Cora Crawley

## The Right Honourable The Countess of Grantham

 Viscountess Downton (1890-1900)
 Lady Grantham
 Her Ladyship
 Your Ladyship
 My Lady
 Milady
 Mama
 Cora
 Cousin Cora
 Granny (by her grandchildren)
 Darling
 Darling Mama
 My dear

 Miss Caroline Talbot
 Peter Pelham, Earl of Brancaster
 Lord Theodore Pelham
 Arthur Crawley, Viscount Downton
 Lord Benedict Crawley
 Lord Christopher Crawley
 Lady Diana Crawley
 Lord Edmund Crawley

 Lady Rosamund Painswick (sister-in-law)
 Mr. Marmaduke Painswick † (brother-in-law, via Rosamund)
 Miss Delilah Mellark (sister-in-law, via Rosamund)
 Mr. Tom Branson (former son-in-law, via Sybil)
 Mr. Matthew Crawley † (son-in-law, via Mary)
 Mr. Henry Talbot (former son-in-law, via Mary)
 Herbert Pelham, Marquess of Hexham (son-in-law, via Edith)
 Josephine, Countess of Grantham (daughter-in-law, via Alex)
 Susan MacClare, Marchioness of Flintshire (first cousin-in-law)
 Hugh MacClare, Marquess of Flintshire (first cousin-in-law's husband)
 Rose Aldridge, Lady Sinderby (first cousin-in-law once removed)
 Atticus Aldridge, Lord Sinderby (husband of first cousin-in-law once removed)
 Hon. Victoria Rachel Cora Aldridge (first cousin-in-law twice removed)
 Hon. Hugh Daniel Atticus Aldridge (first cousin-in-law twice removed)
 Hon. Robert Alexander David Aldridge (first cousin-in-law twice removed)
 Maud, Lady Bagshaw (first cousin once removed)
 Mrs. Lucy Branson (née Smith) (first cousin twice removed)

Miss Cora Levinson (circa 1880s)

## Coat of Arms

Arms of the Rt. Hon. Countess of Grantham (1890-1932)

**Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham** (née **Levinson**; b. 18 June, 1868-d. 25 December, 1932) is an American heiress. She is the eldest child and only daughter of Martha and Isidore Levinson, and the sister of Harold Levinson. She is both a member of the wealthy Levinson Family, and the former matriarch of the Crawley Family (through her marriage).

She is the wife of the late Robert Crawley, and the mother of Mary, Edith, Sybil, and Alexander Crawley. And through her four children, she has eleven grandchildren.

## Biography

* Early Life
* Marriage and Children
* Death

**Cora Elizabeth Levinson** was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on the 18 June 1868. She was the eldest child and only daughter of the dry goods multi-millionaire, Isidore Levinson and his wife Martha Levinson.

She has a younger brother, Harold Levinson, who also became a businessman like their late father and eventually took over their family enterprise.

Cora was also previously engaged to Samuel Harrison. Their engagement only lasted for four months.

As a young woman, she was brought to London in 1888 for her first season by her socially ambitious mother, in order to marry a member of the British nobility. During the season, she met Robert Crawley, Viscount Downton—the future Earl of Grantham. Much to Robert's mother's chagrin, Cora became engaged to him and the two of them married on February 16, 1890. As part of their marriage contract, Cora's fortune was entailed to the family estate to prevent it from going bankrupt.

While their marriage was initially one-sided in love, after a year, Robert fell in love with her and their marriage was perfectly happy. After her father-in-law died, Cora became the Countess of Grantham, her husband Robert became the 7th Earl of Grantham, and over their long marriage, spanning forty-two years by 1932, the Countess would give birth to four children: Mary Josephine in 1891, Edith Violet in 1892, Sybil Cora in 1895, and Alexander Isidore in 1914.

Cora died suddenly on the evening of Christmas 1932. The car that they were riding home—after celebrating Alex's birthday with a ball in London—exploded upon its arrival on Downton's driveway. They were then both buried at the cemetery of St. Michael and All Angels Church.

Upon their death, her son succeeded his father as the 8th Earl of Grantham—who has just turned 18 at the time of their demise.
## Appearance and Personality

Cora is perhaps the most beautiful of women in her generation—with raven black hair and bright blue eyes. Three of her children bear the most resemblance to her: Mary, Sybil, and Alex.

Cora is generally a sweet and tolerant person. She always sees the best in people around her and seems oblivious to certain peoples' dark sides (examples being O'Brien, Thomas, and Edna). She also accepts things and accepts change easier than others in her family, as seen by her acceptance of Tom Branson before and after Sybil's death. She loves her family very much, which is shown when she tells off O'Brien for insulting Matthew, supporting Mary after her affair, her deep mourning for Sybil, being unforgiving of Nanny West and firing her on the spot for her treatment of Sybbie, and her arranging for Edith to raise Marigold at Downton. She is also very loyal showing her disappointment after O'Brien leaves without warning. She has been shown to have a temper and does not forgive distrust and dishonesty.

She also loves her husband, Robert, which was not always the case for arranged marriages between wealthy American heiresses and English nobles. She also has a tendency to blame herself in times of trouble—in 1924, she punishes herself for Robert's confrontation with Simon Bricker. Much like her husband, Cora is also vey kind and polite with all the servants and treats them almost like family, being very fond to O'Brien, supporting Anna at Bates' trial and Mrs. Hughes at the time she suspected to have cancer allowing her to stay at Downton in the case she needed to rest and recover.

## Story

###### The Life of Viscount Downton (Book 1)

Cora was still in her bedroom when her son arrived after having breakfast. While Alex told her about him visiting his grandmother at the Dower House and giving a flower bouquet, she teased him on receiving one from him as well—to which he smiled nervously and promises her to giver one when they walk around the grounds later.

Her husband Robert then arrived, and asked why their son was there—to which the two men had a bit of banter before Alex shuts him down gently and Robert had nothing else to counter. When Alex told both of them that he have something to say to them, Cora asked him if something is wrong. Alex replied with the matter of him choosing the next school that he wanted to attend once he turned thirteen—to which he chose to be at Harrow.

## Name Etymology

* **Cora** is a female name of Greek origin, meaning *"maiden"*.
	+ She shares the name with Diana, her youngest granddaughter.

* **Elizabeth** is a female name of Hebrew origin, meaning *"pledged to God"*.