# Madame Defarge — A Tale of Two Cities character guide > Madame Defarge in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. **Role:** major **Also known as:** Defarge, madame, Madame, Therese Defarge, Therese **First appearance:** 0007-v-the-wine-shop ## Snapshot A wine-shop keeper's wife who knits a secret register of the doomed, her cold patience concealing a private and implacable vengeance. ## Who they are Madame Defarge sits in the Saint Antoine wine-shop, knitting names into a pattern only she can read, and when the Revolution comes she becomes one of its most pitiless agents. She tells Lucie that 'the daughter of your father' is her business, not the husband, hinting at a grievance older and more personal than politics. Her cold composure and her refusal to be moved by another woman's plea make her the novel's most frightening figure, a shadow that falls on Lucie and her child long before the Terror begins. ## Relationships ### [Lucie Manette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/lucie_manette) _rivalry_ Madame Defarge sees Lucie as an enemy due to her marriage to Darnay, a member of the hated Evrémonde family. ### [Jacques](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/jacques) _social_ Jacques is a collective alias for revolutionary comrades, and Madame Defarge is a key leader among them, sharing a bond of vengeance. ### [Doctor Manette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/doctor_manette) _rivalry_ Madame Defarge holds a deep grudge against Doctor Manette for his past imprisonment and his connection to the Evrémonde family. ### [Jacques](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/jacques) _social_ Jacques is a collective alias for revolutionary comrades, and Madame Defarge is a key leader among them, sharing a bond of vengeance. ### [Doctor Manette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/doctor_manette) _rivalry_ Madame Defarge holds a deep grudge against Doctor Manette for his past imprisonment and his connection to the Evrémonde family. ### [Lucie Manette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/lucie_manette) _rivalry_ Madame Defarge sees Lucie as an enemy due to her marriage to Darnay, a member of the hated Evrémonde family. ### [Lucie Manette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/lucie_manette) _rivalry_ Madame Defarge sees Lucie as an enemy due to her marriage to Darnay, a member of the hated Evrémonde family. ### [Doctor Manette](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/doctor_manette) _rivalry_ Madame Defarge holds a deep grudge against Doctor Manette for his past imprisonment and his connection to the Evrémonde family. ### [Jacques](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/jacques) _social_ Jacques is a collective alias for revolutionary comrades, and Madame Defarge is a key leader among them, sharing a bond of vengeance. ## In the story ### [Book the First: Recalled to Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/book-the-first-recalled-to-life) Observed knitting in the wine shop, silently recording the names of the aristocracy in her knitting, foreshadowing her role in the revolution. ### [VII: Monseigneur in Town](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/vii-monseigneur-in-town) A dark, stout woman knitting steadfastly near the fountain. She looks the Marquis directly in the face, a silent act of defiance and a symbol of the coming retribution. ### [Knitting](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xv-knitting) Presides over the wine-shop, knits the register of the doomed, and accompanies the mender of roads to Versailles, knitting shrouds. ### [Still Knitting](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xvi-still-knitting) Returns to Saint Antoine, learns of spy Barsad, registers him in her knitting, and leads women in knitting as a revolutionary act. ### [Echoing Footsteps](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xxi-echoing-footsteps) Madame Defarge is a steady figure in the mob, remaining close to the governor of the Bastille and ultimately beheading him with her knife. ### [The Sea Still Rises](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xxii-the-sea-still-rises) Presides over her wine-shop, orchestrates the mob's fury, and personally participates in Foulon's capture and execution. ### [Book the Third: The Track of a Storm](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/book-the-third-the-track-of-a-storm) Relentlessly pursues the Evrémonde family, knitting a registry of the condemned and confronting Miss Pross. ### [III: The Shadow](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/iii-the-shadow) Accompanies Defarge to identify Lucie and her child, remains cold and impassive, and declares that Lucie's father is her true business, refusing to help Charles. ### [The Wood-Sawyer](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/v-the-wood-sawyer) Madame Defarge passes Lucie and Doctor Manette on the snowy road, exchanging brief salutations. ### [Triumph](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/vi-triumph) Sits in the front row of the audience, knitting, beside Defarge; watches the proceedings with dogged determination, never looking at Darnay. ### [A Knock at the Door](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/vii-a-knock-at-the-door) Denounced Darnay along with Monsieur Defarge and one other, as revealed by the man from Saint Antoine. ### [The Game Made](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/ix-the-game-made) One of the three denouncers of Darnay; stands at the bottom of the steps looking steadily at Defarge during his testimony. ### [X: The Substance of the Shadow](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/x-the-substance-of-the-shadow) Smiles to The Vengeance as the verdict is delivered, satisfied that the doctor's testimony seals Darnay's fate. ### [Darkness](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xii-darkness) In her wine-shop, Madame Defarge insists on the extermination of the Evrémonde line and reveals her intent to denounce Lucie, her child, and Doctor Manette. ### [The Knitting Done](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xiv-the-knitting-done) Conspires with The Vengeance and Jacques Three to exterminate the Evrémonde family; goes to the Manette lodging to confront Lucie but is killed in a struggle with Miss Pross. ### [The Footsteps Die Out Forever](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/chapters/xv-the-footsteps-die-out-forever) Notably absent from the execution; her empty chair and knitting are left behind. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters/madame_defarge - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/a_tale_of_two_cities_se/characters