History Headscratchers / DowntonAbbey

** Also, even given Germany, why ''Munich''? Why not Berlin, with its lively literary scene and nightlife that would so suit a charming, witty magazine editor? Why not Hamburg with its large community of British expats, Anglophile culture,[[note]]The joke in Germany is "''Wenn es in London anfängt zu regnen, spannen die Hamburger den Schirm auf''" ("When it rains in London, the people in Hamburg open their umbrellas.")[[/note]] and frequent ships to England?[[note]]Even if he was extra-cautious about maintaining his German residency and never went to England himself for the whole period, Hamburg would be the easiest part of Germany for Edith to visit for this very reason.[[/note]] Did he really just ''have'' to live in sight of the mountains?

** Also, even given Germany, why ''Munich''? Why not Berlin, with its lively literary scene and nightlife that would so suit a charming, witty magazine editor? Why not Hamburg with its large community of British expats, Anglophile culture, and frequent ships to England?[[note]]Even if he was extra-cautious about maintaining his German residency and never went to England himself for the whole period, Hamburg would be the easiest part of Germany for Edith to visit for this very reason.[[/note]] Did he really just ''have'' to live in sight of the mountains?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. Plus, while the Germans were of course "the most hated race in Europe" at that time, Portugal had been one of the Allies and [[BindingAncientTreaty had been on good terms with Britain since the 14th century]]. Portugal was thus host to a reasonably large community of British expats (mostly involved in the wine trade) and there were therefore fairly frequent ships to England from Lisbon and Porto. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did he'd be a very odd bird indeed--most experts rate Portuguese as easier to learn for English-speakers than German.[[note]]The Germans agree--as they say, ''[[UsefulNotes/GermanLanguage Deutsche Sprache, schwere Sprache]]!'' ("German language, tough language!"[[/note]])\\

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. Plus, while the Germans were of course "the most hated race in Europe" at that time, Portugal had been one of the Allies and [[BindingAncientTreaty had been on good terms with Britain since the 14th century]]. Portugal was thus host to a reasonably large community of British expats (mostly involved in the wine trade) and there were therefore fairly frequent ships to England from Lisbon and Porto. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did he'd be a very odd bird indeed--most experts rate Portuguese as easier to learn for English-speakers than German.[[note]]The Germans agree--as they say, ''[[UsefulNotes/GermanLanguage Deutsche Sprache, schwere Sprache]]!'' ("German language, hard language!"[[/note]])\\

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. Plus, while the Germans were of course "the most hated race in Europe" at that time, Portugal had been one of the Allies and [[BindingAncientTreaty had been on good terms with Britain since the 14th century]]. Portugal was thus host to a reasonably large community of British expats (mostly involved in the wine trade) and there were therefore fairly frequent ships to England from Lisbon and Porto. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.)\\

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. Plus, while the Germans were of course "the most hated race in Europe" at that time, Portugal had been one of the Allies, [[BindingAncientTreaty had been on good terms with Britain since the 14th century]], and was host to a reasonably large community of Britons (mostly involved in the wine trade). About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.)\\

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then, there being no visa requirements at the time) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only go to Nevada for the last six months of his naturalisation period to establish himself as a Nevada resident once he got citizenship. (As a side benefit, the federal district court in Nevada would hardly have had a crowded docket in the 1920s and would've been happy to set aside a day to have an Englishman take the oath of citizenship, so he wouldn't have to wait for his court date as he might have done somewhere more populous.) The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as his case was sympathetic and, for the most part, the courts really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy). So why ''Germany'' out of this smorgasbord of options?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then, there being no visa requirements at the time) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only go to Nevada for the last six months of his naturalisation period to get residency there. The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as his case was sympathetic and, for the most part, the courts really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy). So why ''Germany'' out of this smorgasbord of options?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then, there being no visa requirements at the time) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only go to Nevada for the last six months of his naturalisation period to get residency there. The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as that for the most part they really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy). So why ''Germany'' out of this smorgasbord of options?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then, there being no visa requirements at the time) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only spent the last six months of his naturalisation period in Nevada to get residency there. The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as that for the most part they really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy). So why ''Germany'' out of this smorgasbord of options?
** Also, even given Germany, why ''Munich''? Why not Berlin, with its lively literary scene and nightlife that would so suit a charming, witty magazine editor? Why not Hamburg with its large community of British expats and frequent ships to England?[[note]]Even if he was extra-cautious about maintaining his German residency and never went to England himself for the whole period, Hamburg would be the easiest part of Germany for Edith to visit for this very reason.[[/note]] Did he really just ''have'' to live in sight of the mountains?

