The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club · Character

Major Robert Fentiman

The general's grandson and a man of expensive habits, Robert Fentiman stands to gain from the will but insists he only wanted the old man kept alive.

major

Also known as Robert Fentiman, Major Robert, Major Robert Fentiman, Fentiman, Major, old Fentiman, Robert

First appearance: i old mossy face

As a major figure in The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club, Major Robert Fentiman is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

The elder grandson who stands to inherit over half a million if General Fentiman died after 10:37 a.m.; named as executor and residuary legatee of the General's will.

In the storyIII: Hearts Count More Than DiamondsOpen this moment free

Robert is the grandson who found the general dead and took pains to cover up the circumstances, a fact that makes him both helpful and suspicious. He is perpetually short of money, keeps late hours at Richmond, and has a brother whose instability he must manage. His insistence that he acted in the family's interest creates a tension between his apparent cooperation and the question of what he actually knew.

See Major Robert Fentiman in III: Hearts Count More Than Diamonds Book page

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Character Web

33 connections

A slice of how Major Robert Fentiman sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

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Other

Character groups

Central Fentiman Circle
Protagonist

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point

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In the story

Major Robert Fentiman appears across 12 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

III: Hearts Count More Than Diamonds
The elder grandson who stands to inherit over half a million if General Fentiman died after 10:37 a.m.; named as executor and residuary legatee of the General's will.
VI: A Card of Reentry
Hosts Wimsey at the flat, acts as executor, and recounts the mystery of the General not returning home.
X: Lord Peter Forces a Card
Calls Wimsey to report sighting Mr. Oliver at Charing Cross; agrees to help with surveillance.
XI: Lord Peter Clears Trumps
Reluctantly agrees to the exhumation after Wimsey pressures him, though he is uncomfortable with the scandal and worried about the inheritance.
XII: Lord Peter Turns a Trick
Implicated by Wimsey as the one who moved the General's body and fabricated the Oliver story to alter the time of death.
XIII: Spades Are Trumps
Disappears after receiving an urgent message; pursued by Wimsey.
Grand Slam in Spades
Confesses to moving General Fentiman's body and faking the time of death; initially laughs off the fraud but faces legal consequences.
XV: Shuffle the Cards and Deal Again
Listed as a suspect due to being the last to see General Fentiman alive.
Picture-Cards
Confronts Wimsey angrily about police involvement, accusing him of being a police spy. Strikes Wimsey but is knocked into a wastepaper basket. Later cannot be reached by phone.
XXI: Lord Peter Calls a Bluff
Arrives after being summoned; shows anxiety about George's condition.
XXII: The Cards on the Table
Referred to as a rogue whose dishonesty thwarted Penberthy's plans for the inheritance.
XXIII: Postmortem
Expresses remorse for his fraud and gratitude toward Ann Dorland; plans to take her to a show to cheer her up.

Chapter companion notes

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See Major Robert Fentiman in i old mossy face

See Major Robert Fentiman in III: Hearts Count More Than Diamonds