Lord John Grey
Encyclopedia
John William Grey is a recurring
secondary character in the Outlander
series and the protagonist
of his own series, both of which are written by Diana Gabaldon
.
He first appeared in Dragonfly in Amber
as a sixteen-year-old English camp tag-along/soldier
who chanced upon Jamie and Claire Fraser on the eve of the battle of Prestonpans
. He made subsequent appearances in Voyager
, Drums of Autumn, A Breath of Snow and Ashes and An Echo in the Bone
, and showed up through a series of letters to Jamie and his family in The Fiery Cross
.
Grey is usually described as short (about five six), slight and good-looking, with fine-boned features. He had blond hair, "large, beautiful" blue eyes and a "beautiful" mouth.
Born around June 1729, John William Grey was the second child of the Duke and Duchess of Pardloe, Gerard and Benedicta Grey. The couple's first child is John's elder brother, Harold. In addition to Harold, John had two other siblings—half brothers from his mother's earlier marriage to Captain DeVane—Paul and Edgar DeVane.
John's godfather immediately enrolled John into the Beefsteak Club
after his birth. John was taught the use of a blade starting from age three. When John was seven, his godfather began taking John to the Beefsteak Club every Wednesday for lunch. At age ten, he called Edgar's fiancée an "overbearing doggess" and was severely hit.
On his 12th birthday, John was given a pocket watch by his father, who supposedly shot himself the day after to escape being charged as a Jacobite
. Afterwards, John was sent to Aberdeen
. Due to the scandal surrounding the death, John's older brother Harold had instead taken their father's second title, Earl of Melton. John, on the other hand, still preferred to be called Lord John Grey, as was befitting a duke's younger son.
, which his older brother Harold had raised to restore the family's reputation. John was not given many duties, except perhaps as a scout. He came across Jamie and Claire Fraser while exploring the hills surrounding the English campsite.
Soon after, John took up a commission and trained with a gun crew of the Royal Artillery
for six months. He then re-joined the 46th Regiment and later fought at the Battle of Culloden
.
In 1755, by which time he had risen to the rank of major
, John served a year and a half as the Governor of Ardsmuir Prison, Scotland, where he met Jamie Fraser again. In 1756, after the prison was successfully rebuilt into a fortress, John arranged for Fraser to be sent to Helwater, under the eye of family friend Lord Dunsany, instead of the American colonies.
In 1757, while in London, he helped solve the murder of a fellow soldier, who was suspected of espionage. Later that year, he accepted a posting as the English liaison officer
to the Imperial Fifth Regiment of Hanoverian
Foot.
In 1758, after John returned to the 46th Regiment, it was assigned to fight under Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick
and chased French and Austrian troops around in the Rhine Valley
for weeks until the Battle of Krefeld
. During the battle, John took charge of a gun crew that had lost its commander and the cannon blew up after a few shots. The Royal Commission of Inquiry started an investigation over the blown-up cannon and John was called to stand before a tribunal a few months after the battle.
In 1765, John, by then a lieutanent-colonel, had retired from military life and was appointed the Governor of Jamaica
. He eventually left Jamaica for Virginia
and settled down there.
His first lover was Hector, a twenty-year-old lieutenant in the 46th Regiment who died in the Battle of Culloden.
Around 1747, John's cousin, Olivia Pearsall, was orphaned and became Harold's ward
. She moved in with Benedicta and lived there until marriage. As such, John seemed to be closer to her than his other cousins, or even his half-brothers.
At eighteen, John entered into a relationship with George Everett, who took him to the Lavender House—a discreet club in London that catered to gay men—for the first time. The relationship seemed to have ended by 1755, when a scandal involving George Everett caused John to be reassigned to Adsmuir.
After meeting Jamie Fraser again at the prison, John became friends with Fraser over their weekly dinners and even fell in love with him. John made advances towards Fraser but was rejected. Nonetheless, he would remain in love with Fraser throughout the Outlander
series.
In 1757, John began investigating Olivia's fiancé, Joseph Trevelyan, whom John suspected to have syphilis
. John visited the Lavender House during the course of his investigation and had an one-night-stand with a young man there. Due to the investigation, John lost his old valet
, but gained a new one, Tom Byrd, who was Jack Byrd's younger brother.
