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List of minor off screen characters/Politicians, Monarchs and Government Officials

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Amenhotep II[]

Amenhotep II (sometimes read as Amenophis II and meaning Amun is Satisfied) was the seventh Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt. Amenhotep inherited a vast kingdom from his father Thutmose III, and held it by means of a few military campaigns in Syria; however, he fought much less than his father, and his reign saw the effective cessation of hostilities between Egypt and Mitanni, the major kingdoms vying for power in Syria. His reign is usually dated from 1427 to 1401 BC.[1]

His consort was Tiaa, providing the name of the puppy Robert receives from his mother.

Appearances
Robert: "Now what are we going to call you? Oh, I know, Tiaa"
Edith: "I thought we always had names from ancient Egypt?"
Robert: "Tiaa was the wife of Amenhotep II and the mother of Thutmose IV"
— Episode 6.07

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Joseph Gerald Antsy[]

The Hon. Joseph Gerald Antsy, MP, was a member of the Conservative and Unionist Party. In May, 1914, he was elected Member of Parliament for the Ripon constituency with a total of 6,363 votes. The announcement of the results of this by-election were turbulent, as there was a large crowd of liberal protesters for the women's right to vote, and a group of violent working-class men stormed through the City Hall courtyard, wanting to "wipe the smile off their Tory bloody faces". In the commotion that followed, Sybil Crawley was knocked to the floor and bumped her head on a low table, causing minor injury. The unconscious lady was rescued by Tom Branson, her chauffeur who had escorted her there, and Matthew Crawley, who had just left his law firm in Ripon.

Appearances

Mention

"The Honourable Joseph Gerald Antsy for the Conservative and Unionist Party: 6,363 votes..."
—The results of the 1914 by-election are announced at the Ripon City Hall.[src]

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Herbert Henry Asquith[]

Herbert Henry Asquith, 1st Earl of Oxford and Asquith (12 September 1852 – 15 February 1928) served as the Liberal Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1908 to 1916. Until 5 January 1988, he had been the longest continuously serving Prime Minister in the 20th century.[2]

Appearances

Branson: "Why don't I sit down."
John Ward[3]: "Of course the question upper most in all of your minds is, why the split between Mr. Asquith and Mr. Lloyd George? Because a divided party spells electoral defeat."
— Episode 4.07

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Attila the Hun[]

Attila (434-452), frequently referred to as Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. Attila was a leader of the Hunnic Empire, which stretched from the Ural River to the Rhine River and from the Danube River to the Baltic Sea. During his reign, he was one of the most feared enemies of the Western and Eastern Roman Empires. He crossed the Danube twice and plundered the Balkans, but was unable to take Constantinople. [4]

Appearances
Rosamund: "You wanted a strong editor."
Edith: "But I didn't want to find myself in a bull ring with Attila the Hun."
— Episode 6.02

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The Queen of Spain[]

Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg (24 October 1887 – 15 April 1969, tenure 31 May 1906 – 14 April 1931 ) was Queen of Spain as the wife of King Alfonso XIII. She was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria and the first cousin of King George V of the United Kingdom, Queen Maud of Norway, Empress Alexandra Feodorovna of Russia, Queen Marie of Romania, Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany and Queen Sophia of Greece. King Felipe VI of Spain is her great-grandson[5].

Sir Michael Reresby says she is among the distinguished guests he has entertained at his estate. While he does not mention her by name, the reign of the previous Queen ended in 1885.

Appearances

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Napoleon[]

Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the latter stages of the French Revolution and its associated wars in Europe.

As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815, the first monarch of France bearing the title emperor since the reign of Charles the Fat (881–887).[6]

Appearances

Isobel: "I've always admired the way Mrs Levinson is never overawed by the whole set up at Downton."
Violet: "Was Napoleon overawed by the Bourbons?"
— Episode 3.01

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George Bushell[]

George Bushell was the Superintendent Registrar at Ripon Register Office in the late 1910s.

