreover, Robert does not believe in protecting Mary by marrying her off to Richard.  Lord Grantham decides takes a walk to the village to avoid having to receive Sir Richard when on his return he happens to find Jane on her knees picking up the apples that have fallen on the ground.  Lord Grantham helps her, and chats with her about her son Freddie whom he had helped get into Ripon Grammar.  He then begins to confide in her his ponderings about the war of how many lives were sacrificed for it.  The arrival of the tardy Sir Richard interrupts their conversation. Continue reading...

With the convalescent home no longer in operation, Thomas finds himself in need of work, and found that there is a future for him in the black market business.  Thomas needs only to pay his dealer, and he is ready for business.  Given the shortages, Thomas is certain that his business will take off giving him enough money to go into legal trade.  O’Brien is concerned for his safety, but Thomas is not worried about the police seeing that they have not been looking into the black market.  Nonetheless, she gives him fair warning that he might be asked to leave Downton Abbey soon for there is no reason for him to be living there.

The world has changed from fashion to the way of living, and both Lady Violet and Lord Grantham are reluctant to these changes with Lord Grantham feeling that his life had value before the war.  The opposite is true with Lady Sybil who had been busy caring for the wounded as a nurse in the war; she finds the return to her old life to be dreary.  Lady Sybil confides in Branson who was hopeful that the young lady has made up her mind.  Sybil could not bear having to go back to her old haughty life, and confides in Edith that she has found a way out of it.  Moreover, she is aware that there is no going back once she has taken the path to her new life, but it is what she wants.  Sybil is surprised to learn that Edith wants to move forward as well, and she tells her sister that she does not have to go back.  In fact, she finds that the war has made Edith a much better person.

With the imminent marriage of Sir Richard and Lady Mary, Mr. Carson finds himself about to face the regrettable choice he had made.  Mr. Carson confides to Mrs. Hughes that he regrets having to leave Downton Abbey, but his belief that he will be able to help Lady Mary in her early years of marriage makes it worthwhile.  Mrs. Hughes could not understand the love Mr. Carson has for Lady Mary.  Mr. Carson having known Lady Mary since she was a child remembers her coming to him when she was about four or five years old with a plan to runaway.  She had come to him to ask for some of the silverware that she hopes to sell.  Mr. Carson instead gives her some money to which she tells him he should charge her with some interest.  The young Lady Mary then gives him a kiss, and since then has gained a special place in Mr. Carson’s heart.

Sir Richard speaks privately to Anna about spying on Lady Mary, and offers her money in return for her service.  Anna knowing what a violation it is to Lady Mary to do so immediately turns down Sir Richard’s offer.  Afraid that Anna would go to Lady Mary with his underhanded request, Sir Richard asks the maid not to say a word to his fiancée about their conversation.  Troubled with the incident, Anna speaks in confidence to both Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson about Sir Richard’s request.  Upon hearing of the man’s devious request, Mr. Carson decides to rescind his decision to leave Downton Abbey for Haxby Park.  He informs Lady Mary of his decision, which riled her in spite of hearing his reason.  Mr. Carson cannot work for a man who pays someone to spy on his future wife.  Despite his noble reason, Lady Mary finds Mr. Carson’s withdrawal a disappointment.  Moreover, she insults Mr. Carson with her comment that not having him at Haxby Park is not a complete loss for butlers are two a penny.

Matthew after being told by Dr. Clarkson that the tingling he has been feeling on his legs is just an illusion decides to get Mr. Bates’ opinion about it asking what the man would do if he were in his shoes.  Mr. Bates advice is to wait and see for he believes that if there is really a change then it will materialize sooner or later.  Matthew unwilling to give anyone false hope asks him to keep their conversation to themselves.

Learning from Lady Cora that the Bryants have decided to drop by Downton Abbey to speak to the people Major Bryant knew as part of their remembrance of him, Mrs. Hughes decides to inform Ethel of the news, and moreover of her plan to speak privately with Mrs. Bryant.  Mrs. Hughes plans on telling her about Major Bryant’s son, Charlie.  Ethel is to wait at the game larder with the child in case Mrs. Bryant’s decides that she wants to see her grandson.

Lord Grantham is looking for Mr. Carson, but finds Jane instead.  Caught up in close quarters, Lord Grantham fails to contain the urge and kisses Jane passionately.  Though caught by surprise, Jane does not resist.  Lord Grantham realizes his inappropriate behavior and asks for the maid’s forgiveness, which she accepts.  Flustered, Jane runs downstairs, and clumsily informs Mr. Carson that Lord Grantham is waiting for him at the dressing room.  Mr. Carson informs Lord Grantham of having withdrawn his decision to leave Downton Abbey for Haxby Park for he could not bring himself to work for a man he could not respect no matter how much he feels the need to protect Lady Mary from him.  With the cat out of the bag, Lady Mary becomes upset with Anna for not coming to her first about Sir Richard’s request unaware that the man has forbidden her, but her anger might have stemmed from the consequence of Mr. Carson’s decision not to work for her.

With everyone else still getting ready for dinner, Matthew and Lavinia wait in the library for them.  Lavinia sees a tray of dishes that haven’t been cleared, and takes it upon her to put them away.  Matthew tells her to just ring the bell, but Lavinia always considerate does not want to bother the servants whom she knows are busy preparing dinner.  Lavinia fails to see the footstool that was lying on the floor, and trips over flinging the tray of dishes, and almost hitting her head on the hearth.  Matthew having witnessed all of this gets up from his wheelchair to help her fiancée only realizing then that he has regained function of his legs.  Having heard of the news, Lord Grantham excitedly calls his family to witness the miracle.  All gather around Matthew as he with the help of Lavinia stands up from his wheelchair.  With Sybil’s suggestion, Lord Grantham instructs Edith to go with Branson to fetch Dr. Clarkson, Lady Violet and Mrs. Crawley right away.  Dr. Clarkson arrives at Downton Abbey to explain the miracle of Matthew being able to stand again.  He admits to have been mistaken in his diagnosis of Matthew’s spine being transected, and in fact, the other doctor, Sir John Coates believed that Matthew was only suffering from spinal shock.  Because Dr. Clarkson did not agree with Sir John Coates diagnosis, he kept it to himself believing that it will only have given Matthew false hope.  Matthew understands Dr. Clarkson’s decision, and does not blame him for his judgment call.  Matthew is just too happy to know that he will soon have a normal life.