** Also, even given Germany, why ''Munich''? Why not Berlin, with its lively literary scene and nightlife that would so suit a charming, witty magazine editor? Why not Hamburg with its large community of British expats and trade links with Britain? Did he really just ''have'' to live in sight of the mountains?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then, there being no visa requirements at the time) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only spent the last six months of his naturalisation period in Nevada to get residency there. The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as that for the most part they really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy). So why ''Germany''?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then, there being no visa requirements at the time) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only spent the last six months of his naturalisation period in Nevada to get residency there. The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as that for the most part they really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy).

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option (one that involves no language lessons) of going to the United States for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then) and getting a DivorceInReno. He wouldn't have had to spend the whole time in Nevada, either; he could spend most of his time in New York (or wherever else he found interesting, but probably New York) and only spent the last six months of his naturalisation period in Nevada to get residency there. The Nevada courts would almost certainly have granted him the divorce (they could probably have been persuaded to accept the lunacy as a form of abandonment, seeing as that for the most part they really didn't care what your story was so long as you'd spent six months pumping money into the local economy).

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries (Germany, Greece, Portugal) he mentioned to Edith as allowing divorce by reason of the other spouse's mental incapacity, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option of going to New York for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then), then living in Nevada for six months to get residency there and getting the classic DivorceInReno (Nevada would have recognised the lunacy as a form of abandonment--probably, they really didn't care what your story was).

** Also, even given Germany, why ''Munich''? Why not Berlin, with its lively literary scene and nightlife that would so suit a charming, witty editor of a literary magazine? Why not Hamburg with its large community of British expats and trade links with Britain? Did he really just ''have'' to live in sight of the mountains?

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all the countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries he mentioned to Edith, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece really only had weather to recommend itself over Germany (both countries required seven years for naturalisation, and Greece was at war with Turkey at the time), Portugal offered a quicker path to naturalisation (only three years!) and was only about as unstable as Germany. About the only advantage Germany would have over Portugal is that Portugal was a bit of a backwater technologically--but not that much of one. (One supposes that Gregson might have found the prospect of learning German less daunting than learning Portuguese, but if he did so he'd be a very odd bird indeed.) On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option of going to New York for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then), then living in Nevada for six months to get residency there and getting the classic DivorceInReno (Nevada would have recognised the lunacy as a form of abandonment--probably, they really didn't care what your story was).

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all the countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries he mentioned to Edith, Germany has by far the worst climate. If you're emigrating for a few years, why not make it somewhere nice? Plus while at that time Greece, like Germany, required seven years' residency for naturalisation, Portugal only needed three (so long as you spoke Portuguese, which shouldn't be that hard to acquire for an English-speaker living in Portugal for three years). On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option of going to New York for long enough to get American citizenship (five years back then), then living in Nevada for six months to get residency there and getting the classic DivorceInReno (Nevada would have recognised the lunacy as a form of abandonment--probably, they really didn't care what your story was).

* Other than the RuleOfDrama, why did Michael Gregson go to ''Germany'' of all the countries to effect his plan to divorce his wife? Of the three countries he mentioned to Edith, Germany has by far the worst climate. Plus while at that time Greece required seven years' residency for naturalisation, Portugal only needed three (so long as you spoke Portuguese, which shouldn't be that hard to acquire for an English-speaker living in Portugal for three years). On top of that, there's the never-mentioned option of going to New York for long enough to get American citizenship (five years), then living in Nevada for six months to get residency there and getting the classic DivorceInReno (Nevada would have recognised the lunacy as a form of abandonment--probably, they really didn't care what your story was).