Appearances

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King Canute[]

Cnut the Great (c. 985 or 995 – 12 November 1035), more commonly known as Canute, was a king of Denmark, England, Norway, and parts of Sweden, together often referred to as the Anglo-Scandinavian or North Sea Empire. After the death of his heirs within a decade of his own and the Norman conquest of England in 1066, his legacy was largely lost to history. Historian Norman Cantor has made the statement that he was "the most effective king in Anglo-Saxon history", despite his not being Anglo-Saxon.

Henry of Huntingdon, the 12th-century chronicler, tells how Cnut set his throne by the sea shore and commanded the tide to halt and not wet his feet and robes. Yet "continuing to rise as usual [the tide] dashed over his feet and legs without respect to his royal person. Then the king leapt backwards, saying: 'Let all men know how empty and worthless is the power of kings, for there is none worthy of the name, but He whom heaven, earth, and sea obey by eternal laws.' He then hung his gold crown on a crucifix, and never wore it again "to the honour of God the almighty King". This incident is usually misrepresented by popular commentators and politicians as an example of Cnut's arrogance.[7]

Appearances

Violet: "I see I am beaten, but oh how I sympathize with King Canute."
Mary: "Now what is this idea?"
— Episode 4.02

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King Charles I[]

Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649.

Charles was the second son of King James VI of Scotland, but after his father inherited the English throne in 1603, he moved to England, where he spent much of the rest of his life. He became heir apparent to the English, Irish and Scottish thrones on the death of his elder brother, Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, in 1612. An unsuccessful and unpopular attempt to marry him to a Spanish Habsburg princess culminated in an eight-month visit to Spain in 1623 that demonstrated the futility of the marriage negotiations. Two years later he married the Bourbon princess Henrietta Maria of France instead.

From 1642, Charles fought the armies of the English and Scottish parliaments in the English Civil War. After his defeat in 1645, he surrendered to a Scottish force that eventually handed him over to the English Parliament. Charles refused to accept his captors' demands for a constitutional monarchy, and temporarily escaped captivity in November 1647. Re-imprisoned on the Isle of Wight, Charles forged an alliance with Scotland, but by the end of 1648 Oliver Cromwell's New Model Army had consolidated its control over England. Charles was tried, convicted, and executed for high treason in January 1649. The monarchy was abolished and a republic called the Commonwealth of England was declared. In 1660, the English Interregnum ended when the monarchy was restored to Charles's son, Charles II.[8]

King Charles I

A large 1635 portrait of Charles I by Anthony van Dyck[9] adorns the head of the dining room.

Appearances
Branson: "It was terrible of course, but the English killed King Charles the first to create a balance between the thrown and parliament."
Robert: "I didn't kill him personally."
Branson: "I didn't shoot the imperial family."
— Episode 5.02

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Winston Churchill[]

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British politician at the forefront of politics for fifty years, he held many political and cabinet positions. Before the First World War, he served as President of the Board of Trade, Home Secretary, and First Lord of the Admiralty as part of the Asquith Liberal government. During the war, he continued as First Lord of the Admiralty until the disastrous Gallipoli Campaign caused his departure from government. He then briefly resumed active army service on the Western Front as commander of the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers. He returned to government as Minister of Munitions, Secretary of State for War, and Secretary of State for Air.[10]

Appearances

Cora: "How can that be? You were told you weren't wanted for active service. You can't jump in the army like a jack-in-the-box."
Robert: "I don't see why not. Churchill went back to the front after the Gallipoli business. If he can do it, why shouldn't I? "
— Episode 2.01

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Oliver Cromwell[]

Oliver Cromwell (25 April 1599 – 3 September 1658) was an English military and political leader and later Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland.[11]

Appearances

Mr Carson: "I have never been more sure of anything."
Mrs Hughes: "Well Mr Carson, if you want me, then you can have me. To quote Oliver Cromwell, warts and all."
— Episode 6.01

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Martin James Dillon[]

Martin James Dillon was a candidate of the May, 1914 by-election to serve as Member of Parliament for the Ripon constituency. He ran for the Socialist Party and earned a total of 2,741 votes, but lost the election to Tory candidate Joseph Gerald Antsy.

