Marigold Pelham

## MissMarigold Pelham

 Miss Marigold Crawley (formerly)
 Miss Marigold
 Marigold
 A dear little thing (by Cora Crawley)
 Darling (by her mother)
Little Duckling (by Alexander Crawley)

 Mrs. Mirada Pelham (step-grandmother)
 Mr. Pelham (step-grandfather)
 Lady Mary Crawley (maternal aunt)
 Lady Sybil Branson † (maternal aunt)
 Alexander Crawley, 8th Earl of Grantham (maternal uncle)
 Josephine Crawley, Countess of Grantham (maternal aunt)
 Mr. Matthew Crawley † (maternal marital uncle/fourth cousin once-removed)
 Mr. Tom Branson (maternal marital uncle)
Mr. Henry Talbot (former maternal marital uncle)
 Miss Sybbie Branson (maternal first cousin)
 Mr. George Crawley (maternal first cousin)
 Miss Caroline Talbot (maternal first cousin)
 Arthur Crawley, Viscount Downton (maternal first cousin)
Lord Benedict Crawley (maternal first cousin)
 Lord Christopher Crawley (maternal first cousin)
 Lady Diana Crawley (maternal first cousin)
 Lord Edmund Crawley (maternal first cousin)
 Lady Rosamund Painswick (grandaunt)
 Mr. Marmaduke Painswick † (marital granduncle)
 Miss Delilah Mellark (martial grandaunt)
 Mr. Harold Levinson (granduncle)
 Mrs. Martha Levinson † (great-grandmother)
 Mr. Isidore Levinson † (great-grandfather)
 Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham † (great-grandmother)
Patrick Crawley, 6th Earl of Grantham † (great-grandfather)
 Hon. Victoria Rachel Cora Aldridge (maternal third cousin)
 Hon. Hugh Daniel Atticus Aldridge (maternal third cousin)
 Hon. Robert Alexander David Aldridge (maternal third cousin)
 Mr. Reginald Crawley † (maternal third cousin twice removed)
 Isobel Grey, Lady Merton (third cousin-in-law twice removed)
 Maud, Lady Bagshaw (distant cousin)

## Coat of Arms

Arms of Miss Marigold Pelham (1925-)

**Miss Marigold Pelham** (formerly **Crawley**, b. 14 November, 1922) is the illegitimate daughter and only child of Lady Edith Pelham and the late Michael Gregson. She is the third grandchild and second granddaughter of Robert and Cora Crawley, and therefore the great-grandchild of Isidore & Martha Levinson, and Patrick & Violet Crawley.

She is a member of the Crawley and Gregson families by birth, and of the Pelham Family by her mother's second marriage.

Marigold has three aunts, Lady Mary Crawley, the late Lady Sybil Branson and Lady Josephine Crawley; and four uncles: Alexander Crawley, the late Matthew Crawley, Tom Branson, and Herbert Pelham.

## Biography

Marigold's parents—Michael and Edith—planned to marry, but Michael had a wife, Lizzy, who suffered from a mental illness and had for many years. He had loved her a lot, but the woman he knew was gone, and he had now fallen in love again, with Edith. Lunacy was not grounds for divorce in England, so Michael went to Germany to become a German citizen, as the laws were different there. In Germany, he could divorce Lizzy on the grounds that she was mentally ill, and marry Edith. However, on his first night in Germany, Michael got into a fight with Hitler's group of thugs, and was killed in the 'Beer Hall Putsch'.

Edith, back in England, discovered that she was going to have Michael's child, which worried her, as Michael was missing and having an illegitimate child would make her a social outcast. She went to Switzerland for a 'long holiday'. She was then born in Geneva, Switzerland, and given up for adoption to Mr. and Mrs. Schroeder after her mother breastfed her.

Ultimately, Edith decided to go back to Switzerland and reclaim her daughter, and have her grow up on Drewe's farm. Tim Drewe himself discovered her secret—but sympathetic to Lady Edith, agreed to keep it for her and raise her daughter.

Mary and Robert object to Edith's announcement at adopting Marigold, but Robert agrees after Cora insists they offer Marigold a home in the Downton nursery. Robert later notes Edith's obsession with the girl. He admits to Cora he agrees with her that she is a "dear little thing" but feels there is something about her, a "sense of *deja vu*" that he cannot quite understand. When he realizes after the unveiling of the village war memorial that Marigold reminds him of Michael Gregson, he guesses the truth and confirms it with Cora. He agrees to keep the secret at her request, even from Edith, and believes he will love his new granddaughter.

Later that year, as the family is leaving for the grouse season at Brancaster Castle, Marigold and her cousins are brought outside to bid farewell. As Mary tells George to "come to Mommy" Edith almost says the same to Marigold, but cuts short and says "me" instead. Later, Robert does reveal to Edith he knows who Marigold is, and feels that they must do the best for her, for both Edith's and Michael's sake, but of course to keep Marigold's true identity within the family. Edith is deeply moved, and later Tom reveals he knows the truth as well, saying where he grew up "there were quite a few Marigolds" - his cousin Nuala had had a daughter out of wedlock who was brought up as her sister, and though the family never talked about it, they all knew the truth.

In 1925, Marigold and her eldest cousin Sybbie were flower girls at her mother's wedding to Herbert 'Bertie' Pelham. She was then seen playing with her new step-grandmother, **Mirada Pelham**. Cora reveals Marigold will have moved to her stepfather's estate of Brancaster Castle in Northumberland by the end of Edith and Bertie's honeymoon.

In March of 1928, she welcomed a younger half-brother, named Peter. And in June of 1931, she has another half-brother, named Theodore.

## Appearance and Personality

Marigold was a carbon copy of her biological father, inheriting both his russet brown hair and brown eyes—which reminded her maternal grandfather of the late journalist upon seeing her for the first time.

Unlike her older cousins, she is shy and prefers to be alone and quiet for most of the time. She also has hidden intelligence, and excels in science and mathematics. She is also interested in the world of journalism and likes to come along with her mother to her work in *The Sketch*.

But when it comes to interest in sports, Marigold shares her cousins' love of croquet, as well showing interest in polo, alongside her cousin George.

## Name Etymology

* **Marigold** is a female name of English origin, meaning *"golden flower"*.

* **Anne** is a unisex name of Hebrew, French, and English origin, meaning *"grace"*.
	+ She was named after both Lady Rosamund Painswick and Violet Crawley—her maternal great-aunt and great-grandmother, respectively.