The Talleyrand Maxim · Characters
Character guide
Key figures in The Talleyrand Maxim by J. S. Fletcher.
Skim names here — open a free preview to see character cards and Character Web beside the page as you read.
Linford Pratt
major
Also known as Pratt, Mr. Pratt, young Mr. Pratt, Master Pratt
Pratt is Eldrick's clerk at a Barford solicitors' firm — outwardly dutiful, inwardly cataloguing every advantage. When Antony Bartle collapses in the office, Pratt alone grasps what the dead man carried, and his long-hoped-for opportunity arrives in the fog. His quiet, plausible manner makes him hard to suspect and harder to stop, and his patient blackmail of Mrs. Mallathorpe sets the novel's central machinery turning.
Bartle Collingwood
major
Also known as Collingwood, Mr. Bartle, Mr. Collingwood, old Bartle, young Collingwood, Antony Bartle, Mr. Antony Bartle, old Antony Bartle
Collingwood arrives in Barford to bury Antony Bartle and take up a promising legal career, only to find himself drawn into the Mallathorpe affairs. Proud enough to dread being thought a fortune-hunter, he is drawn to Nesta Mallathorpe while distrusting Linford Pratt on instinct he cannot yet justify. His watchfulness and legal training make him the one man positioned to test Pratt's story — if he can find the proof.
Nesta Mallathorpe
major
Also known as Nesta, Miss Mallathorpe, Miss Nesta Mallathorpe, Mallathorpe
Nesta inherits wealth, the mill, and a family already compromised by secrets she does not yet know. Where her brother was weak and her mother fearful, Nesta is direct and unflinching — she tells Pratt to his face that he is an enemy. Her refusal to be managed forces Pratt to show his hand, and her strength becomes the counterweight the plot must reckon with.
Charles Eldrick
supporting
Also known as Eldrick, Mr. Eldrick, Lawyer Eldrick
Eldrick handles the Mallathorpe estate business and takes a practical, paternal interest in Collingwood's career, even handing him cases. He calls Pratt a clever chap and half-defends him, unaware how much the clerk has overheard and pocketed. His easy confidence in his own office makes him both a useful ally to Collingwood and an unwitting shield for Pratt.
Richard Mallathorpe
supporting
Also known as Mrs. Richard Mallathorpe, Mrs. Mallathorpe
Mrs. Mallathorpe has quietly run the estate and mill while her son Harper drifted, and she knows exactly how much is at stake when Pratt reveals what he holds. She cannot confide in her weak son or her upright daughter, so she must deal with Pratt alone — veiled visits, sleepless nights, and money she can move without anyone noticing. Her desperate bargain is the secret that binds the whole Mallathorpe story together.
James Parrawhite
supporting
Also known as Parrawhite
Parrawhite once took money from Eldrick's desk and booked passage to America, or so the shipping agent says. Now Halstead & Byner and Eldrick are both hunting him, and Pratt affects surprise at the advertisements while clearly knowing more than he admits. Whether Parrawhite sailed or never left Liverpool becomes the question that could unravel Pratt's whole position.
Eldrick & Pascoe
supporting
Also known as Eldrick, Pascoe, Messrs. Eldrick & Pascoe, Messrs. Eldrick
Eldrick & Pascoe handle the Mallathorpe estate and the affairs of old Antony Bartle, placing them at the crossroads of Barford's money and secrets. Eldrick, the senior partner, is shrewd enough to watch his own clerk narrowly while pretending not to; Pratt, that clerk, is a born observer who answers questions before they are asked. The firm's routine business — wills, leases, advertisements for a missing man — becomes the machinery through which the novel's central mystery turns.
Halstead Byner
supporting
Also known as Byner, Halstead, Mr. Byner, Mr. Gerald Byner
Halstead Byner works for City solicitors hunting Parrawhite, the vanished legatee of twenty thousand pounds, and his advertisements drag the case into Barford's local papers. He is methodical and deliberate, insisting to Eldrick that the search will be thorough — a warning aimed as much at Pratt as at anyone. His quiet pressure keeps the missing man's fortune in play and forces the people who know more than they admit to move carefully.
George Pickard
minor
Also known as Mr. Pickard, Pickard
A local tradesman with connections to the Mallathorpe family.
Esther Mawson
minor
Also known as Esther
A housekeeper or servant in the Mallathorpe household.
R. Murgatroyd
minor
Also known as Mr. Murgatroyd, Murgatroyd
A local businessman involved in the community.
John Mallathorpe
supporting
Also known as Mr. John Mallathorpe, the late John Mallathorpe, Mr. Mallathorpe
John Mallathorpe's death left his estate in the hands of his widow and his weak-willed son Harper, with his strong-minded daughter Nesta kept at a distance from the truth. A later will, if produced, would dispossess the children entirely — and the clerk who found it knows exactly what that silence is worth. His unseen presence shapes every bargain in the novel's early arc, turning grief into leverage and a family's comfort into a secret held by a stranger.
Prydale
minor
Also known as Sergeant Prydale
A police sergeant investigating the death of John Mallathorpe.
Cobcroft
minor
Also known as Mr. Cobcroft, Mrs. Cobcroft
A couple who are tenants or associates of the Mallathorpes.
Harper Mallathorpe
minor
Also known as Harper, John Mallathorpe, young Harper Mallathorpe, Mr. Harper Mallathorpe
The late John Mallathorpe's nephew and a potential heir.
Jabey Naylor
minor
Also known as Jabey, Naylor
A local character with ties to the events surrounding the will.
Hoskins
minor
A servant or employee in the Mallathorpe household.
Clough
minor
Also known as Mrs. Clough
A woman who provides lodging or services in Barford.
John Standridge
minor
Also known as Sir John Standridge
A baronet mentioned in connection with the Mallathorpe family.
Stringer
minor
Also known as Mestur Stringer, James Stringer
A minor character in the Barford community.
Gaukrodger
minor
Also known as Mrs. Gaukrodger, A Mrs. Gaukrodger
A woman with knowledge of the Mallathorpe family history.
Robson
minor
Also known as Mr. Robson
A solicitor or clerk associated with the case.
Shepherd
minor
Also known as Mr. Shepherd, Mestur Shepherd
A minor figure in the legal or business circles of Barford.
Parsons
minor
A minor character appearing in the later chapters.
Vickers & Marshall
minor
Also known as Messrs. Vickers, Marshall
A firm of solicitors involved in the legal proceedings.
Bill Thomson
minor
Also known as Bill, Thomson
A local man who provides information to the investigators.
Martin Charlesworth
minor
Also known as Charlesworth
A name mentioned in connection with the will or estate.
Arthur James Wyatt
minor
Also known as Wyatt
A person referenced in the legal documents of the case.
Ann Mallathorpe
minor
A female relative of the Mallathorpe family.