Appearances

Mention

"Martin James Dillon, for the Socialist Party: 2,741 votes..."
—The results of the 1914 by-election are announced at the Ripon City Hall.[src]

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Senator Fall[]

Albert Bacon Fall (November 26, 1861 – November 30, 1944) was a United States Senator from New Mexico and the Secretary of the Interior under President Warren G. Harding, infamous for his involvement in the Teapot Dome scandal.[12]

Appearances

Cora: "Have we ever met this Senator Fall?"
Robert: "Not that I remember."
— Episode 4.06

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The Archduke[]

Franz Ferdinand (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was an Archduke of Austria-Este, Austro-Hungarian and Royal Prince of Hungary and of Bohemia, and from 1889 until his death, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne.

His assassination in Sarajevo precipitated Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia. This caused the Central Powers (including Germany and Austria-Hungary) and the Allies of World War I (countries allied with Serbia or Serbia's allies) to declare war on each other, starting World War I. [13]

Appearances

Robert: "Any local news?"
Mrs. Hughes: "The main topic here is the murder of the Austrian Archduke."
Mr. Carson: "Here and everywhere else."
— Episode 1.07

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Lord Henley[]

Robert Henley, 1st Earl of Northington (c. 1708 - 14 January 1772), was the Lord Chancellor of Great Britain. He was a member of the Whig Party in the parliament and was known for his wit and writing.[14]

In Shanley v Harvey (1763) 2 Eden 126, a claim was instituted by Shanley as administrator of the estate of his deceased niece.

Shanley had brought Harvey as a child slave, to England, 12 years earlier and had given him to his niece. She had him baptised and had changed his name. She became very ill and about an hour before her death, she gave Harvey about £800 in cash (a substantial sum in those days), asked him to pay the butcher's bill and to make good use of the money. After her death, Shanley brought an action against Harvey to recover the money.

Lord Henley, the Lord Chancellor, dismissed the action, with costs against Shanley. In his judgment he held that as soon as a person set foot on English soil, he or she became free and that a "negro" might maintain an action against his or her master for ill usage, together with an application for habeas corpus if detained. However, such comments were not necessary for the decision in the case, and in law were only obiter dictum and not binding on subsequent courts.[15]

Appearances

Mrs. Hughes: "Mr. Ross. You have uncovered something about the past that Mr. Carson does not approve of. Well done."
Mr. Carson: "Not so fast, Mrs. Hughes. We led the world in the fight against slavery. Remember Lord Henley's judgement of 1763. If a man sets foot on English soil, then he is free."
— Episode 4.06

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Herod[]

Herod Antipater (born before 20 BC – died after 39 AD), known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch ("ruler of a quarter"). He is best known today for accounts in the New Testament of his role in events that led to the executions of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth.[16]

He was the father of Salome.


Appearances
Isobel: "What was all that about?"
Violet: "In Denker's mind, she is Salome. You know, dancing rings around Spratt's Herod."
— 2015 Christmas Special

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Adolf Hitler[]

Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the Nazi Party (German: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP); National Socialist German Workers Party).

Hitler was a decorated veteran of World War I. He joined the German Workers' Party (precursor of the NSDAP) in 1919, and became leader of the NSDAP in 1921. In 1923, he attempted a coup in Munich to seize power. The failed coup resulted in Hitler's imprisonment, during which time he wrote his memoir, Mein Kampf (My Struggle). After his release in 1924, Hitler gained popular support by attacking the Treaty of Versailles and promoting Pan-Germanism, antisemitism, and anti-communism with charismatic oratory and Nazi propaganda. Hitler frequently denounced international capitalism and communism as being part of a Jewish conspiracy.[17]

Appearances
Robert: "Gregson's dead I am afraid"
Cora: "How terrible that is to hear. And was it this herr Hitler?"
Robert: "Apparently. At least his gang of thugs."
— Episode 4.06

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Thomas Jefferson[]

Thomas Jefferson (April 13 [O.S. April 2] 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Father, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the third President of the United States (1801–1809).[18]

Appearances

Violet: "Good heavens, what am I sitting on?"
Matthew: "A swivel chair."
Violet: "Another modern brainwave?"
Matthew: "Not very modern, they were invented by Thomas Jefferson."
Violet: "Why does every day involve a fight with an American?"
— Episode 1.04

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King John[]

