The Spanish flu has struck Downton. Carson (the butler), Cora (the Countess of Grantham), and Lavinia (Matthew’s fiancé) are all taken ill. Carson’s case of the flu was fairly mild, but he was not able to serve in his normal manner. Mr. Molesley replaced him in serving the wines, but Mr. Molesley seemed to be taken ill as well. It was later revealed, however, that Mr. Molesley simply tasted too much of the wine in his attempt to please Lord Grantham. Cora’s case of the flu was much more severe. There were severely moments when they did not think that she would make it through. Thankfully, she did.

Lavinia’s case was the most intense. As you will read below, this makes sense because the Spanish flu affected young people between twenty and thirty most severely. However, at first, it seemed that Lavinia would be fine. She felt ill during dinner and went upstairs to rest. When she came back downstairs later in the evening, she found Matthew and Mary in a serious conversation. For those of you who do not remember, Matthew and Mary almost married during the first season. Although they parted, Mary never stopped loving Matthew, and we now find out that Matthew’s heart still belongs to Mary. Unfortunately, Lavinia overheard Matthew saying to Mary, “I couldn’t accept Lavinia’s sacrifice of her life, her children, her future, and then give her the brush-off when I was well again, however much I might want to.”

The next day, when Matthew is sitting with Lavinia, she speaks candidly of Matthew’s relationship with Mary. Sweet Lavinia thinks that it is noble of Matthew to keep his word to Lavinia, even though he loves Mary. But Lavinia does not want to hold him to it. Lavinia does not want Matthew to marry her out of obligation, and she tells Matthew to marry Mary, with whom he truly belongs. Later that night, Lavinia takes a turn for the worse. Her illness is hard for everyone to understand because she seemed absolutely fine. The doctor explains that it is a “strange disease with sudden, savage changes.” In a heart-wrenching scene, Lavinia speaks to Matthew for the final time. She implores him to “By happy, for my sake. Promise me. It’s all I want for you. Remember that. That’s all I want.” And, with that, Lavinia passes on.

Matthew blames himself for Lavinia’s death. While she was dying, she asked him, “Isn’t this better?” Lavinia thought that Matthew belonged with Mary instead of her, and she believed that her death would give them the opportunity to be happy. Matthew believes that this thought made Lavinia die of a broken heart. This guilt leads Matthew to tell Mary that “this is the end.” Because he believes that they brought about her death, they can never be together.

The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918/19 affected England in stages, with a peak at the second of World War I. People between twenty and thirty years of age were particularly susceptible, and the disease often progressed quickly in people of those ages. In those two years, over 50 million people died worldwide. The Spanish flu affected a quarter of the British population, and 228,000 people died in Britain alone.