** The idea of “don’t keep a servant around if you don’t need them” is addressed in a later episode by Violet. She states in that it is the responsibility of the nobility to provide employment for the people around them, and if they didn’t, they were “as useless as a glass hammer.” Basically it didn’t matter how independent you felt like being or whether you thought you really needed a valet. You were expected to have one for their sake more than yours. Long story short: the nobility are what would later be termed “job creators” and they took that responsibility seriously.

*** The idea of “don’t keep a servant around if you don’t need them” is addressed in a later episode by Violet. She states in that it is the responsibility of the nobility to provide employment for the people around them, and if they didn’t, they were “as useless as a glass hammer.” Basically it didn’t matter how independent you felt like being or whether you thought you really needed a valet. You were expected to have one for their sake more than yours. Long story short: the nobility are what would later be termed “job creators” and they took that responsibility seriously.

** Referring to the quote on the main page ("we all have different parts,etc."): What a load of crock. If you don't have a need for someone, stop paying them and fire them. But later, when the Crawley family goes through yet more financial difficulty, it becomes clear that this "everyone is entitled to a job" mentality may have been causing this unstoppable decline.
*** Except that Robert firmly believes it's the duty of a lord to make sure his people are taken care of, i.e. employed. That's almost exactly what he says to Matthew regarding Molesly: yes, Matthew might find him superfluous, but getting rid of him would deprive Molesly of his livelihood.
*** Yes, but Matthew pretending he can't dress up on his own doesn't make much of a difference about Molesley's livelihood. Standing there idly may be frustrating, but Robert makes it sound like Matthew at least wants to throw him into a dungeon and starve him to death. Even assuming their house is his only chance to get a job, and he couldn't do anything really useful, like helping out in Downton Abbey where there is too much work to do, or in some charity action of Isobel's, or doing errands in Matthew's office. This was rather guilt-tripping Matthew into a lifestyle he was uncomfortable in. Not to mention not Matthew is the lord yet. Why would he have to do '''Robert's''' job? And if he has to take the responsibility, where is the power with it? Has he no say in reforming the system, changing the "roles"? He didn't even '''want''' to be a FeudalOverlord, ever and despised the mannerisms of the highborn, and now he suddenly ''will'' be the next lord and has a dresser forced on him without his consent, which is another thing - has a valet nothing else to do in a household?
*** Aside from maintaining his employer's clothes, a valet really didn't. Servant roles were very strictly delineated, unless you were a scullery maid like Daisy. Taking care of Matthew's clothes wouldn't have occupied all of Molsely's time, and doing other, non-valet tasks would have been seen as beneath him -- not just by Molsely himself, but by everyone. Servants had just as rigid a caste system as the people who employed them, and while it was silly and wasteful, it was the way society was. Doing the work of a footman or gardener, or even office aide, would have been considered horribly shameful by Molesly and everybody who knew him. Not until World War I would anyone have even dreamed of trying to shake the system up.
*** Just look what happened to Molesley after Matthew died! He lived at the Abbey for ''six months'' after Matthew died, trying to find a position as valet, under-butler or butler in another household, and eventually had to take a job mending the village roads until circumstances finally came together for him to get a job at the Abbey again. Even then, it was a demotion for him and it took being forced to work as a manual laborer for him to be able to accept it. Servants took pride in their work, in their ability to seamlessly and tirelessly cater to the needs of the peerage; and the more prestigious the title of the peer for whom they worked, the more precedence they were given below stairs. The movie Gosford Park, which is a spiritual cousin of this series, lays this out pretty explicitly. For Matthew to say that, as the future Earl of Grantham, he didn't want or need a valet and therefore wanted to dismiss Molesley was the 1910s equivalent of a new managing partner at a major law firm telling an administrative assistant inherited from the former managing partner that he prefers to write his own letters and make his own appointments, so said assistant can either go work in the fast food industry or, at best, join the rest of the general secretarial pool that helps out the junior associates and paralegals.
*** But he didn't even want to fire him! At least as I remember. He would have been in a nominal position at worst. Or even promoted to a housekeeper or something like Carson is. Doing nothing can be frustrating, but is it better to be humiliated with pity errands? Isn't it counterproductive to be someone's ''burden'' to feel useful? Why couldn't Robert send someone practical into a relatively small house, like a housekeeper, secretary or gardener? Especially when Molesley got delusional enough to ask why ''Matthew'' wanted a valet if he doesn't use him. Matthew never promised caretaking for him, it's unfair to act like he begged for him or promised him anything. Robert should do his own job and be generous at his own expense. Not to mention he shouldn't be sexist enough to dump the land on someone who doesn't want it, try to shoehorn him into a role which isn't him while he has Mary who '''does''' want to be his heir and '''would''' manage the land the way he wants his heir to.
*** Did you not watch the same series we did? Robert did not have any choice about who would inherit his title or his property. That was rather a large and important part of the plot!
*** I don't know, but in what I watched, Robert was blamed for passing Mary over, and Matthew was suddenly able to leave it to Mary, not even George. Not like being a powerless figurehead would justify guilt-tripping the heir to do things his way because that's the only right way, times don't change and Robert isn't slowly but surely ruining the holding with his financial {{EpicFail}}s.
*** The fortune was entailed - they don't give a full explanation of this on the show, they expect you to be able to figure it out from context, but basically that means all holdings associated with the current holder of the title are passed down to the heir to the title. Women, in 1912, couldn't inherit titles. So, because of the entail, Mary could not inherit the house. Mary, Edith and Sybil are NOT titled until they marry, this is why they're called "Lady Mary" or "Lady Edith", as a courtesy address instead of being "Lady Crawley". The only Ladies Crawley are their mother and grandmother, who both are conferred the title by marriage. It's only AFTER marrying Matthew that Mary is allowed to use her husband's title. The rules of English nobility were bonkers, that's the point of the show.