John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216), also known as John Lackland, was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death in 1216. Following the battle of Bouvines, John lost the duchy of Normandy to King Philip II of France, which resulted in the collapse of most of the Angevin Empire and contributed to the subsequent growth in power of the Capetian dynasty during the 13th century. The baronial revolt at the end of John's reign led to the sealing of the Magna Carta, a document sometimes considered to be an early step in the evolution of the constitution of the United Kingdom.[19]

Appearances
Rosamund: "By wielding your unelected power?"
Violet: "The point of so-called great families is to protect our freedoms. That is why the barons made King John sign the Magna Carta."
— Episode 6.04

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Kerensky[]

Alexander Kerensky (4 May [O.S. 22 April] 1881 – 11 June 1970) was a major political leader before and during the Russian Revolutions of 1917.

Kerensky served as the second Prime Minister of the Russian Provisional Government until it was overthrown by the Bolsheviks under Vladimir Lenin in the October Revolution. He spent the remainder of his life in exile, dying in New York City in 1970 at the age of 89.[20]

Appearances

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Lenin[]

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (22 April [O.S. 10 April] 1870 – 21 January 1924) was a Russian communist revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He served as the leader of the Russian SFSR from 1917, and then concurrently as Premier of the Soviet Union from 1922, until his death. [21]

Appearances

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David Lloyd George[]

David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor OM PC (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was a British Liberal politician and statesman. He was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and led a Wartime Coalition Government between 1916 and 1922 and was the Leader of the Liberal Party from 1926 to 1931.[22]

Appearances

Robert: "And Mr. Lloyd George's new insurance measures will help."
Violet: "Please don't speak that man's name; we are about to eat."
— Episode 1.02

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George III[]

George III (George William Frederick (4 June 1738 – 29 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death. He was concurrently Duke and prince-elector of Brunswick-Lüneburg ("Hanover") in the Holy Roman Empire until his promotion to King of Hanover on 12 October 1814. He was the third British monarch of the House of Hanover, but unlike his two Hanoverian predecessors he was born in Britain, spoke English as his first language, and never visited Hanover.[23]

In 1772, he granted the title of "Earl of Grantham" to the Crawley Family.

Appearances

Robert: "I'm Sorry. When's the funeral?"
Tom: "Tomorrow, will you go?"
Robert: "I will. His forebarers have been tenants since the reign of George the third."
— Episode 4.05

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Ramsay MacDonald[]

James Ramsay MacDonald (12 October 1866 – 9 November 1937) was a British statesman who was the first ever Labour Party Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, leading a Labour Government in 1924, a Labour Government from 1929 to 1931, and a National Government from 1931 to 1935.[24]

Appearances

Mary: "What is your main objection to Mr. MacDonald? That the Prime Minister is the son of a crofter[25]?"
Robert: "I couldn't care less if he was the son of Fu Manchu. What worries me is that our government is comitted to the destruction of people like us, and everything we stand for."
— Episode 5.01

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Machiavelli[]

Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (3 May 1469 – 21 June 1527) was an Italian historian, politician, diplomat, philosopher, humanist, and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance. He was for many years an official in the Florentine Republic, with responsibilities in diplomatic and military affairs. He was a founder of modern political science, and more specifically political ethics. He also wrote comedies, carnival songs, and poetry. His personal correspondence is renowned in the Italian language. He was Secretary to the Second Chancery of the Republic of Florence from 1498 to 1512, when the Medici were out of power. He wrote his masterpiece, The Prince, after the Medici had recovered power and he no longer held a position of responsibility in Florence.

"Machiavellianism" is a widely used negative term to characterize unscrupulous politicians of the sort Machiavelli described in The Prince. The book itself gained enormous notoriety and wide readership because the author seemed to be endorsing behavior often deemed as evil and immoral.[26]

Appearances

Cora: "Is she really so Machiavellian?"
Robert: "Yes"
— Episode 3.07

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Marie Antoinette[]

Marie Antoinette (2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) baptised Maria Antonia Josepha (or Josephina) Johanna, born an Archduchess of Austria, was Dauphine of France from 1770 to 1774 and Queen of France and Navarre from 1774 to 1792. She was the fifteenth and penultimate child of Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and Empress Maria Theresa.[27]

