William Elliot is a character in Persuasion. He is a distant cousin of Sir Walter Elliot's and is the great grandson of the second Sir Walter. He is heir presumptive of the baronetcy and the family seat, Kellynch Hall. Sir Walter invited him to Kellynch in order to push him to his eldest daughter and favorite, Elizabeth. He was aloof and later they heard he had married an heiress of inferior birth[1]. Mrs. William Elliot later died and he kept her fortune.
Biography[]
Estrangement[]
As a young man, William resented the expectations placed on him as Sir Walter's heir. He had no interest in marrying Elizabeth, as everyone expected him to do, and disliked that Sir Walter felt William was obligated to be grateful and visit Kellynch regularly to pay homage to the Baronetcy. Unwilling to sit and wait for his inheritance in company of Sir Walter and Elizabeth, whom he held in contempt, William was chilly towards Sir Walter's open arms and ignored multiple invitations to visit the estate and become closer to Elizabeth, who fancied him as her ideal potential husband.
As the position of heir did not come with any income until his actual inheritance, and failing to understand the advantages of having a title and high connections in his youth, William disdained the Baronetcy, the Elliots, and Kellynch as burdensome and annoying, and commented that he would like to sell or demolish the estate and title as soon as he had the chance.
In rebellion (and likely due to his poverty) William ignored family duty to instead marry an heiress at age 19, becoming wildly wealthy. Both Sir Walter and Elizabeth took grave insult from his marriage and began an estrangement.
During his youth, William was friends with Mrs. Smith's husband. Through Mrs. Smith, William learned more about the Elliots, namely Anne. She tried to convince him that Anne was different from her sister, and better, filling William up with her words of praise for Anne.
Reconciliation[]
6 months prior to the events of the book, his wife, Mrs. Elliot, died, leaving William with a fortune[1]. Having grown to appreciate that money cannot provide everything and a title can open doors, William now sees the Baronetcy he stands to inherit in a new, desirable light, and seeks to reconcile with Sir Walter to make his position more secure. To appease his relative's damaged pride, he excuses that he had married his commoner wife solely for her money and that the marriage had been unhappy[2]. Charming, intelligent, and above all, handsome, Sir Walter and Elizabeth quickly forgive William for his indiscriminate youth, and push to renew their original agenda: namely, William marrying Elizabeth, and becoming a fixture at Kellynch.
Without either party knowing who the other was, William was spotted by his cousins Mary Musgrove and Anne Elliot when they were staying at Lyme. He was visibly appreciative of Anne's appearance as they passed each other, indicating a genuine attraction. He had ridden off quickly, although he looked fashionable and wealthy[3].
Upon leaving Lyme, William travels directly to Bath and takes up residence in Marlborough Buildings, housing that is extremely fashionable and luxurious, and begins his social, strategic siege on Sir Walter to mend the estrangement and renew the relationship. He introduces his relatives to Colonel and Mrs. Wallis[4]. Colonel Wallis, William's close friend, assists him in winning the Elliot's over, by advocating on his behalf and feeding them tidbits about William's marriage which cause them to forgive William. Sir Walter and Elizabeth are quickly taken with him, and he becomes a frequent feature in their house and invited along . Mrs. Clay, Elizabeth's companion, tries to encourage her in the direction of a romance with him, and Elizabeth is tempted[4].
All of his actions confuse Anne, since William seems to be wealthier than her father at this point. She likewise finds him intelligent, pleasant, and charming to speak with. Anne is mainly confused about why William would want to reconcile after all this time, and finds his ability to seamlessly adapt to flattering various groups, but writes it off thinking that perhaps there is now an interest between William and Elizabeth[4]. Multiple characters comment on William's open interest in Anne, assuming an engagement is forthcoming, which Anne dismisses.
On his part, William is genuinely delighted and attracted upon meeting Anne. He is attentive and makes himself exceedingly agreeable to her. He shared her dislike of Mrs. Clay, whom they both thought as an upstart with devious designs on Sir Walter. He also encouraged the Elliots—namely Anne as Sir Walter and Elizabeth needed no encouragement—to get to know Lady Dalrymple and her daughter, as the connection would only further their rise into Bath society[5].
Pursuit of Anne[]
William quickly zeroes in on Anne as his focus. He enjoys teasing her with hints that he has long known of her from a mysterious source, later revealed to be Mrs. Smith[2], and that he had admired her even before their ever meet. The two are often thrown together at gatherings, with Colonel Wallis keeping Elizabeth distracted. William proposes to Anne at a concert hosted by Lady Dalrymple with the suggestion that her name "Anne Elliot" is so charming, he wished it would never change. Anne, who had recently renewed her hope that her former love, Frederick Wentworth, once again returned her affections, is taken aback and uncomfortable by this proposal, especially once it becomes clear that Wentworth overheard and left the concert in a hurry due to jealousy[6].
Character Reveal[]
Mrs. Smith reveals to Anne Mr. Elliot's calculating and derisive nature, showing her letters where he openly derides Sir Walter and Elizabeth as boorish fools he cannot stand. She also states that the reason for the sudden reconciliation was due to Mr. Elliot hearing rumors that Sir Walter was possibly intending to remarry the young Mrs. Clay. Mr. Elliot purposefully came to Bath, bringing his friend Colonel Wallis to help, in order to monitor the situation and prevent Sir Walter from marrying a second, younger wife, who could give him a son and remove Mr. Elliot from succession.
Though Mrs. Smith continues on to assure Anne that Mr. Elliot has had a genuine change in his appreciation of the Baronetcy, becoming the Baronet "Sir William" is his fondest wish, and that his attraction to Anne has always been real and sincere, Anne is disgusted by Mr. Elliot's remarks about her family, and permanently cools towards him.
End of the book[]
Mr. Elliot is "discomfited and disappointed" by the news of Anne's acceptance of Captain Wentworth's proposal, which is described as having "deranged his best plan of domestic happiness." Disliking Elizabeth enough not to switch his aim back at her, Mr. Elliot withdraws from the pretense of interest in her, sinking her hopes of marrying someone who meets her standards. Still scheming and charming, Mr. Elliot manages to convince Mrs. Clay to leave with him against her better interests. He establishes her in London as his mistress to keep her away from Sir Walter. It is mused that perhaps one day, having cunning equal to his own, she may possibly succeed in convincing him to marry her.
Traits and characteristics[]
- "He was quite as good looking as he appeared at Lyme, his countenance improved by speaking, and his manners were so exactly what they ought to be, so polished, so easy, so particularly agreeable, that she could compare them in excellence to only one person's manners. They were not the same, but they were, perhaps, equally good."
- —Narration about Mr. William Elliot[4]
After an initially rocky start, William endeared himself to the Elliots. Like Sir Walter and Elizabeth, he valued rank and prestige. He also valued good conversation, education, and well-informed people, thus endearing himself to Anne Elliot and Lady Russell. Anne thought him to be their most agreeable acquaintance in Bath[5].
- "Mr. Elliot is a man without heart or conscience; a designing, wary, cold-blooded being, who thinks only of himself; who, for his own interest or ease, would be guilty of any cruelty, or any treachery, that would be perpetrated without risk of his general character. He has no feeling for others. Those whom he has been the chief cause of leading into ruin, he can neglect and desert without the smallest compunction. He is totally beyond the reach of any sentiment or compassion. Oh! He is black at heart, hollow and black!"
- —Mrs. Smith describing Mr. Elliot's character to Anne Elliot, her friend[2]
According to Mrs. Smith, William married solely for money, and only upon making sure his bride had a large dowry. He also was blatantly disrespectful about Anne's family, and even said he would sell the baronetcy for 50 pounds.