A comment from Lord Grantham about the manner by which Vera had died has been nagging on Mr. Bates that reticent as he is he felt the need to share it with Anna.  Lord Grantham believes that the woman’s death could not have been an accident for Vera would have bought the poison and taken it home with her.  She would have knowingly taken the poison, but Vera not leaving a suicide note adds another layer of doubt about her death.  Mr. Bates concern is that he was the one who bought the poison when they were still living together.  He had bought it upon the instruction of his wife who told him that they needed rat poison.  It is only now that he realized that the rat poison must have been what Vera used to take her own life.  Mr. Bates has not informed the police of this discovery, but Anna urges him to, because keeping it silent would only make it worse for him when they find out.  This is good advice for soon Mr. Bates learns that Vera has sent a letter to a friend informing her of his visit, and had written that she is afraid for her life.  Vera has painted Mr. Bates as a man out for revenge after she had taken all his money and ruined his chance for divorce.  Moreover, her dying only benefits him for not only will he inherit her money, he too can now marry whomever and whenever he likes.

At dinner, Lady Violet wonders why Sir Richard is in a rush to finish renovating Haxby Park, and learns that he is unsure if living close to Downton is the best move for him and Lady Mary.  Renovating the house will allow him to sell it easily if they decide that Haxby Park is not suitable for them.  If Matthew is the reason why living so near to Downton Abbey might not be a good idea then he need not be concerned for Matthew given his miraculous recovery has announced that he and Lavinia who had stayed with him through thick and thin are once again engaged to be married.  With Lord Grantham’s permission, Matthew and Lavinia are to be wed at Downton to allow them to bury the darkest period in his life with such a joyous occasion.  Lady Cora and Lady Violet could see the sadness in Lady Mary’s face at this announcement no matter how she tries to mask it with her smile.

All this talk of Matthew and Lavinia getting married at Downton has made Lady Sybil realize that the war is truly over, and that it is time to move forward.  Lady Sybil goes to Branson to tell him of her decision.  Sybil finds in Tom a ticket to get away from Downton and from the way of life she no longer wants.  Tom is overjoyed and beyond belief.  Tom and Sybil finally kiss.

Cora puts a damper on the evening that had gone so well with her annoyance at Robert for agreeing to host Matthew and Lavinia’s wedding for doing so means that Mary and Richard’s wedding will have to be delayed.  Robert has once again put Matthew first before his own daughter.  Cora may have won the argument if she had not sounded so selfish at using Matthew’s being lame to be the reason why Robert took pity on him enough to agree to host his wedding, because she could not be more wrong.

Thomas brings O’Brien to the shed in the village where he has been keeping the supplies he bought from the black market.  The supplies cost him an arm and a leg, but Thomas is not worried, because he believes he can make a hefty profit off of them.  O’Brien sees Mrs. Patmore as Thomas’ first client with all her complaining of having no supply to work with.  O’Brien helps Thomas get Mrs. Patmore to buy his goods that the woman already finds suspect, but nonetheless she asks him to produce the ingredients she will be using for Matthew’s wedding cake.  Thomas and O’Brien are quite pleased at having their first client.  Daisy hearing of Mrs. Patmore making a wedding cake asks if she could be the one to make it, and because she has not made one before she has offered to do it early in case it does not come out right; this way Mrs. Patmore will have enough time to create a new one.

The Bryants arrive at Downton Abbey, and although Mrs. Bryant is very courteous not the same can be said about Mr. Bryant who greets the Granthams with an air of irritation as though meeting them is such a chore.  He informs the Granthams that they are in a hurry, and will not be staying too long.  To Mr. Carson’s surprise, Mrs. Hughes has come to receive the Bryants unaware of her motives.  With Mrs. Bryant wanting to see Major Bryant’s room, Mrs. Hughes takes the opportunity to be the one to bring her, but Lady Cora offered to give her the tour along with Lord Grantham.  With the Bryants already at the dining room having luncheon with the Crawleys, Mrs. Hughes informs Ethel who has been hiding in the game larder the unfortunate news that her plan has failed.  She tells Ethel that she must leave for there is no point in staying.  Mrs. Hughes makes her way back to the kitchen when she sees Ethel hastening by clearly on her way to the dining room.  Ethel manages to enter the dining room carrying with her little Charlie.  All are shocked at the sight of her, and Lady Cora who knows exactly the purpose of her barging in tries to explain, but Ethel would want them to hear it from her.  Ethel introduces Charlie as the Bryants’ grandson.  Mr. Bryant is in disbelief, and demands proof of Major Bryant acknowledging paternity of little Charlie.  Ethel informs him that Major Bryant was aware of the existence of his child, but never did anything about it.  This, however, was proof for Mr. Bryant that Major Bryant is not the father of the child for he believes that his son would never evade his responsibilities.  Mr. Bryant yells at Ethel to leave telling her that she is upsetting Mrs. Bryant who meekly disagrees for she wants to see the child, and the truth is it was Mr. Bryant who had upset everybody with his maltreatment of Ethel.  Mr. Bryant is convinced that Ethel was only after money believing that the young woman has learned that Major Bryant is an only child of a well-off family, but Mrs. Bryant is not so sure.  Mrs. Crawley who almost lost his only son feels for Mrs. Bryant.  Afraid that his wife might want to pursue their grandson Mr. Bryant gets up from his chair, walks out of the luncheon ordering his wife to do the same without showing any courtesy to the hosts.  Ethel is brought downstairs to the servants’ hall, and having seen the wrath of Mr. Bryant she tells herself that she is better off without the Bryants’ help.

Having been witnesses to the scandalous incident, the Crawleys discuss what had just transpired.  Lady Mary feels for Ethel, but Sir Richard believes that there is no legal reality to her claim.  Hearing that there is nothing that can be done, Lady Mary believes that the matter is a lost cause for Ethel has made a choice, one she cannot undo.  Lady Mary, however, may have been speaking of the choice she made.  Lady Violet, ever insightful, privately speaks to Matthew to inform him that Mary is still in love with him.  This the old lady confirmed at the sight of Mary’s reaction at hearing the news of Matthew and Lavinia’s decision to pursue their marriage.  The fact of the matter is Lady Violet had known for a very long time that Mary had always loved Matthew, but seeing that there is no future for them together given his paralysis she had let her granddaughter look for happiness elsewhere.  Lady Violet now wonders if Matthew could love Mary again.  Whether or not Matthew still loves Mary, he cannot just put aside Lavinia who after being shunned returns with a renewed determination to selflessly look after him for the rest of his life even with the knowledge that he cannot fulfill all the duties of a husband.  Although Lady Violet believes that Matthew is doing the noble thing in marrying Lavinia, she does not agree that he is marrying her for the right reasons.  She is at peace with Matthew’s decision.  She could only hope that he had made the right one for his sake.