Appearances

Isobel: "And must you always sound like the sister of Marie Antoinette?"
Violet: "The Queen of Naples was a stalwart figure. I take it as a compliment"
— 2013 Christmas Special

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Marlborough[]

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, Prince of Mindelheim KG PC (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 O.S), was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs. Rising from a lowly page at the court of the House of Stuart, he served James, Duke of York, through the 1670s and early 1680s, earning military and political advancement through his courage and diplomatic skill.[28]

Appearances
Isobel: "You'll stop at nothing to get your own way. Isn't that the truth?"
Violet: "Indeed. It is a quality I share with Marlborough, Wellington, and my late mother. I was trained in a hard school, and I fight accordingly."
— Episode 6.05

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Countess Markievicz[]

Constance Georgine Markievicz, Countess Markievicz (4 February 1868 – 15 July 1927) was an Irish Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil politician, revolutionary nationalist, suffragette and socialist. In December 1918, she was the first woman elected to the British House of Commons, though she did not take her seat and, along with the other Sinn Féin TDs, formed the first Dáil Éireann. She was also one of the first women in the world to hold a cabinet position (Minister for Labour of the Irish Republic, 1919–1922). [29]

Appearances

Matthew: "So, what was the deal you managed to extract from the home secretary?"
Robert: "They don’t want to make a martyr of him. And with Sybil, they think they could have another Maud Gonne on their hands, or Lady Gregory, or worse if they’re not careful."
Violet: "Lady Gregory, Countess Markievicz...why are the Irish rebels so well born?"
— Episode 3.04

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Queen Mary[]

Queen Mary could potentially refer to either of two near contemporaneous and notorious Queen Marys:

Mary I of England (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), the only child of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon who survived to adulthood. Mary is remembered for her restoration of Roman Catholicism after the short-lived Protestant reign of her half-brother. During her five-year reign, she had over 280 religious dissenters burned at the stake in the Marian persecutions, earning her the sobriquet Bloody Mary.[30]

Mary I of Scotland (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary Queen of Scots, the only surviving legitimate child of King James V of Scotland. She was six days old when her father died and she acceded to the throne. She at one time had claimed the throne held by Elizabeth I and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North. Perceiving her as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth, and was subsequently executed.[31]

Note: It is unlikely Tom Branson is referring to the current (1925) Queen, as Mary of Teck is Queen Consort to George V, while Tom is clearly referring to a ruling Queen.

Appearances
Tom Branson: "I'll have to make sure the load is lightened after he comes home."
Mary: "To be more precise Tom, from now on you and I need to take full reponsibility for running the estate. We'll involve him in the big decisions of course, but he mustn't have any more worry. That's why he got the ulcer in the first place."
Tom Branson: "So long live our own Queen Mary."
— Episode 6.05

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John Stuart Mill[]

John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 8 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist and civil servant. He was an influential contributor to social theory, political theory and political economy. He has been called "the most influential English-speaking philosopher of the nineteenth century". Mill's conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control. He was a proponent of utilitarianism, an ethical theory developed by Jeremy Bentham. Hoping to remedy the problems found in an inductive approach to science, such as confirmation bias, he clearly set forth the premises of falsifiability as the key component in the scientific method. Mill was also a Member of Parliament and an important figure in liberal political philosophy.[32]

Appearances

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Trevor Andrew Morgan[]

Trevor Andrew Morgan was a candidate of the May, 1914 by-election to serve as Member of Parliament for the Ripon constituency. He ran for the Liberal Party and earned a total of 5,894 votes, but lost the election to Tory candidate Joseph Gerald Antsy.

Appearances

Mention

"Trevor Andrew Morgan, the Liberal Party... 5,894 votes!"
—The results of the 1914 by-election are announced at the Ripon City Hall.[[Episode 1.06|[src]]]

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Tsar Nicholas I[]

Nicholas I (Nikolai I Pavlovich; 6 July [O.S. 25 June] 1796 – 2 March [O.S. 18 February] 1855) was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855. He was also the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland. He is best known as a political conservative whose reign was marked by geographical expansion, repression of dissent, economic stagnation, poor administrative policies, a corrupt bureaucracy, and frequent wars that culminated in Russia's disastrous defeat in the Crimean War of 1853-56.[33]

Appearances
"Here. Give it here. Tsar Nicholas I called Turkey the sick man of Europe. What were the causes of Turkey's illness and what measures are the Russians prescribing for its recovery."
—Thomas Barrow Episode 6.07

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The Tsar[]

Nicholas II (Nikolay Alexandrovich Romanov) (18 May [O.S. 6 May] 1868 – 17 July 1918) was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Duke of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias.[34] King George V of England was his first cousin.