In 1758, John was formally introduced to Percy Wainwright, the stepson of General Sir George Stanley, who was John's new stepfather. John and Wainwright had actually met a year before at the Lavender House and became romantically involved after their formal introduction. The relationship ended when Percy was discovered in flagrante delicto
with another man by John and several other soldiers, but John, nonetheless, helped Percy escape to Italy
in order to avoid being hanged.
John later married Isobel Dunsany, the daughter of family friend Lord Dunsany, mainly because he wanted to help take care of Jamie Fraser's illegitimate son, William. The boy was left in Isobel's care because his mother Geneva Dunsany—Isobel's sister—had died soon after giving birth to him and her husband, the Earl of Ellesmere, was shot dead by Fraser in the ensuing scuffle.
During John's journey to Jamaica, he met Claire Fraser again, and was later re-acquainted with Jamie in Jamaica. Afterwards, Isobel and William went to join John in Jamaica, but Isobel died during the sea voyage. At the end of his governorship, John took William with him to visit Jamie Fraser at Fraser's Ridge, en route to a Virginian plantation that belonged to William. Later, John went to North Carolina
to visit Jocasta Cameron, Jamie's aunt, and was introduced to a very pregnant Brianna Fraser, to whom John became temporarily engaged so that she would not be bombarded by suitors.
While in Virginia, John kept up a correspondence with the Frasers and bought for Claire several of the ingredients she needed to create ether
. He also became involved with a Native-American man called Manoke, who took a job at the plantation as John's cook.
After the American Revolutionary War
broke out, John went to Philadelphia to check on the status of his nephew Henry, who was wounded in the war, with the bullets still stuck in him. Claire, who was also visiting Philadelphia at the time, was able to operate on Henry and save his life. John and Claire then received the (erroneously reported) news of Jamie's death, and John later married Claire to keep her from being arrested as an American spy.
Recurring character
A recurring character is a fictional character, usually in a prime time TV series, who appears from time to time during the series' run. Recurring characters often play major roles in an episode, sometimes being the main focus...
secondary character in the Outlander
Outlander (novel)
Outlander is the first novel in a series of seven by Diana Gabaldon. The book focuses on two main characters, Claire Randall and James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser, and takes place in 18th- and 20th-century Scotland...
series and the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of his own series, both of which are written by Diana Gabaldon
Diana Gabaldon
Diana J. Gabaldon is an American author of Mexican-American and English ancestry. Gabaldon is the author of the Outlander Series. Her books they contain elements of romantic fiction, historical fiction, mystery, adventure, and science fiction.-Early life and science career:Diana J. Gabaldon was...
.
He first appeared in Dragonfly in Amber
Dragonfly in Amber (novel)
Dragonfly in Amber, the second book in the best-selling Outlander series, is written by Diana Gabaldon.Her books are difficult to classify by genre, since they contain elements of romantic fiction, historical fiction, and science fiction...
as a sixteen-year-old English camp tag-along/soldier
Soldier
A soldier is a member of the land component of national armed forces; whereas a soldier hired for service in a foreign army would be termed a mercenary...
who chanced upon Jamie and Claire Fraser on the eve of the battle of Prestonpans
Battle of Prestonpans
The Battle of Prestonpans was the first significant conflict in the Jacobite Rising of 1745. The battle took place at 4 am on 21 September 1745. The Jacobite army loyal to James Francis Edward Stuart and led by his son Charles Edward Stuart defeated the government army loyal to the Hanoverian...
. He made subsequent appearances in Voyager
Voyager (novel)
Voyager, book three in the best-selling Outlander series, was written by Diana Gabaldon.The storyline centers on a time-travelling 20th-century doctor and her 18th-century Scottish husband , and is set in Scotland, France, and America.The heroine of the bestselling Outlander, Claire, returns in...
, Drums of Autumn, A Breath of Snow and Ashes and An Echo in the Bone
An Echo in the Bone
An Echo in the Bone is the seventh book in the Outlander series of novels by Diana Gabaldon. It was first published on September 22, 2009. This book continues the adventures of Claire Fraser, the time-traveling doctor, and her 18th century Scottish husband, Jamie Fraser, in the 18th century, as...
, and showed up through a series of letters to Jamie and his family in The Fiery Cross
The Fiery Cross (novel)
The Fiery Cross is book five in the best-selling Outlander series, written by Diana Gabaldon. The stories center around a time-travelling 20th-century doctor and her 18th-century Scottish husband , and are located in Scotland, France, and America.The heroine of the bestselling Outlander, Claire,...