Edith asks Lavinia if they have set a date for the wedding, and the young woman supposes that she and Matthew can be wed by April.  Richard is getting anxious about his own wedding as well, and asks Mary when they are to hold it.  Mary feeling obliged to get hers done once and for all agrees to set the date for the end of July.  She then confronts Richard about him asking Anna to spy on her.  She is affronted at her fiancé having to bribe her maid to learn what she is up to, and so she requests that going forward he should just ask her.  Having handed the opportunity, Richard asks Mary if she is still in love with Matthew.  Mary, however, handles the question well.  How could she love a man who preferred someone else over her?  Later, Mary notices that Sybil is not in sight worrying her.  She drops by her bedroom to say goodnight, but finds that no one is answering the door.  Mary knows that something is wrong, and with Anna’s help they manage to get the key from Mrs. Hughes without alarming her.  There is reason to be alarmed for Sybil has left a letter in her room informing her family that she has eloped, and is already on her way to Gretna Green.  Edith, Mary, and Anna go after Sybil believing that they would have stopped at an inn on their way to their final destination.  Anna spots the car parked by The Swan Inn.  Mary and Edith barges inside Tom and Sybil’s room, and finds that the two have not shared a bed.  Sybil makes it clear that being caught with Tom will not change a thing, and Mary agrees but she pleads with her sister to give their parents the chance to get used to the idea of her marrying Tom.  Sybil does not believe that their parents will ever give her permission to marry Tom, but Mary argues that she does not need one for she is already an adult.  She, however, would need to ask for their forgiveness in order for her to truly move forward.  Tom believes that Mary is only tricking her into going back with them, but Sybil sees the sense in Mary’s argument.  Sybil believes that her parents deserve to be told of her decision, and so she will return to Downton Abbey but assures Tom that she will stay true to him.

Morning came and Lord Grantham and Lady Cora haven’t a clue of the previous night’s events in spite of their daughters not showing up for breakfast.  Lady Cora assumes that they just had plans of their own given that she too has made plans to help Mrs. Crawley with the refugees.  Lady Cora finds that the war has changed her, and that she now finds a need to be useful.  Meanwhile, Lord Grantham finds that he has not changed.  With everyone going about their own business, Lord Grantham is once again left to his own devices, and how lonely he feels.  Having been left alone, Jane takes the opportunity to tender her resignation for she finds it unfair for Lord Grantham to be uncomfortable in his own house, and her leaving would ensure that he would be left in peace.  Lord Grantham rejects Jane’s resignation knowing that he is at fault.  He could not bring himself to deprive her of her livelihood, because of his inappropriate behavior.

Thomas arrives with all the supplies Mrs. Patmore had asked including those that they haven’t seen since the war started.  Knowing very well that she is Thomas’ first client, Mrs. Patmore holds payment until Daisy has baked the cake and she is pleased with the results.  Daisy having been allowed to bake a wedding cake for the first time in her life is keyed up to see how it went that she checks on the cake very late that evening.  Mrs. Patmore sees her, and the two of them try a piece they had set aside for tasting.  The cake is inedible, and Daisy is at a loss at what could have gone wrong for she keenly followed Mrs. Patmore’s instructions.  Her mistake lies in not tasting the mixture before she baked it.  Mrs. Patmore tries Thomas’ ingredients and finds that two thirds of the flour is plaster dust, and that the candied peel has gone beyond expiration.  Thomas learning of the inedible cake Daisy has made thanks to his supplies goes to his shed, and in his anger turns it upside down.  O’Brien finds Thomas in his shed, and learns that he had spent his life savings on rubbish.  Moreover, there is no way to get his money back for the man he met at a pub who sold him the fake goods is probably long gone and won’t be seen again.  Thomas has no job, no money, and no place to live.

Mrs. Crawley brings down a toy Molesley found in Matthew’s dressing room, and asks him about it.  He informs her that it was a charm that was given to him during the war.  Since the war is already over, and he is now safe from harm, she asks if she should include it to the donations for the village children and is quite surprised by Matthew’s reaction.  Matthew grabs the toy from her, and resolutely refuses to give it away making an excuse that it may be bad luck not to keep it.  Lavinia though surprised as well of Matthew’s reaction towards the lucky charm thinks or at least says nothing of it.

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Episode 6 Season 2 – Downton Abbey Episode Summary 2.6

Synopsis: A disfigured officer arrives at Downton Abbey and claims himself to be Patrick Crawley.  Sir Richard Carlisle notices that Lady Mary is spending too much time with Matthew, and persuades Lady Cora to bring Lavinia back into Matthew’s life.  Mr. Bates learns that Vera has found a way to prevent him from getting a divorce.

Episode Summary: With Matthew Crawley breaking his relationship with Lavinia and sending her off to London, the newly engaged Mary has willingly taken up the job of caring for Matthew.  Sir Richard Carlisle is fully aware of this arrangement, but seems to be comfortable with it.  In fact, he has paid a visit to Downton in order to take Mary house hunting.  Sir Richard has found Haxby Park to be the most suitable place for the two of them to settle in given its proximity to Downton Abbey and it being vacant for the previous owner no longer resides there. Continue reading...

Dr. Clarkson arrives at Downton Abbey to relay a request from a Canadian major who was badly burned during the war.  The man, Major Patrick Gordon, claims to have a link to Downton, and has asked to be transferred to the Downton convalescent home.  Lord Grantham, though unaware of how the family is connected to Patrick Gordon, approves the young man’s request.  Patrick arrives at Downton, and Lady Edith finds the man in a room surveying the family photos.  With the man blurred by the shadows in the room, Lady Edith found it difficult to contain her shock at the man’s burns that disfigured his face.  She could hardly look at the man as she tries to inform him of the family link Lord Grantham has found.  According to their family history, an aunt of Lord Grantham married a Gordon in the 19th century, but Patrick makes it clear that this is not the link he has with the House of Granthams.  Moreover, he hints that Lady Edith knows him.