Appearances

Branson: "Kerensky's been made Prime Minister, but he won't go far enough for me. Lenin denounces the bourgeoisie along with the tsar. He wants a people's revolution. That's what I'm waiting for. Won't be long now."
Carson: "And what happened to the tsar?"
Branson: "Imprisoned in the Alexander Palace with all his family."
— Episode 2.03

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The Queen of Naples[]

Maria Carolina of Austria (13 August 1752 – 8 September 1814), sister to Marie Antoinette, was Queen of Naples and Sicily as the wife of King Ferdinand IV & III. As de facto ruler of her husband's kingdoms, Maria Carolina oversaw the promulgation of many reforms, including the revocation of the ban on Freemasonry, the enlargement of the navy under her favourite, John Acton, 6th Baronet, and the expulsion of Spanish influence. She was a proponent of enlightened absolutism until the advent of the French Revolution, when, in order to prevent its ideas gaining currency, she made Naples a police state.[35]

Appearances

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Archibald Primrose[]

Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, 1st Earl of Midlothian, KG, PC (7 May 1847 – 21 May 1929) was a British Liberal statesman and Prime Minister. In 1878, Rosebery married Hannah de Rothschild, the only child of the Jewish banker Baron Mayer de Rothschild, and the greatest British heiress of her day.

Rosebery first came to national attention in 1879-1880 by sponsoring the successful Midlothian campaign of William Ewart Gladstone. He briefly was in charge of Scottish affairs. This finest performance in office came as chairman of the London County Council in 1889. He entered the cabinet in 1885 and served twice as foreign minister, paying special attention to French and German affairs. He succeeded Gladstone as prime minister and leader of the Liberal party in 1894.[36]

Appearances

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Robespierre[]

Maximilien François Marie Isidore Robespierre (6 May 1758 – 28 July 1794) was a French lawyer and politician, and one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution.

The guillotine (called the "National Razor") became the symbol of the revolutionary cause, strengthened by a string of executions: King Louis XVI, Marie Antoinette, the Girondins, Philippe Égalité (Louis Philippe II, Duke of Orléans), and Madame Roland, and others such as pioneering chemist Antoine Lavoisier, lost their lives under its blade. Through the Revolutionary Tribunal, the Terror's leaders exercised broad dictatorial powers and used them to instigate mass executions and political purges. The repression accelerated in June and July 1794, a period called la Grande Terreur (the Great Terror), and ended in the coup of 9 Thermidor Year II (27 July 1794), leading to the Thermidorian Reaction, in which several instigators of the Reign of Terror were executed, including Saint-Just and Robespierre.[37][38]

Appearances

Mary: "So what new scheme are you working on to beat down the upper classes?"
Charles Blake: "You think me much more of a Robespierre than I really am."
— 2013 Christmas Special

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Jonathan Swire[]

Jonathan Swire, a Liberal Minister, is the brother of the late Reggie Swire, a solicitor.

Once, when his brother owed Sir Richard Carlisle a large amount of money and was unable to repay him, his niece Lavinia went to Carlisle to plead on her father's behalf. He made a deal with her: he would forgive her father's debt if she would deliver to him some papers of state in Jonathan's possession. She agreed, stole the papers from her uncle and delivered them to Sir Richard. The publication of information in the papers triggered the Marconi scandal.

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Thutmose IV[]

Thutmose IV (sometimes read as Thutmosis or Tuthmosis IV and meaning Thoth bore him) was the 8th Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt, who ruled in approximately the 14th century BC. His prenomen or royal name, Menkheperure, means "Established in forms is Re."[39]

He is the son of Amenhotep II and Tiaa, possibly usurping the place of an elder brother.

