The Chronicles of Downton Abbey: A New Era (23 page)

However, in the face of a precarious future, we know that Matthew is better equipped than Mary to anticipate and cope with the changes that will inevitably come. As the British aristocracy emerged, battered and be-taxed, into the post-war world, it became increasingly clear that alternative strategies to ‘living off the land’ had to be found if they were to sustain their traditional position. Marrying money was still a popular option, but increasingly the upper classes considered earning money themselves, looking to the worlds of business, finance, colonial administrations and even the professions. Lord Montagu of Beaulieu recalled: ‘Individuals, prompted by the changing times, began to make their ways in fields unknown to their predecessors. Peers, often under plebeian pseudonyms, were to be found on the stage, in the cinema world, in journalism, motoring and exploration.’

In this respect, Matthew is well placed, despite the fact that he is essentially moving in the other direction. Having grounded himself in the professions, as a solicitor, he is now taking on the responsibilities of a landed aristocrat with the skills, the outlook and the earning capability of a career at his command. Strangely, despite the strong connection between the law and the aristocracy (many eldest sons of peers studied law in the nineteenth century as good preparation for running their estates and for assuming political roles), by Matthew’s time, pursuing a career as a lawyer was considered rather outside the usual run. Specialisation and regulation within the profession had discouraged many of the old landed amateurs and the law had come to be seen as thoroughly middle class. This might have been a hindrance before, but as Matthew leads Downton Abbey further into the modern era, it now appears that it will in fact be a help.

Furthermore, having experienced and survived the war, Matthew has a greater understanding of the social evolution that is now taking place. Many of the soldiers who fought in the trenches lost respect for the distant generals who commanded them with such spectacular incompetence. And while they admired and respected the young upper-class officers who led them into battle and shared their life in the trenches, this very proximity reduced their mystique. Many of the old habits of deference were lost during the years of conflict, and this affected all strata of society. Where Robert might instinctively look to George V for guidance, Matthew was unlikely to do the same. Indeed it is doubtful how much he looks to Robert, much though he loves him. He recognises that Robert’s priorities are with preserving things as they are, rather than trying to change them for the better.

In other ways, though, the two are close. Matthew’s father died when he was quite young, and Robert has never had a son, so the two relish the chance to build their relationship along such familial lines. There was some restraint initially on Matthew’s part, as he found his footing in the aristocratic world and questioned Robert’s views, but he knows that his father-in-law-to-be is a good and kind man, and that is what matters most to him. In taking on the estate, Matthew determines to be just as fair a landlord as Robert, but perhaps a more efficient and engaged one, even though this was considered unusual at the time.

Lady Hyde Parker’s husband at Melford farmed his own land and drew a lot of comment for it: ‘They spoke about it a great deal in the neigbourhood: “Have you heard? Willy farms, he’s started farming.”’ It could be a shock when members of the landed classes got involved and discovered that huge amounts of money had been squandered. When Sir John and Lady Dashwood took on West Wycombe Park after the First World War, it was rundown after years of neglect. They determined to make a go of it and cut out any waste by examining how the estate had been run thus far, but they soon found that there were serious problems that had developed in the absence of any real management: ‘I said we must get the family finances on a solid basis and find out what is going on, stop all this waste: six gardeners and nothing grown but cabbages; an enormous amount of acres and no money. We went into all the figures and found such cheating. The extraordinary thing was that the agent and solicitor told Johnnie that the most he could take out of the estate was £
1,200
a year. I never knew if it was true or not; I didn’t know anything about the money, nor care, but when we went through the figures we found the agent was getting £
2,800
and the solicitor £
3,200
. That didn’t seem to me quite right!’

In Matthew, Robert has
found a natural successor
to his earldom. His views
may differ in some respects,
but fundamentally he wants the
same thing as his father-in-law: a
future for Downton Abbey.

Mary
Are you all right? You seem
to have been slaving away for hours.

Matthew
I want to be up to date with
it all before I go back into the office.