.
Grey is usually described as short (about five six), slight and good-looking, with fine-boned features. He had blond hair, "large, beautiful" blue eyes and a "beautiful" mouth.
Background
Grey's background changed as the Outlander series progressed. For example, his father was only an earl in Dragonfly in Amber, but by the time John Grey's own series appeared, his father had become a duke. The following is the description of John Grey's background collected from the more recent books, consisting mostly of Lord John Grey series.Born around June 1729, John William Grey was the second child of the Duke and Duchess of Pardloe, Gerard and Benedicta Grey. The couple's first child is John's elder brother, Harold. In addition to Harold, John had two other siblings—half brothers from his mother's earlier marriage to Captain DeVane—Paul and Edgar DeVane.
John's godfather immediately enrolled John into the Beefsteak Club
Beefsteak Club
Beefsteak Club is the name, nickname and historically common misnomer applied by sources to several 18th and 19th century male dining clubs that celebrated the beefsteak as a symbol of patriotic and often Whig concepts of liberty and prosperity....
after his birth. John was taught the use of a blade starting from age three. When John was seven, his godfather began taking John to the Beefsteak Club every Wednesday for lunch. At age ten, he called Edgar's fiancée an "overbearing doggess" and was severely hit.
On his 12th birthday, John was given a pocket watch by his father, who supposedly shot himself the day after to escape being charged as a Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
. Afterwards, John was sent to Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
. Due to the scandal surrounding the death, John's older brother Harold had instead taken their father's second title, Earl of Melton. John, on the other hand, still preferred to be called Lord John Grey, as was befitting a duke's younger son.
Career
In 1745, when John was sixteen, he informally joined the 46th RegimentRegiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
, which his older brother Harold had raised to restore the family's reputation. John was not given many duties, except perhaps as a scout. He came across Jamie and Claire Fraser while exploring the hills surrounding the English campsite.
Soon after, John took up a commission and trained with a gun crew of the Royal Artillery
Royal Artillery
The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery , is the artillery arm of the British Army. Despite its name, it comprises a number of regiments.-History:...
for six months. He then re-joined the 46th Regiment and later fought at the Battle of Culloden
Battle of Culloden
The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the 1745 Jacobite Rising. Taking place on 16 April 1746, the battle pitted the Jacobite forces of Charles Edward Stuart against an army commanded by William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, loyal to the British government...
.
In 1755, by which time he had risen to the rank of major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
, John served a year and a half as the Governor of Ardsmuir Prison, Scotland, where he met Jamie Fraser again. In 1756, after the prison was successfully rebuilt into a fortress, John arranged for Fraser to be sent to Helwater, under the eye of family friend Lord Dunsany, instead of the American colonies.
In 1757, while in London, he helped solve the murder of a fellow soldier, who was suspected of espionage. Later that year, he accepted a posting as the English liaison officer
Liaison officer
A liaison officer or LNO is a person that liaises between two organizations to communicate and coordinate their activities. Generally, they are used to achieve the best utilization of resources or employment of services of one organization by another. In the military, liaison officers may...
to the Imperial Fifth Regiment of Hanoverian
Kingdom of Hanover
The Kingdom of Hanover was established in October 1814 by the Congress of Vienna, with the restoration of George III to his Hanoverian territories after the Napoleonic era. It succeeded the former Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg , and joined with 38 other sovereign states in the German...
Foot.
In 1758, after John returned to the 46th Regiment, it was assigned to fight under Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick
Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick
Ferdinand, Prince of Brunswick-Lüneburg , was a Prussian field marshal known for his participation in the Seven Years' War...
and chased French and Austrian troops around in the Rhine Valley
Rhine Valley
The Rhine Valley is a glacial alpine valley, formed by the Alpine Rhine , i.e. the section of the Rhine River between the confluence of the Anterior Rhine and Posterior Rhine at Reichenau and its mouth at Lake Constance....
for weeks until the Battle of Krefeld
Battle of Krefeld
The Battle of Krefeld was a battle fought on 23 June 1758 between a Prussian-Hanoverian army and a French army during the Seven Years' War.-Background:...