With the war almost over, Lady Cora is looking forward to having Downton Abbey restored to its pre-war state.  This, however, disappoints Mrs. Crawley who would rather see the house put to good use, and have asked Lady Cora to allow her to find a way to keep Downton Abbey as a center for recovery.  Both Lady Cora and Lady Violet found her plan outrageous, but were either too polite or cowardly to tell her frankly that they disapprove of her plan.  Instead, Lady Violet suggests that the two of them figure out a way to find a project for Mrs. Crawley that will divert the woman’s interest away from Downton Abbey, and at the same time she will find too difficult to resist.  Lady Violet puts her plan into motion especially since Mrs. Crawley has started her crusade to make Downton Abbey a recovery center.  Lady Violet presents various cases that might interest Mrs. Crawley until she strikes a chord with her talk about the poor refugees who need help in rebuilding their lives.  She adds that an organizer finds that Mrs. Crawley’s experience will prove invaluable in that project.  This seems to have caught Mrs. Crawley’s interest.

Even though William is dead and buried, Daisy’s guilt still has not left her, and a pamphlet explaining what she is owed for being a war widow only added to her guilt.  Mrs. Patmore believes that accepting the dues owed to a war widow is what William would have wanted, but Daisy after being persuaded to marry the dying young man has made up her mind.  She will not allow Mrs. Patmore to pressure her to be false to his memory.  Daisy is unwilling to reap the benefits of a war widow for she knows in her heart that although she cared for him, she did not love William the same way he loved her.

Sir Richard appears to be keen in settling with Lady Mary with him looking to buy a home near Downton, and him asking Mr. Carson to be their butler at Haxby Park.  He explains that his request comes from his knowledge of Lady Mary holding Mr. Carson in high regard.  However, Mr. Carson finds the manner by which Sir Richard went on with his request suspect.  Sir Richard confesses that Lady Mary is not aware of his request, and learning of this Mr. Carson makes it clear that he will take instruction from the young woman.

Even the servants are aware that the war is almost over, and have wondered what they will be doing when it is finally over.  Thomas who benefited much from the war has not yet figured out what he is supposed to do, but Mrs. Patmore may have given him an idea.  Mrs. Patmore finds the rationing cumbersome with her having to battle to get enough supplies for her kitchen.  Thomas looks into Mrs. Patmore’s insinuation that there is demand for rationed food, and finds that the cook is right.  Thomas now only needs to come up with the money, but finds that O’Brien is not willing to join him in his scheme.  Mrs. Hughes helping out Ethel with some food from the pantry is only adding to Mrs. Patmore’s problem.  Unfortunately for Mrs. Hughes, Mr. Carson caught her red-handed, and in spite of their friendship, the butler is left with no other choice, but to bring the matter to the attention of Lady Cora.  Although Lady Cora feels for Ethel, she believes that Mrs. Hughes should have informed her that she has been supplementing the young woman’s food with stock from the house.  Lady Cora does not judge Ethel knowing that she is not the first woman to have fallen for a man in uniform; more so a man with no good intentions.  Learning that Ethel has failed several times to get Major Bryant to assume responsibility, Lady Cora plans on taking the matter into her own hands.  She considers inviting Major Bryant to Downton Abbey, and having Lord Grantham persuade him to take responsibility.  Mrs. Hughes having come to know the kind of man Major Bryant is finds this to be a lost cause.  Nonetheless, she informs Ethel of Lady Cora’s plan.  This news gave Ethel some hope, which Mrs. Hughes nipped in the bud given her belief that Major Bryant is not a good-natured man who will take responsibility for his actions.  Her advice to Ethel is for her to go to a different city, and invent a new past.

Sir Richard and Lady Mary pay a visit to Haxby Park, an estate, Lady Mary is very familiar with having gone there so many times.  The previous owners and long-time neighbors of the Crawleys, the Russells, have decided to leave the estate after their son Billy was killed in the war.  Despite the sad circumstances of why the Russells are open to the idea of disposing the estate, Lady Mary finds no reason why she and Sir Richard could not give the house a new beginning.  With everyone, masters and servants alike, busy with their own tasks, Lord Grantham is left to lunch alone.  Moreover, Mr. Carson having to tend to the wine delivery sends Jane to serve Lord Grantham’s luncheon.  This gave Lord Grantham the chance to know more about Jane, and learns that her twelve-year old son has applied for a scholarship to Ripon Grammar.  Lord Grantham offers to put in a good word for the child, which Jane accepts graciously.

Patrick Gordon tries once again to give Lady Edith a chance to recognize him, but the young woman could not.  Patrick informs her that he had spent a lot of time at Downton Abbey as a child, and that he is Patrick Crawley, Downton’s heir thought to have drowned in the Titanic.  He explains that he was at the Titanic, but Fifth Officer Lowe pulled him out of the water thus saving his life.  By the time he came around, someone had already misidentified him as Canadian, and was shipped to Montreal.  Patrick argues that his amnesia prevented him from informing the authorities of his true identity, which led him to make up a name from a gin bottle.  During the war, he had joined Princess Pat’s Infantry where the shock from the big explosion at Passchendaele caused him to remember his true identity.  Hearing of Downton Abbey operating as an officer’s convalescent home gave him the hope that somebody would recognize him, but nobody did.  Lady Edith seems to have bought the young man’s story, and had promised to alert her father at once.  She does inform Patrick that there are complications to him coming back with Matthew being the new heir, and Mary whom Patrick was to marry is now engaged to another man.  Patrick hinting that Edith was the one who really loved him added to her conviction that the disfigured man before her is indeed Patrick Crawley.

Mr. Bates receives a telephone call from his lawyer informing him that Vera had told the judge that he had paid her to agree to a divorce, which he in fact did.  Given this new information, the judge may decide to withdraw the decree nisi invalidating the divorce that was previously granted.  Anna is determined to be with Mr. Bates with or without the dissolution of his marriage.  She is prepared to leave with him if necessary in order for them to live the life they have planned together.  Unlucky for them, Miss O’Brien has been secretly listening in on their conversation.

Mary updates Matthew of Sir Richard’s plan to buy Haxby Park including his proposal to get Mr. Carson as their butler.  Matthew has no doubt that Mr. Carson will accept the offer knowing very well that the man holds Mary dear to his heart.  Mary confesses to Matthew that she does not have to marry Sir Richard, but Matthew believes that she must.  Moreover, he cannot be the reason why she should not.  Matthew is in fact happy and quite relieved that Mary has finally found someone she can have a real life with.  Sir Richard is beginning to show concern about Mary’s relationship with Matthew, and tells Lady Cora of his doubt.  Lady Cora having come to know Matthew very well informs him that the young man will never make himself be the reason to stop Mary from marrying another man.  In fact, he will do quite the opposite.  Sir Richard then wonders if it is Lady Mary who is not convinced that she and Matthew have no future together, and with this he asks Lady Cora to bring Lavinia back into Matthew’s life.

