page_title: List of Downton Abbey characters
section_title: Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham
hierarchical_section_title: List of Downton Abbey characters / The Crawley family / Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham
caption_attribution_description: English: Dame Maggie Smith in Kensington Gardens filming 'Capturing Mary', 7th March 2007. Shot with a long lens from the nearby path in a break between filming. The weather was cold and she appeared to be taking shelter.
context_page_description: This is a list of characters from Downton Abbey, a British period drama television series created by Julian Fellowes and co-produced by Carnival Films and Masterpiece for ITV and PBS, respectively.
context_section_description: Violet Crawley (The Dowager Countess of Grantham) (played by Maggie Smith) (b. 1842) is Robert's mother and widow of the previous earl. Violet, portrayed as a matriarchal figure and quick of wit despite her age, symbolises the "old world" and order of the pre–First World War days. During and after the war, Violet remains a strong influence at Downton Abbey but finds her influence under threat as social norms change, particularly from Isobel Crawley, with whom she has a tendency to quarrel, and her daughter-in-law Cora, both of whom are more forward-thinking and strong-minded women.
caption: Maggie Smith portrays the Dowager Countess
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