. During the battle, John took charge of a gun crew that had lost its commander and the cannon blew up after a few shots. The Royal Commission of Inquiry started an investigation over the blown-up cannon and John was called to stand before a tribunal a few months after the battle.
In 1765, John, by then a lieutanent-colonel, had retired from military life and was appointed the Governor of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. He eventually left Jamaica for Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and settled down there.
Personal life
John is homosexual, though he has had sex with a few female prostitutes and the two women he married.His first lover was Hector, a twenty-year-old lieutenant in the 46th Regiment who died in the Battle of Culloden.
Around 1747, John's cousin, Olivia Pearsall, was orphaned and became Harold's ward
Ward (law)
In law, a ward is someone placed under the protection of a legal guardian. A court may take responsibility for the legal protection of an individual, usually either a child or incapacitated person, in which case the ward is known as a ward of the court, or a ward of the state, in the United States,...
. She moved in with Benedicta and lived there until marriage. As such, John seemed to be closer to her than his other cousins, or even his half-brothers.
At eighteen, John entered into a relationship with George Everett, who took him to the Lavender House—a discreet club in London that catered to gay men—for the first time. The relationship seemed to have ended by 1755, when a scandal involving George Everett caused John to be reassigned to Adsmuir.
After meeting Jamie Fraser again at the prison, John became friends with Fraser over their weekly dinners and even fell in love with him. John made advances towards Fraser but was rejected. Nonetheless, he would remain in love with Fraser throughout the Outlander
Outlander (novel)
Outlander is the first novel in a series of seven by Diana Gabaldon. The book focuses on two main characters, Claire Randall and James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser, and takes place in 18th- and 20th-century Scotland...
series.
In 1757, John began investigating Olivia's fiancé, Joseph Trevelyan, whom John suspected to have syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
. John visited the Lavender House during the course of his investigation and had an one-night-stand with a young man there. Due to the investigation, John lost his old valet
Valet
Valet and varlet are terms for male servants who serve as personal attendants to their employer.- Word origins :In the Middle Ages, the valet de chambre to a ruler was a prestigious appointment for young men...
, but gained a new one, Tom Byrd, who was Jack Byrd's younger brother.
In 1758, John was formally introduced to Percy Wainwright, the stepson of General Sir George Stanley, who was John's new stepfather. John and Wainwright had actually met a year before at the Lavender House and became romantically involved after their formal introduction. The relationship ended when Percy was discovered in flagrante delicto
In flagrante delicto
In flagrante delicto or sometimes simply in flagrante is a legal term used to indicate that a criminal has been caught in the act of committing an offence...
with another man by John and several other soldiers, but John, nonetheless, helped Percy escape to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in order to avoid being hanged.
John later married Isobel Dunsany, the daughter of family friend Lord Dunsany, mainly because he wanted to help take care of Jamie Fraser's illegitimate son, William. The boy was left in Isobel's care because his mother Geneva Dunsany—Isobel's sister—had died soon after giving birth to him and her husband, the Earl of Ellesmere, was shot dead by Fraser in the ensuing scuffle.
During John's journey to Jamaica, he met Claire Fraser again, and was later re-acquainted with Jamie in Jamaica. Afterwards, Isobel and William went to join John in Jamaica, but Isobel died during the sea voyage. At the end of his governorship, John took William with him to visit Jamie Fraser at Fraser's Ridge, en route to a Virginian plantation that belonged to William. Later, John went to North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
to visit Jocasta Cameron, Jamie's aunt, and was introduced to a very pregnant Brianna Fraser, to whom John became temporarily engaged so that she would not be bombarded by suitors.
While in Virginia, John kept up a correspondence with the Frasers and bought for Claire several of the ingredients she needed to create ether
Ether
Ethers are a class of organic compounds that contain an ether group — an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups — of general formula R–O–R'. A typical example is the solvent and anesthetic diethyl ether, commonly referred to simply as "ether"...
. He also became involved with a Native-American man called Manoke, who took a job at the plantation as John's cook.
After the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
broke out, John went to Philadelphia to check on the status of his nephew Henry, who was wounded in the war, with the bullets still stuck in him. Claire, who was also visiting Philadelphia at the time, was able to operate on Henry and save his life. John and Claire then received the (erroneously reported) news of Jamie's death, and John later married Claire to keep her from being arrested as an American spy.