Branson is convinced that Lady Sybil has been avoiding him, which is why seeing her at the garage is a pleasant surprise for him.  Lady Sybil, however, has come without an answer to his proposal and moreover has asked him to wait until the war is over.  Branson is willing to wait forever for her answer, and is glad to hear from the young woman that it won’t be long before she makes up her mind.

Lady Mary personally asks Mr. Carson if he would be her butler once she and Sir Richard marries, and is surprised to see the butler dejected at the thought of him leaving Downton.  She had not considered that Mr. Carson might not want to leave Downton.  Moreover, she has not thought to inform her father first.  It could be that the only reason that caused Lady Mary to tell her father of their plan to take Mr. Carson away with her is Mr. Carson’s unwillingness to give her a decision until Lord Grantham grants them permission to take him.  Funnily, Lord Grantham turns to Mr. Bates for advice, and is surprised to hear from him that the decision must come from Mr. Carson.

Lady Edith fulfills her promise to Patrick Gordon and informs her father about the matter.  Lord Grantham wastes no time to see the young man who claims to be Patrick Crawley.  The young man who can offer little proof to his true identity hands him a letter that contains information only Patrick Crawley would know.  As expected, Lord Grantham has his doubts, but the young man’s mannerism almost made him a believer.  He later calls the family including Matthew and Mrs. Crawley to dinner to inform them that one of the badly burned patients at the convalescent home is claiming to be Patrick Crawley.  Everybody has their doubts except Edith who has become convinced that the disfigured young man is indeed Patrick hearing of the things only the real Patrick would know.  Mary immediately dismisses the idea that Major Gordon is Patrick Crawley, and is convinced that the man is an imposter.  Soon the real motivation for her branding Major Gordon as a fraud surfaces, she feels sorry for Matthew who will be displaced as the future Earl of Grantham if the young man turns out to be Patrick.  Matthew overcome with self-pity finds the matter to be a blessing in disguise with him feeling inept given his paralysis, which renders him unable to father children.

Lady Edith updates Major Gordon of the previous night’s events, and informs him that Lord Grantham has sent his statement to his solicitor, Mr. Murray.  Major Gordon once again gives Lady Edith reason to believe that he is Patrick after he stops to look at a place they used to hide in when they were kids.  He then draws out from her Fraulein Kelder, the governess none of them liked.  Lady Edith is convinced that Major Gordon is Patrick in spite of the man losing his temper and making a scene at realizing that no one else believes him to be who he claims to be.

Lady Cora informs Mrs. Hughes that Major Bryant’s father has replied to her letter on behalf of the late Major Bryant who was killed in the Battle of Vittoria Veneto.  Mrs. Hughes relays the message to Ethel who wonders if the Bryants might want to see their grandson, but Lady Cora made no mention of the child for she believed that matter ought to be dealt in person.

At dinner, the servants chat among each other about various subjects.  Anna and Mr. Bates converse about his upcoming trip to London, while Mr. Branson and Mr. Carson discuss politics.  Mr. Branson believes that there will soon become a German Republic, but Mr. Carson finds this unlikely believing that monarchy is the lifeblood of Europe.  Lord Grantham interrupts their lively conversation with news that the war is over.  All rejoice at the announcement, and Lord Grantham invites everybody to the Great Hall on the 11th of November at 11 in the morning to celebrate the end of the war.

Mrs. Crawley also has an announcement to make, and she calls Lady Cora and Lady Violet to her house to inform them of her decision to help the war refugees.  She does ask Lady Cora to keep Downton Abbey as a recovery center, but Lady Cora reminds her that it was Mrs. Crawley’s idea to do so, and with her gone they are probably not going to push through with it.  She, however, believes that closing the convalescent home at Downton Abbey is a small price to pay for Mrs. Crawley’s service with the refugees.  Knowing very well that it was Lady Violet that paved the way for Mrs. Crawley’s new project, Lady Cora could not be more grateful to her.

Mr. Bates asks Lord Grantham’s permission to allow him to go to London.  Mrs. Bates once again is the cause of the urgency of his having to go.  The woman has found another way to prevent their divorce forcing Mr. Bates to make the trip to reason with her.  Seeing that Mr. Bates is running out of patience with his wife, Lord Grantham asks him not to lose his temper when he goes to see Vera.  O’Brien reports to the other servants that the anger in Mr. Bates can be clearly seen on his face when he left for London.  Him returning with a gash near his left eye has cast a suspicion on what transpired during his visit to his wife, but his anger has been replaced with defeat.

Lord Grantham calls another meeting with his family having received word from Mr. Murray about Major Gordon.  The solicitor has checked the facts Major Gordon wrote in his statement, and confirms that Fifth Officer Lowe did pull an unidentified man out of the sea who was later reported to have died before they reached the Carpathia.  However, another report showed that the unidentified man made it to New York, but there is no clear record of his name.  Mr. Murray, however, has uncovered that there was a Peter Gordon who worked with Patrick Crawley at the foreign office who then emigrated to Montreal in 1913.  Like Lady Mary, Lady Violet believes that Major Gordon saw the perfect opportunity with his face being disfigured beyond recognition to claim the inheritance of his close friend.  Lady Mary coming up with details similar to what Major Gordon has been telling Lady Edith made her think twice for it showed how easily one would be able to conjure childhood stories shared by people of their status.  Lord Grantham requests them while Mr. Murray continues his investigation to be polite to the man, but nothing more.  He, however, believes that more evidence will surface especially with the end of the war.  Lady Edith goes against her father’s orders, and updates Major Gordon of the details that were shared at the family meeting.  She is still convinced that Major Gordon is Patrick Crawley, and believes that they will find Peter Gordon.  Soon, Lady Edith learns that Major Gordon has left without saying goodbye, but he did leave her a letter saying nothing much except that he found the situation he was in too difficult.  Moreover, he signed his letter without confirming his true identity.  Lady Edith still believes that Major Gordon is Patrick Crawley, and that they drove him away.  Lady Sybil, however, thinks that Lady Edith believing in the man is worth something no matter what the truth really is.