Appearances

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Tiaa[]

Tiaa or Tia'a was an Ancient Egyptian queen during the eighteenth dynasty of Egypt. She was the wife of Pharaoh Amenhotep II and the mother of Thutmose IV. She is never called king's daughter, and thus her parentage is unknown. It has been speculated that she was Amenhotep's sister or half sister, but it is not certain.[40]

The new dog Robert receives from his mother in 1925 is named after her.

Appearances

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Howard Tyrel[]

Howard Tyrel was the Registrar of Births and Deaths at Ripon Register Office in the late 1910s.

Appearances

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Wellington[]

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852), was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain. His defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 put him in the top rank of Britain's military heroes. After ending his active military career, Wellesley returned to politics. He was twice British prime minister as part of the Tory party: from 1828 to 1830, and for a little less than a month in 1834.[41]

Appearances
Isobel: "You'll stop at nothing to get your own way. Isn't that the truth?"
Violet: "Indeed. It is a quality I share with Marlborough, Wellington, and my late mother. I was trained in a hard school, and I fight accordingly."
— Episode 6.05

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The Crown Prince[]

Friedrich Wilhelm Victor Augustus Ernest (6 May 1882 – 20 July 1951) of the House of Hohenzollern was the last Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Prussia and the German Empire. [42]

Appearances

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The Kaiser[]

Wilhelm II or William II (Frederick William Victor Albert of Prussia; 27 January 1859 – 4 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (Kaiser) and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from 15 June 1888 to 9 November 1918. He was the eldest grandson of the British Queen Victoria and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe, two notable contemporary relations being his first cousin King George V of the United Kingdom, founder of the House of Windsor, and his second cousin Tsar Nicholas II of the House of Romanov, the last ruler of the Russian Empire before the Russian Revolution of 1917 which deposed the monarchy. [43]

Appearances

Carson: "A German republic? No, I don't think so, Mr Branson. The Kaiser will go, I grant you, and maybe the Crown Prince, too, but there'll be a regency, mark my words. Monarchy is the lifeblood of Europe."
Branson: "Sorry Mr. Carson, but I think you will find that the kings and emperors have had their day; if President Wilson has anything to say about it."
— Episode 2.06

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Woodrow Wilson[]

Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856 – February 3, 1924) was the 28th President of the United States, in office from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913.[44]

Appearances

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References
  1. ↑ Amenhotep II
  2. ↑ Herbert Henry Asquith
  3. ↑ John Ward
  4. ↑ Attila the Hun
  5. ↑ Victoria Eugenie of Battenberg
  6. ↑ Napoleon
  7. ↑ King Canute
  8. ↑ Charles I of England
  9. ↑ Anthony van Dyck
  10. ↑ Winston Churchill
  11. ↑ Oliver Cromwell
  12. ↑ Albert B. Fall
  13. ↑ Franz Ferdinand
  14. ↑ Robert Henley
  15. ↑ Slavery at common law
  16. ↑ Herod Antipas
  17. ↑ Adolf Hitler
  18. ↑ Thomas Jefferson
  19. ↑ John, King of England
  20. ↑ Alexander Kerensky
  21. ↑ Vladimir Lenin
  22. ↑ David Lloyd George
  23. ↑ George III
  24. ↑ Ramsay MacDonald
  25. ↑ Crofter: n. Brit. A person who rents and works a small farm, esp. in Scotland or N England.
  26. ↑ Niccolò Machiavelli (Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli)
  27. ↑ Marie Antoinette
  28. ↑ John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough
  29. ↑ Constance Georgine Markievicz
  30. ↑ Mary I of England
  31. ↑ Mary, Queen of Scots
  32. ↑ John Stuart Mill
  33. ↑ Tsar Nicholas I
  34. ↑ Nicholas II
  35. ↑ Queen of Naples
  36. ↑ Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery
  37. ↑ Maximilien de Robespierre
  38. ↑ Reign of Terror
  39. ↑ Thutmose IV
  40. ↑ Tiaa
  41. ↑ Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
  42. ↑ Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm
  43. ↑ Kaiser Wilhelm II
  44. ↑ Woodrow Wilson
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