Outlander

Lord John Grey ∆ Character spotlight

The Lord John series is a sequence of historical mystery novels and shorter works written by Diana Gabaldon that center on Lord John Grey.

Lord John Grey is an English soldier and diplomat. At age sixteen, he meets the infamous Jamie Fraser before the Battle of Prestonpans, and the two do not meet again until he becomes the governor of Ardsmuir, a Scottish prison. They form a tenuous friendship, which soon becomes complicated by the fact that Lord John has fallen in love with Jamie.

Lord John is a main character in the Outlander novels and the protagonist of a subseries of historical mysteries, the Lord John novels and novellas. The Lord John stories take place during the period of time that Jamie is paroled at Helwater.

Personal History

John William Bertram Armstrong Grey was born to Gerard Grey, Duke of Pardloe and Earl of Melton, and his wife Benedicta Grey, née Armstrong. Grey has three elder brothers: Harold "Hal" Grey, from his parents' marriage, and Paul and Edgar DeVane, half-brothers from his mother's first marriage. Hal is about nine years older than John, and although it is unclear just how much older John's half-brothers are, John was about ten when Edgar married.

Grey is a fine swordsman, having first begun lessons at the age of three. At a young age, he once struck Hal on the leg with a sword, doing no lasting damage but leaving a scar. He was enrolled for The Society for the Appreciation of the English Beefsteak, a gentlemen's club, upon his birth by his godfather, who began taking him there for lunch every Wednesday starting when he was seven. As an adult, Grey continues to frequent the club, preferring it to White's, of which he is also a member.

On Grey's twelfth birthday, he was given a pocket watch by his father, identical to the one his brother received on his own twelfth birthday. The next day, Grey's father was found dead by his mother, having been murdered in the night. Not knowing who had committed the murder and wanting to protect her family, Grey's mother covered it up, making it appear as though Pardloe had committed suicide; at the time, he had been suspected as a Jacobite supporter, and his death was perceived by some as an admission of guilt. The family was dishonored by the allegations, and an attempt to have the dukedom of Pardloe revoked was briefly made.

Thoroughly shamed, Grey's elder brother Hal chose to be referred to by his lesser title, the Earl of Melton, rather than take on one that was associated with such a scandal. As the head of the family, Melton's choice was accepted by his mother, who became known as the Dowager Countess instead of the Dowager Duchess. If John had followed suit, he would have been called the Honourable John Grey, as befitting an earl's younger son. However, John insisted on continuing to be called Lord John, as befitting a duke's younger son. Immediately after his father's death, Grey was sent to Aberdeen, Scotland, to stay with his mother's family and avoid the scandal, although it was not until much later in his life that Grey came to realize this was done for his own protection.