Sir Richard Carlisle arrives late for dinner with a guest, Lavinia Swire.  The sight of her is a surprise to Lady Mary and Lord Robert, but not to Lady Cora who was the one who called for her.  Lady Cora asks Lavinia to bring Matthew to the small library allowing Matthew to tell her that nothing has changed.  Lavinia, however, has changed.  She is more determined to be with Matthew through thick and thin, and unlike before she will not allow him to send her away for she truly loves him.  Recognizing that it was his wife who summoned Lavinia back to Downton Abbey, Lord Grantham scolds her for what she has done, but Lady Cora argues that it was the only way to ensure the success of Mary’s marriage and the preservation of the Grantham line.  Lady Mary reprimands Sir Richard for taking part in bringing Lavinia back to Matthew’s life, but knowing the root of her anger, Sir Richard turns the tables and threatens Lady Mary with the scandal that will be her ruin.

At 11 o’clock in the morning of November 11, masters, officers, and servants all gather at the Great Hall of Downton Abbey in silent prayer to remember the sacrifices that have been made and to give thanks to all the men who served in the war especially those whose lives were lost.  Their silent prayer will mark the end of the terrible war, and the dawn of a new age.  After the gathering as Mr. Bates brings Matthew back to his room, Matthew seems to have felt something, but he keeps it to himself.  As for Mr. Carson, he finds that change for him is inevitable for he with a heavy heart has decided to be Lady Mary and Sir Richard’s butler.  However, it is Mr. Bates who becomes the first recipient of change.  This after receiving a telegram informing him that Vera was found dead early that morning.

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Episode 5 Season 2 – Downton Abbey Episode Summary 2.5

Synopsis: William Mason and Captain Matthew Crawley were seriously injured in the war, and are sent back to Downton.  William’s return forces Daisy to fulfill the promise she had no intention of keeping.  Meanwhile, Mrs. Bates learns of Mr. Bates’ return to Downton Abbey, and has come to cause trouble to Mr. Bates and the Granthams.  The woman’s threat has forced Lady Mary to reach out to Sir Richard Carlisle, and is left with no other choice but to divulge to him her secret.

Episode Summary: It is 1918 William helps Captain Crawley into his battle uniform, before he addresses his men at Amiens one last time telling them that the enemy will carry a full-on assault on them.  Captain Crawley leads the attack against the enemy with William by his side and the full support of his men in spite of them knowing that they may not see the light of day.  Both Daisy and Lady Mary appear to have sensed the danger the men they truly care for are in for both were beside themselves with Daisy staring blankly at nothing feeling as though someone had walked over her grave, and Lady Mary getting a terrible cold feeling that she absentmindedly dropped her teacup.  This they might have felt around the same time William stepped in front of Captain Crawley at the sight of an incoming bomb that exploded in front of them.  The attack was a success with the enemy brought down on their knees, but Captain Crawley and William were not there to see their victory for they both lay unconscious on the ground.Continue reading...

Miss O’Brien wakes Lady Cora and Lord Grantham in the middle of the night.  Mr. Molesley still in his sleep attire had rushed to Downton Abbey to deliver a telegram meant for Mrs. Crawley, but since she is away and fully aware of the urgency of its contents the butler thought it best to give it to the Granthams.  Lord Grantham relays the message to his family and the servants who are anxious to know it as well.  He informs them that Matthew is alive, but is severely wounded, and that the army is bringing him to the Downton hospital.  However, the telegram did not say anything about William for news about him must have been sent to his father.  Nonetheless, Lord Grantham promises to Daisy that he will phone the war office to learn of his condition, while Lady Edith offers to go see William’s father in the morning.  Lady Mary like the rest of them is saddened by the news, but asks her father to tell her whatever it is that he learns about Matthew’s condition no matter how bad.

Lady Edith does as she promised, and upon her return she informs them that William was also seriously wounded, but they do not have any more information about his condition.  Learning that the young man been sent to a hospital in Leeds, Lady Violet takes it upon herself to ask Dr. Clarkson to use his authority to have William stay at the Downton hospital.  Her request comes from the knowledge that William’s father cannot afford to leave his farm in Downton to be with his only son that is now in a hospital in Leeds.  However, Dr. Clarkson’s hands are tied for the village hospital is only meant to cater to wounded officers.  Lady Edith even offers to be the young man’s nurse, but Dr. Clarkson’s answer is still a “No” for allowing their request would be unfair to families of the other wounded soldiers from Downton or nearby towns.

Lady Mary knowing that Matthew will be arriving at the village hospital soon prepares for his return, and plans on becoming his private nurse.  It did not occur to her that Lavinia has already taken up this role for she is Matthew’s fiancée.  In fact, Lady Cora has written to the young woman informing her of Matthew’s condition.  At this realization, Lady Mary willingly extends her hospitality to Lavinia, and tells her father that the young woman must stay at their house instead of the Crawleys where she will be all alone.

Anna asks Mr. Bates to accompany her to church where she plans to pray for both Matthew and William.  Walking down the aisle with Anna, Mr. Bates could not help but think about giving Anna a church wedding, but the woman could not care less about a wedding as long as she has the right man.  Mr. Bates is hopeful that they will be married soon.  Little did he know that O’Brien had sent a letter to Mrs. Bates, an act she now regrets knowing that the woman will be causing trouble at Downton at a time when Matthew and William are hanging for dear life.  True enough, Vera has come to Downton Abbey to tell Mr. Bates that the matter about their marriage is far from settled.  Vera has decided to sell the story about Lady Mary and the late Mr. Pamuk, which involves Anna as well, in spite of giving Mr. Bates her word after taking money from him.

After being turned down by Dr. Clarkson, Lady Violet uses her authority to have William transferred from Leeds to Downton.  She personally phones his nephew, the Marques of Flintshire, to ask him whom he might know on the board of Leeds General infirmary.  Soon Lady Violet and Lady Edith are at Leeds General speaking to the doctor if the orders of Lord Flintshire have been acted on, and are pleased to know that it has.  Upon her questioning, the doctor informs Lady Violet that William will not recover for the explosion fatally injured his lungs.  William is nearing the end of his days, and the only thing any hospital can provide him is comfort.  The doctor, although curious as to how Lady Violet managed William’s transfer, agrees that it is better for the young man to die at home in the company of his family and friends.  Mr. Mason, William’s father, however, still believes that his son will recover when they bring him home.  Lady Violet stops the doctor before he could tell him the painful truth.

