Persuasion
Lady Russell
Anne’s godmother
A dignified family friend who loves Anne like a daughter and who once talked her out of marrying Wentworth.
Lady Russell was a close friend of Anne’s late mother, and she acts as Anne’s surrogate mother. She is sensible, cautious and socially conservative, and Sir Walter and the family rely on her advice. She helps with the family’s finances and is firmly protective of Anne.
Years ago she believed that Wentworth’s lack of fortune and connections made the engagement a wrong thing, and she persuaded nineteen-year-old Anne to end it. Her judgment came from real love, but it cost Anne years of happiness. She does not like waste or fuss, and she respects the Crofts’ good sense. She sees herself as acting for Anne’s family and for her late friend Lady Elliot, and she is slow to see that she may have judged badly. Her affection is real, and it is the reason her mistakes hurt so much.
“He has no fortune, no connections, Anne! It would be utter madness and your ruin to bind yourself to such uncertainty.”
In the story
Contains spoilers.
Lady Russell takes Anne in at Kellynch Lodge and accompanies her to Bath. There she admires Mr. William Elliot and encourages Anne to think of becoming Lady Elliot of Kellynch Hall, in her mother’s place. She is wrong about him, as she was wrong about Wentworth.
When Anne and Wentworth are reunited, Lady Russell admits her mistake and embraces him. She tells him that he has proved her former fears groundless, and she gives Anne to him with her whole heart.
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