The Woodlanders characters

Appears from the start

A poor young woman of Little Hintock who supports herself by making spars and other woodland goods. Marty is observant, self-contained, and devoted to Giles Winterborne. Her long hair attracts the attention of a city barber acting for a wealthy client, exposing the distance between her hard labor and the luxury of the women above her socially.

Appears from the start

A barber from Sherton who comes to Little Hintock seeking naturally grown hair for a client. Smooth and persistent, he offers Marty money for hers and makes clear that the purchase is meant to preserve another woman's appearance.

First appears in chapter 2

A young woodsman and cider maker whose livelihood depends on practical knowledge of trees, weather, and the seasonal life of Hintock. Honest and reserved, he has long expected to marry Grace Melbury under an understanding between their fathers, though her education has created a social distance he does not know how to cross.

First appears in chapter 2

A prosperous timber merchant and Grace's father. Years earlier he promised his daughter to Giles as repayment for a wrong done to Giles's family, but the education he has purchased for Grace makes him question whether a woodland tradesman is now a suitable husband for her.

First appears in chapter 3

Marty's sick and anxious father, a woodworker who holds a life interest in his cottage. He becomes obsessed with a large tree near the house, imagining that its movement and sound are bound up with his own failing health.

First appears in chapter 4

Grace's stepmother and George Melbury's wife. She is a steady domestic presence who shares her husband's concern over Grace's return from school and the difficult choice between an old promise and new social ambitions.

Also known as Mrs. Charmond

First appears in chapter 6

The widowed owner of Hintock House and much of the surrounding woodland. Wealthy, beautiful, and frequently absent, she is restless within country life and accustomed to commanding services that conceal age and discomfort, including the purchase of another woman's hair.

First appears in chapter 7

George Melbury's daughter, returning to Little Hintock after an expensive education away from home. Refined but affectionate toward her family and birthplace, Grace stands between the woodland life represented by Giles and the wider social possibilities her father now imagines for her.

First appears in chapter 9

A young doctor newly established near Little Hintock, descended from a family of higher status than his present circumstances suggest. Intelligent, solitary, and absorbed in speculative study, he appears to George Melbury as a gentleman whose profession and ancestry may suit Grace's education.

First appears in chapter 10

An old woodland worker employed by Giles. Creedle is loyal, talkative, and deeply familiar with local customs, providing practical help in the cider house and a rustic commentary on the changes affecting Giles's prospects.

Also known as Grammer Oliver

First appears in chapter 11

An elderly servant in the Melbury household who suffers from a growth that Fitzpiers hopes to study after her death. Alarmed by his scientific request, she treats the doctor's curiosity as a threat rather than an impersonal medical interest.

First appears in chapter 19

A young woman from the Hintock community whose earlier encounter with Fitzpiers becomes significant to Grace's understanding of the doctor. She is married to the timber worker Tim Tangs.