Dr. Clarkson announces the arrival of Matthew at the village hospital where Lady Mary and Lady Sybil are anxious to see him.  Dr. Clarkson knowing very well how distressing Matthew’s injuries are asks Lady Mary to hang back until the nurses have cleaned him, but Lady Mary is determined to be by Matthew’s side no matter how harrowing his appearance is.  True enough, Matthew is covered with wounds and bruises, and according to the medic, the man has been unconscious since they received him.  In fact, the tag tied to him reports that Matthew may be suffering from spinal damage.  Lady Sybil tidies his uniform when the stuffed animal Lady Mary gave Matthew falls from his things.  Recognizing what it is, Lady Mary confesses that she had given it to him for luck.  At about the same time Matthew arrived at the village hospital, William was brought in Downton Abbey.

O’Brien is full of regret at telling Mrs. Bates that Mr. Bates has returned to Downton Abbey, this after seeing the woman declaring exposing a scandal that will bring down the House of Granthams.  Thinking that the woman was only after Mr. Bates, O’Brien did not expect that Mrs. Bates plans on dragging the Granthams to the mud as well.  Hearing of this, Thomas too believes that causing the woman to return to Downton was a terrible mistake.  Knowing of Vera’s plan, Anna informs Lady Mary about it, and how the woman swindled Mr. Bates into giving him his inheritance in exchange for keeping the scandal to her self.  It is now up to Lady Mary to fix this, and her plan is to tell Sir Richard Carlisle the truth hoping the man will help her keep her secret.  She is to see Sir Richard the very next day to personally make her request.  Luckily, Lavinia will be arriving that day to take care of Matthew.  Meanwhile, William is resting in one of the bedrooms at Downton Abbey, and his father could not bear the thought of leaving him.  Lady Edith assures Mr. Mason that she will look after him, and that there will not be a moment where William will be alone.  Although William’s injuries do not appear as disturbing as Matthew’s, his condition is truly much worse.

Matthew has regained his consciousness, and Lady Mary looks on as Dr. Clarkson determines the extent of his spinal injury.  Lord Grantham arrives with Lavinia whom Lady Mary welcomes with news that Matthew is conscious, but the seriousness of his injuries is yet to be determined.  She also tells them that the impact of the blast from the shell that landed in front of Matthew and William threw both men off their feet.  Matthew was thrown against something that wounded his back and most likely his spine.  Dr. Clarkson finishes his examination, and informs them that Matthew’s spine is permanently damaged.  He will never walk again.  Lavinia is brought to tears upon hearing this, but Dr. Clarkson is quick to tell her that although Matthew will forever be paralyzed from the waist down, he will recover his health.  This, however, means something else to Lord Grantham, which is why Dr. Clarkson pulls him aside to deliver the other news.  Matthew Crawley will not have any children.

Mrs. Hughes pays a visit to Ethel to bring her and her baby a basket of food.  The young woman has written again and again to Major Bryant, the child’s father, but the man refuses to see his son.  Mrs. Hughes informs Ethel that the man is planning on dropping by Downton Abbey to see his old pals.  This gives Ethel a window of opportunity to have the man see his child, but Mrs. Hughes would not let her return to Downton Abbey nor help her convince the man to at least drop by her house to meet his son.  Mrs. Hughes returns to Downton Abbey, and meets with a candidate to replace Ethel.  The woman has a child herself whom she had left in the care of her mother who lives in the village.  Mrs. Hughes is in a bit of a quandary for the woman is qualified for the job, and has good references, but her concern stems from her having a child.  Mrs. Hughes seems to have had a change of heart about Ethel’s request.  She comes up to Major Bryant and hands him a letter from Ethel, but the man would not even take it much more read it.  Just as she thought, the man tells her that the matter does not concern her.  Mrs. Hughes pleads with the man to see his son, but Major Bryant is resolute on his stand.

Mrs. Patmore forces Daisy to go see William, and the question the young kitchen maid has been dreading to hear is asked of her.  William asks Daisy to marry her now instead of the end of the war.  Lady Edith tries to divert William’s thoughts away from marriage as though she sensed that Daisy was not prepared to accept it.  Meanwhile, Matthew wakes up at the village hospital, and finds Mary by his side.  He asks about William, and tells her that he was the one who saved his life.  Mary honestly tells him that the young man is in a bad condition, but when Matthew starts wondering why he could not feel his legs, Mary could not bear the thought of having to tell him the truth.  Matthew sees right through her, and urges Mary to tell him the truth leaving her with no other choice but to tell him that Dr. Clarkson believes that he has spinal damage, and through Mary’s evasion in answering whether or not he will regain feeling on his legs Matthew could tell that the answer is that he will never be able to walk again.  Matthew thanks her for telling him the truth for he would rather know than be in the dark about his condition.

Lady Mary pays a visit to Sir Richard, and bravely tells him the secret she has been keeping.  Lady Mary admits her guilt, and provides no excuses for it.  She has come to personally ask his help knowingly taking the risk of him exposing her secret, and him rescinding his marriage proposal.  If they marry, it is no longer he who benefits from it for in exchange for giving him status through their marriage he would have kept the Granthams away from scandal.  This arrangement, in fact, pleases Sir Richard for then he feels that they now owe each other something.  In reality, Lady Mary will no longer be of equal footing with him for to Sir Richard her being his wife means that she will forever be in his debt.

Mrs. Hughes informs Mr. Carson about the recent candidate for the housemaid in order for him to ask Lord Grantham’s opinion on whether or not they should hire her.  The decision used to belong to Lady Cora, but since she is now preoccupied with running the convalescent home, the butler thought it best to ask Lord Grantham instead.  The woman, Jane Moorsum, is a widow of a soldier who died in the Somme.  She is left with a son, which is why she has no other choice but to look for work in order to provide for him.  Lord Grantham’s stand on this is that they must do what they can to help the widows of their defenders, and so it has been decided, if the only reason for Mrs. Hughes’ reluctance from hiring Jane is because she has a child then she should worry no longer for widows are welcome at Downton Abbey.

Already full of guilt for leading William on, Daisy is in a serious quandary thanks to Mrs. Patmore, the woman who obliged her to accept William’s marriage proposal before he left for the war.  None of them ever thought the marriage will push through, but because the young man is dying Daisy could not bear the thought of lying to him on his deathbed, but also could not find the courage to let him down.  Mrs. Patmore’s argument is that William having peace and happiness before he passes on matters more than Daisy lying to him.

Fully aware that he will never walk again, Matthew asks Lavinia to move on without him, because his injury has made him incapable to father children.  Lavinia promises him that it will not come between them, but Matthew is certain that it will, as it should.  Matthew could not bear being responsible for preventing Lavinia from having the life she wanted to have.  Lavinia refuses to leave Matthew, but the man pushes her away, and tells her to forget about him.