Dan Stevens sees the value in Matthew being given more responsibility at Downton Abbey before he formally inherits it: ‘Because of his legal background, Robert values him as someone who can bring a fresh approach to things. Also, he belongs to the younger generation and looks at things in a new way.’ But, of course, Matthew is worried. ‘He’s slightly anxious about it. He doesn’t want to feel that he’s treading on Robert’s toes, or to wrest the estate away from him,’ says Stevens. However, as with Mary, once the decision has been made, Matthew gets behind it wholeheartedly. ‘Once he does engage – after Robert reassures him – he does it very efficiently. He has to make this tough call, and he does it. He’s not ruthless, but he is clear-sighted,’ says Stevens.

It was a hard time. While the kindest landlords may have been reluctant to put up their tenants’ rents, agricultural wages were often cut: between 1920 and 1922 in Norfolk, they fell from 46 shillings a week to 25 shillings. And while the likes of Mrs Hughes might have been starting to enjoy labour-saving devices to help her with her housekeeping, farming was still largely done using traditional methods. One landowner’s wife, Mrs Charles Brocklebank, recalled: ‘There was hardly any mechanisation then: we had wind pumps on the farms. I remember hearing the first tractor in the 1920s. At harvest you just heard the boy warning the man on the top of the wagon that the horse was about to move forward. That was all. You could hear him calling “Hold ye up” from far across the Cambridgeshire fields.’

Matthew may yet have the occupation of Gentleman Farmer in his future, but for the moment he’s still a solicitor, and dressed as such. For the third series the costume department have introduced some country clothing for him, too: ‘In his tweeds he’s a younger version of Hugh [Bonneville],’ says Caroline McCall, costume designer. ‘It was an age when fine tailoring was very important. We’ve had a number of suits made for him.’ Most important of all was the black tie – the outfit in which Matthew gets to look his most dashing to our modern eyes: ‘It was acceptable then if it was just the family at dinner,’ explains McCall. ‘I really wanted to get the shape right for that date. Narrowing the waist of the jacket and having single-pleat trousers to give him a long shape.’ The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII for a brief period, before he abdicated the throne to marry American divorcee Mrs Wallis Simpson) was the arbiter of fashion then and young men would follow his style. This meant softer collars during the day, worn with thick silk ties.

Matthew’s challenges are not yet over. While excited at the prospect of married life, he and Mary are aware that it will not be plain sailing. Brian Percival, director, believes this relationship will continue to fascinate us, even once they are married: ‘There will always remain an element of doubt as to whether their relationship will succeed. Mary in particular has her own very strong and well-defined character; she can be devious and scheming when she needs to be, and ultimately do what is best for her, often defined by wealth and power. Matthew is quite a counterpoint to this, usually putting his own moral standpoint before all else, including fortune and title. The fact that in many ways the two are chalk and cheese keeps us interested because of what this may throw up. In many ways both their lives would be much easier if they didn’t have a relationship together, however the one thing they both have little control over is the fact that they have fallen in love. This is what keeps us engaged: their inner battles between what they normally believe in and how much of it either can retain in the face of their feelings for each other.’

Matthew and Mary have yet to decide where they will live as husband and wife, which is really a question of
how
they will live. She, of course, wants to stay at her home, Downton Abbey, where she hopes they will live until they die. But Matthew would like them to be independent, to begin their life together away from the gaze of the family and its servants. He wants to live in a plainer manner, one that takes less account of formalities and traditional hierarchies. He sees that the future is bright but is wise enough to acknowledge its uncertainties, and so he has no clear answers. Julian Fellowes, naturally, says it best: ‘Matthew sees no point in replicating that life even if he has got comfortable with living in the house and on the estate. But that internal tension existed. Matthew represents the feeling that if it’s going to survive, it’s got to change – and he was right.’

Matthew’s decision to buy a Humber Roadster was typical
of the period. Motoring had always been considered a
smart, even aristocratic, pastime. C. S. Rolls (the co-founder
of Rolls-Royce) was the younger son of Lord Llangattock,
while the popular journal Car Illustrated was owned and
edited by Lord Montagu of Beaulieu.