* Did Carlisle publishing the Pamuk scandal actually affect Mary? For two seasons it was the driving point of almost the whole show. Hordes of characters hid what happened, got blackmailed into keeping the secret (Bates and Vera), plotted against her (Edith), were burdened by the secret (Daisy), Mary agreed to marry Carlisle to keep him quiet and lived in fear of it being discovered because Mary's life would be ruined if the story came out. Yet at the beginning of Season 3, no one mentions it and she's still accepted into society and treated with respect. Hell, after Matthew dies]she has hordes of suitors even though they must know what she did. There's no drama or consequences at all and Mary and the Granthams aren't shunned by anyone. Was a diplomat ''dying in her bed'' suddenly not a big deal?

*** To add, Carlisle's motivation for most of his behaviour/threats was desperately trying to keep Mary one way or another - he admits that he did really love her and want her to be happy. Once he knew she was gone, it almost seemed to be a weight off his shoulders.

* The British upper class were big on tradition (and still are--hence the continued survival of the monarchy and the House of Lords), and even if the first Crawley girl to be named Mary was born to pre-Reformation Catholic parents, if the name Mary becomes a traditional name in the family it's going to endure no matter what religious developments take place. We've not seen anything suggesting that Mary actually is a Crawley family name, but it certainly was a traditional name for much of early 20th-century Britain, and there's absolutely no reason for that to change.

** Hysterosalpingogram most likely, they had that back then albeit crude. Basically she had one or both fallopian tubes blocked. They would have inserted contrast into her uterine cavity via the vagina (why she wouldn't want to giver her husband any details). They would take an x-ray that showed the blockage. Then there was various different ways of fixing it. Because she didn't need a large operation presumably they managed to fix it by pumping in CO2 or something.