Lady Sybil informs Branson that he is to fetch Lady Mary, but also senses that the young man is troubled.  Branson has read in the newspaper that the Tsar and all his family were shot dead.  This disturbed him for he never thought the revolution would lead to this, but then he has come to believe that sometimes the future needs terrible sacrifices.  This was also what Lady Sybil believed before the war.  Branson tells her that a hard sacrifice must be made for a future that is worth having.  His words, and his touch seem to have kindled a fire from within Lady Sybil that she almost kissed Branson, but her mind got the better of her, and she pulls away.

Sir Richard is true to his word.  She meets with Mrs. Bates that very afternoon since his chat with Lady Mary.  He is willing to buy the story of Lady Mary’s scandal from Mrs. Bates, but with a condition that she may not peddle different versions of it to other newspapers.  She would have to sign a binding contract to ensure that the story is exclusively sold to Sir Richard, and breaking the contract would mean a lawsuit.  The woman agrees to all of this.

William is at the very end of his life, and she has asked for Daisy who is still overcome with guilt.  Daisy confesses to Mrs. Hughes what she has done, but just like Mrs. Patmore, the woman does not think that her refusing to see William would be good.  William asks his father and Lady Edith if he could speak privately with Daisy.  He is fully aware that he is dying, which is why they need to be married right away.  William would want Daisy to be his wife for being a war widow means that she will have a pension and rights.  William wants Daisy to have something to fall back on, and pleads with her to let him do that for her.  Daisy could not accept it, and tells William that it would be dishonest to do so, but the young man believes that it would not be cheating for they love each other, and would have spent their whole lives together.  Daisy could not bring herself to tell him otherwise.  After their talk, Mr. Mason asks Daisy if she will agree to his son’s last wish, hoping against hope that the young woman will not disappoint William.

Lady Mary finds Lavinia weeping in her bedroom.  The young woman informs Lady Mary that Matthew had asked her to go home in spite of her constant assurance that she does not care about the fact that they cannot have children.  It is a consequence of Matthew’s injury that neither Lavinia nor Lady Mary realized until then, and the guilt of having a wife with the knowledge that he could not give her is something that Matthew could not bear no matter how much he loves the woman and vice versa.

At breakfast, Lord Grantham has a shock of his own as he reads on the newspaper the public announcement of Lady Mary’s engagement to Sir Richard Carlisle.  More outrageous is Lady Mary’s admission that she herself did not know that their engagement will be announced for Sir Richard did not speak to her about it.  There is, however, another wedding that is more pressing than the one between Lady Mary and Sir Richard, and that is the marriage of William and Daisy.  Lord Grantham informs Mr. Carson that they are unsure if Mr. Travis will agree to the marriage, but the vicar has to decide soon for William is nearing his end.  Lady Violet personally speaks to Mr. Travis who expresses his doubts about the unusual proposal to wed a dying man.  He suspects that Daisy is taking advantage of William with her receiving a widow’s dole for a man who served his country, but Lady Violet gives the vicar her word that there is nothing dishonorable about the request.  Lady Violet makes it clear that William Mason who served the Granthams well before serving his country not to mention saving the life of the future Earl of Grantham only wants to marry the love of his life before he dies.  She makes her authority clear; Lady Violet will see to it that William and Daisy are wed.

Mrs. Hughes pays a visit to Ethel’s house to inform her the unfortunate yet expected news of Major Bryant’s refusal to see his son.  Ethel is finding it difficult to support his son for there are not a lot of places that would allow her to bring her baby to work.  There will even be less people who would hire her if they knew that her child was born out of wedlock, which is why she has come up with the lie that she is a widow of a man who died in the war.  Mrs. Hughes is reminded of Jane, the new maid they hired to replace Ethel.  Unlike Ethel, servants and masters alike have found respect for the war widow who was forced to look for a job to support her child.  In fact, Jane has had an opportunity to personally receive the kindness of Lord Grantham after she had mistakenly barged inside the library instead of the drawing room.  Jane expresses her gratitude to Lord and Lady Grantham for taking her in, but Lord Grantham informs her that it is them who should be grateful for the sacrifice her late husband made for the country, which makes them indebted to him and consequently to the family he left behind.

Vera reads on the newspapers Sir Richard’s engagement with Lady Mary, and furiously barges in the man’s office who bluntly informs her that he tricked her into signing a contract with him to protect his fiancée.  Mrs. Bates withdraws her agreement with Sir Richard, but it is too late, and the man warns her that it will be her ruin if she in any way breaks the contract she signed with him.  Lady Mary’s good name is now safe, but Vera vows that her fight against John Bates is not yet over.  Sir Richard could not care less about her dispute with Mr. Bates.

The time has come for Daisy to wed William, and still she is troubled by the fact that she is not marrying him for the right reasons for she knows very well that she is not in love with William.  Mr. Travis officiates the marriage of William and Daisy with the servants, Lady Edith, and Lady Violet attending the wedding, and consequently being the witnesses to their marriage.  Although all the servants know that Daisy is only marrying William out of pity, not one contested the marriage for no one would want to be preclude a dying man’s wish.

Meanwhile, Lady Mary sits by Matthew’s side to show her understanding for the seemingly cruel wish he had asked of Lavinia.  Matthew informs her that given his condition, he cannot marry any woman no matter how much one just wants to be with him even with the full knowledge of his incapacity to father children.  The thought of having lost his manhood and admitting it to the woman whom he once turned down made Matthew retch.  His current state is extremely humbling.  Luckily, Lady Mary has grown mature, and could now see past the pompousness of keeping up appearances as she too humbly cares for the sick.  Mrs. Crawley sees all of this, and admits having noticed the transformation in Lady Mary.

Lady Mary bumps into Mr. Bates who informs her that William is nearing the end.  She, however, delivers to him a bit of good news about Mrs. Bates risking prison if she breaks the contract she had signed with Sir Richard.  She, however, informs him that her being tricked has caused her to make threats against Mr. Bates.  In spite of the renewed fury Vera has against him, Mr. Bates hopes that his worries are gone or at least he makes it seem so for Anna’s sake.  Daisy, on the other hand, has not left William’s side, and vows to stay with him until the end.  She could not bear to leave him at the time of his great need.  William, however, has finally succumbed to death just as Daisy is telling Mrs. Patmore of her promise to be with him.

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